Training and revelations.

The next day was Saturday, Shelly didn't really know what she'd do, but then her doorbell rang and she found Ron at her front door.

"So, ready to enter Hell?" he said, grinning.

"Huh?"

"Today, you enter into the first day of practicing under Kim Possible."

"Kim? Is she?" Ron Shook his head.

"Nah, she's at home right now." He shrugged, "Kim decided that the doctors were wrong, and she was going to walk as much as she wants, thank you very much."

"What happened?" Shelly asked. Ron sighed,

"This morning she couldn't get out of bed, much less walk anywhere—her mom's giving her a bath and leg massage, but I figure she'll be in the chair all day today." He grinned. "So I decided to pick you up a little early, and drop by Felix's to get some stuff and we'll swing by Kim's and pick her up." Shelly nodded at that.

"Is Felix coming with us?"

"Nah, he and Monique have a date today—they'll meet us at lunch."

"Then why-"

"That's where I'm staying right now." Ron said, and his face abruptly closed up. Breakfast and the drive to Felix's house went quickly, with Ron pointing out the various sights—many of them apparently tied to his and Kim's adventures.

When they got to Felix's house, Felix's mom was waiting for them. She smiled and gave Ron a quick hug.

"Ron, Kim calledher mother will take her to the gym and wait for you."

"Oh good." Ron said, "Thanks." Then, the older woman looked at Ron and Shelly and in a quieter voice, continued.

"They called again."

"So?"

"Ron, they just want to talk to you."

"I think we've said all we need to say to one another."

"They were afraid."

"That's no excuse." Ron paused, smile for once nowhere near his face. "I'm going to be with Kim all day, so if anyone needs me, that's where I'll be." He smiled.

"Thanks again."

"It's ok…Ron." Felix's mother said, looking at him with some undefinable sadness.

When they were in the car, Shelly looked at Ron, and the way his hands were white against the steering wheel.

"Sorry about that." Ron said.

"Old girlfriends?"

"Parents." Shelly shut up. The rest of the drive passed in an uncomfortable silence, broken when they got to the gym. There was a van in the otherwise empty parking lot, with an older version of Kim standing by it, Kim in the wheelchair next to her.

"Hey KP!" Ron called, cheerful again. Kim looked rebellious, and Shelly noticed that her crutches were nowhere to be seen. Then, her mother went and got the crutches from the van, handing them to Ron.

"Since someone who shall remain nameless, but has the initials, K.A. P., seems to be bound and determined to use these, I suggest you put them in your van, Ron."

"Hey, no problem, Mrs. P." Ron said, ignoring Kim's glare. Shelly walked over to Kim, while Ron and her mother took the crutches to the other van.

"Thanks Kim." She said.

"It's okay." Kim said, "Besides, Bonnie is serious about dropping you in a week." She shrugged, "I think you can do it." Shelly looked closer at Kim, and noticed her face was pale, and her legs twitched, uncontrollably, like every muscle was locked up.

She's hurting. Then, when Kim turned the wheelchair and headed inside, Shelly heard her give a brief hiss of pain. She's really hurting… And that was why her mother had walked over with Ron. The two were talking, Kim's mother looking concerned, and now that Kim wasn't facing him, so did Ron.

You were hurt as badly as Kim. Shelly thought. Why is everyone depending on you? Kim couldn't walk…Ron had lost an eye, and she bet that wasn't the only thing that had been done to him. But all the stories had always had Kim being the tough one…so why was Ron now the one everyone seemed to depend on?

"Ready?" Kim asked. Shelly looked at her and grinned.

"Yeah… well not really, but lets do it anyway." Kim grinned,

"That's the spirit!"

For the next six hours, Kim showed Shelly exactly what to do, with Ron perched on the bleacher steps by her, holding one of her hands, except when she came out on the floor in her wheelchair to show Shelly something she was doing wrong (or more rarely) right.

Kim wasn't an easy taskmaster…although Ron mentioned that at least this wasn't soccer practice (somewhat oddly to Shelly). Kim blushed at that comment, but kept on going.

By the end of the practice Shelly thought she was improving, and Kim agreed.

"Yeah, you have all the components of themoves down, but you have to think more of the people around you." Kim said, "Remember the cheerleading team is a single whole—it doesn't matter how good you are if you don't fit in with the others." She shrugged, "That'll come in general practice, but after this weekend, not even Bonnie will be able to say you don't work with them." She sighed, "It's a good team."

At that point, Felix and Monique strolled in (well, wheeled in Felix's case), laughing and chatting, holding hands.

"How was the movie?"

"Perfect!" Monique said, "Attack of the Zombie Yak part XIII was all it was said to be."

"Was this before, or after, the movie sucked your brains out?" Kim said.

"After, of course…" Felix said, "That's the fun of the movie!" Kim shook her head and sighed.

"So, what now?" Ron asked.

"Lunch and…miniature golf?" Felix replied. Ron grinned. "Ahhh yes…miniature golf."

"Ron…" Kim said, "remember, they have the new attraction…monkey mania?" Ron frowned, and Rufus gagged.

"Yes, well, just because evil has infiltrated the golf course is no reason for me to run…"

"I thought you were over Monkeys," Monique said.

"Yes, but a monkey attraction at the golf course is still sick and wrong!" Ron said.

"Well, lets go do it!" Felix said.

"First…Beuno Nacho." Ron said.

"Does he eat anywhere else?" Shelly asked Kim.

"Only if there is nothing, and I mean, Nothing else." Kim said.

At Bueno Nacho, Kim and Felix were talking at their table, while Shelly, Ron, and Monique headed to the counter. Monique looked back, and Shelly noticed that she was waiting until they were far enough away for Kim to not hear.

"Ron, Felix's mom called us."

"And?" Ron said, his voice closed.

"They called again."

"I know."

"You have to talk to them."

"No, I don't." Ron said quietly.

"Kim would want you to—she has asked you to." Monique said to Ron, and Ron nearly dropped the drink he'd just filled up.

"I know. She has. " Ron said, "And I can't. Not even for her. Not after what they did."

"It's making Kim feel worse."

"Then don't tell her." Ron said. Monique sighed.

"And what about you, Ron?" She said quietly, "They're your parents."

"They were my parents." Ron said, "It was their choice, what they did." He paused, and again without any hint of a smile on his ruined face, "Excuse me." He said, and turned around. By the time he got back to Kim and Felix, he was the same joking Ron. Felix looked over at Monique and Monique shook her head, sadly.

Shelly looked over at Monique and sighed.

"So, is this something I can't know either?" She paused and got an annoyed look on her face, "Because if it is, could you please stop having these conversations in front of me?" She looked back at Ron, joking with Kim and Felix. "Besides, I heard Felix's mom talk to Ron."

"Yeah." Monique said. "Well… I guess you should know—you look like someone who knows how to keep her mouth shut…and if you don't…"

"You'll hurt me terribly." Shelly said. "I don't squeal on friends, or try to make points with some boyfriend." Kim was laughing now as Rufus looked like he was imitating General Washington going across the Deleware.

Monique nodded. "When we're at the golf course."

They went back and put their food down, and Monique grinned.

At the miniature golf course, Monique and Shelly teamed up, leaving Felix, Ron, and Kim to go themselves. It worked, because evidently Felix had been showing Kim some of the tricks for using a wheelchair, and in fact he turned off much of his own chairs electronics, making it more like her own, so she would be better able to learn from him.

Pretty soon, Monique and Shelly found themselves a hole ahead of the others, which gave her time to talk.

"OK." Shelly said, "Ron's parents."

"Ron emancipated himself."

"Why?" Shelly asked. "Did they disown him?"

"No….not him." Monique shook her head.

"When they brought him and Kim in…" She closed her eyes, "We thought Ron was going to die. He'd… he'd been tortured, so badly… he had broken bones, burns, he'd been starved of water… his eye was gone, the face." Monique paused, "He was in a coma for three weeks."

"What about Kim?"

"Kim was awake…but…" Monique shuddered, "Shego…" and her voice was a hiss of hatred, "Had made certain to keep Kim awake for everything she did to Ron.. Kim still hasn't told anyone the whole story. The only thing Kim has said was that Ron took a lot for her."

"He's a real boyfriend." Monique nodded at that.

"And nobody calls him a nerd anymore—you get your eye ripped out for your friend, and don't turn into a basket case…" She gave a soft laugh, "With all the monkey freaking, everyone figured it'd be Ron, not Kim that would go off the deep end…but he seems to be handling it better."

"So what happened?"

"Like I said, Kim was awake, and then about three weeks into it… she saw Ron."

"Bad?"

"Bad…but not like what came after." Monique closed her eyes, "I was there. Ron's parents hadn't known that Kim was up, and they came in on her with Ron. She was trying to say she was sorry…but Ron's dad grabbed the wheelchair and wheeled her right out into the hallway." She looked down and tried to concentrate on the golf ball, but suddenly the cheery music of the course seemed to fade and die.

"They told her their son had had enough of being Kim Possible's flunky and target… and that if she ever tried to contact him, in any way, again, they'd call the cops on her. The next day they had a messenger give her parents the court order." Monique missed the golf ball. "I remember I was in the corridor, so I heard Ron's mom's words to Kim: 'since you didn't quite manage to murder our son this time, pardon us if we don't give you another chance.'"

"And Ron disowned them for that?"

"No." She paused, "The next day Kim went to school…and…and well tried to kill herself. When they took her off she was saying over and over again that it was all her fault that she deserved this, that Ron's parents were right… and when Ron came out of the coma, his parents didn't tell him. It wasn't until he talked to some other people that he found out everything that had happened." Monique looked behind them, where Ron was balancing on a bench, laughing with Kim and Felix. Shelly realized that Monique had probably been the one doing the telling.

"I've never…I've never seen anyone so angry. He wasn't even angry at me, and he scared me, Shelly…not in a loud way…he just got…quiet…." She paused, "I don't know what he said to his parents, but he walked in, they were there for about 20 minutes, and then walked out with a single suitcase and went to Kim's hospital room. I was with him, and they weren't going to let him in, but Mrs. Possible let him in and anyone else who got an idea to stop him, just one look at his face….brrr…. She was sedated, I mean, really sedated, so he just looked down, took her hand, held it, and then kissed her on the cheek.

"and then?"

"And then Ron went to the hall of justice, called in some favors, I guess from some people he and Kim had helped and got himself emancipated. He moved in with Felix the next day…"

"Why not the Possible's?"

"Her parents don't want him too."

"They don't? After all he's done?"

"Not that—they're afraid that if he does, he'll never get back with his parents…so is Felix's mom." Monique sighed, "It does tear Ron up…but I don't know if he could forgive them, even if he wanted to." She shook her head, "Ron told me that as much as he knows it isn't true, it feels like his parents wanted Kim to kill herself." Shelly shook her head and opened her mouth, but just then a golfball bounced past them.

"Hey guys!" Felix called, Ron and Kim by him, "Get a move on! You're holding up the game." Shelly and Monique looked at each other, waved, and started playing.

To be continued.