Kim Possible and all related characters are the property of Disney. Transformers and all related characters are the property of Hasbro.

The Transformers used will be a mixture of Generation 1, Beast Wars, the IDW Comics series (which is fantastic, by the way), the Aligned Continuity (The Prime and Robots in Disguise TV series and the Fall of Cybertron and War for Cybertron video games), and a smattering of The Unicron Trilogy (Armada, Energon, and Cybertron) and Animated.

Wish You Were Here written by David Gilmour and Roger Waters

Over the last month I had learned a lot of interesting things. I learned that humanity wasn't alone of the universe, that there was such a thing as naturally occurring robots, and that my best friend (now boyfriend, thank you very much) Ron Stoppable wasn't dead, but had been held captive for six years by a group of techno-terrorists called Mech. That lead to my latest revelation.

My name is Kim Possible. I'm a special agent with Unit E assigned to the Autobots, and I just found out that my own grandmother had a link with Mech. Actually, she was the founder of Special Tactics, the military precursor of Mech.

I was sitting in a conference room at the Pentagon with my boss, Agent William Fowler, as well as my Nana, and General Joe Colton, the founder of G.I. Joe. My grandmother, in her full-dress uniform, had just come into the room. I stood up to greet her.

"Nana, it's great to see you, but what are you doing here?"

My grandmother embraced me. "It's good to see you too, Kimberly Anne." She gave me a squeeze, then let go. "Tell me, how is Ronald?"

I gave her a smile. "Getting stronger every day," I said. "I'm sure he'd love to see you."

Nana returned my smile. "I want to see him," she said. "When Agent Fowler contacted me and told me Ronald was still alive…" Nana trailed off. She was devastated when we lost Ron. She later told me that it felt like she'd lost a grandchild. That's how much Ron meant to my family. How much he means to my family.

Do you remember when I asked my dad about why he was using the Hephaestus tech to heal Sideways? I thought it was because he wanted his invention to be used for something other than destruction. I was wrong. Dad told me it was to thank the Autobots. They helped me bring Ron home, and in doing so, made my family and Ron's family whole again. By saving Sideways, he was healing the Autobot family as they had healed ours.

Family is everything, and I don't just mean family you're related to by blood. Real family isn't just about genetics, but the family you choose; those people who are such an integral part of your life that they are really family. Ron was like that to my 'rents, and I was like that to his 'rents. Actually, Sideways, Windblade and some of the other Autobots were becoming that to me.

"You're on the authorized visitor's list, Colonel Possible," Agent Fowler said. "Whenever you want to come to Nevada, just let us know."

"Now that we have all the formalities out of the way," General Colton said, "let's get down to business." We all took a seat, and the general went into mission mode.

"Mech has been a thorn in our collective sides for a while now," General Colton said. "We have reason to believe that they've been providing weapons to both Cobra and VENOM. Those two groups are dangerous enough as it is without any outside help. And don't get me started on the foreign terrorist cells they've been supplying."

I nodded and looked over at my grandmother. "What can you tell us about Leland Bishop, other than the fact that he's a sadistic monster?"

She just shook her head. "Very little. I had long since retired when Bishop became the CO of Special Tactics. All I really know is what's in his file." She pulled a file folder out of the briefcase she had with her. "Military family, a technical genius, and able to think outside the box. Unfortunately, those last two qualities are what led him to perverting my organization into what it is now."

Nana looked me in the eyes. "I intended Special Tactics to be elite problem solvers; a place where the military and civilians could come together and use their intellects for the greater good." Nana's lips grew into a sad smile. "That's where I met your grandfather."

General Colton chuckled. "Loathe as I am to speak ill of the dead, I still haven't forgiven Nathaniel Possible for robbing me of an operative I had on my shortlist for the first G.I. Joe team."

I just learned something else. My grandmother was almost a Joe. My family had a very interesting history that I was just now learning. But there would be time for that later. "So, what can we do?" I asked. "Ron and Shego were both tortured by these monsters. They need to be brought to justice."

"Not to mention what he did to your friend with the detachable head," General Colton said, referring to an Autobot named Sideways.

"They have a lot to answer for," I agreed. "We just don't know where they are. They had an outpost in Siberia, which has since been destroyed, as well as one in Lowerton, which had very little usable intel."

"Do Shego and Stoppable know anything?" Colton asked.

I shook my head. "They were locked up. They had no idea where they were being held. Ron didn't see the light of day for six years. Shego had seen the sun, but only just enough to keep her powers fully charged."

Colton nodded. Then he looked over at Fowler. "Well, Bill, this is your show. Any ideas?"

Fowler smiled. "Fortunately, sir, when we got Agent Possible on our payroll, we also got a resource named Wade Load. He has an idea about those bombs in Shego's bloodstream..."

Wade was acting like a kid in a toy store. He ran through the halls of the Ark, trying to memorize every deck plate, rivet and conduit of the Autobot ship. Normally I would have told him to get his head in the game, but not this time. I wasn't quite as enthusiastic when I first set foot on this ship, but I was so in awe. After a few moments of nearly hyperventilating, Wade calmed down, took a breath, and we made our way to the bridge. When we got there, the Autobots were waiting.

"Welcome to the Ark, Wade," Optimus Prime said.

"Glad to be here," Wade said after a few stammering attempts. Optimus picked Wade up and placed him at my workstation. Wade then took a vial out of his pocket. It was one of the vials filled with the nanite infused blood that had been drawn from Shego back at base. The case it had been carried in was made of the same nonconductive Faraday cage material that Shego's dorm room was made of. We were safe down here, though. There was no way any signal from Silas could get through all this rock and alien metal. Still, better safe than sorry.

"Teletraan-1," Wade said aloud, "scan the nanotech in this vial." A soft blue light shot down from the ceiling and ran over the vial.

"Scanned," the Autobot supercomputer said. "Awaiting further instructions."

Wade looked over at me and the others. "I'm hoping that Teletraan-1 can create a virtual nanite, and then trace the command signals it receives back to the source."

"Didn't you try something like that already?" I asked.

"Yes, but I'm hoping that Autobot tech might have more luck than simple human tech does."

"Then by all means, Wade," Optimus said, "please proceed."

Wade nodded. "I should warn you, this could take a while. A long while."

Normally, whenever Wade said things could take a while, or that a task could be impossible, he would finish what he was doing before he could finish protesting. Not this time. This time he had to backtrack the detonation signal through spy satellites, global positioning satellites, TV and radio satellites, and then finally Mech's own communication satellites.

That took a few days, even with Teletraan-1. That should tell you how tough Mech's encryptions were. Wade was good, and with an alien supercomputer, he should have been an unstoppable hacking machine! Mech's code was just that complex.

But Wade did crack the code, which is why I was sitting in Sideways' vehicle mode on a back road in rural Montana. I was kind of surprised by this, actually. We were only about a hundred miles away from my Uncle Slim's ranch. It made me worried, to be honest. Uncle Slim was a brilliant robotics expert. If this particular Mech stronghold was this close to Uncle Slim, it made me wonder if Mech was going to go after his tech. There was no way I was going to let this happen!

I was drumming my fingers on Sideways' steering wheel. "Keep that up and you'll knock my wheel off," he said, snapping me out of my thoughts.

I put my hands in my lap. "Sorry." All this waiting was getting to me. Sideways and I were waiting for the go signal.

Wade had nailed down the Mech base's location to within fifty square miles, which was still a lot of road to cover. Like I said, we were on a county road. There were only a few cars that came by, and none of them stopped to see why a black and silver two door coup was sitting at the side of the road. That was a real plus to Sideways' new alt mode. He certainly had the "robots in disguise" part down.

"Shanix for your thoughts," Sideways said. On Cybertron, shanix was what was used for currency, like energon shards were used on Caminus.

"Just really mad and worried," I told him. I explained that my uncle was, relatively speaking, pretty close by, and that his tech was something Silas would love to get his hands on. The only upside was the fact that my cousin Joss was away at college. We sat in silence for a moment. "Can I ask you something?"

"You just did," he said with a chuckle. "Go ahead."

"Why this vehicle mode? You had your choice of anything, so why this?"

"I thought that would be obvious. I can fit in easier."

Okay, that made sense. His last alternate mode, a monster motorcycle and a heavily armored rider, stood out more than I would in a room full of brunettes.

"Not even holomatter would cover up my old rider mode," Sideways continued. "I could only leave the base when we had missions far away from population centers. Now I can drive off base whenever I want. Well, I will be able to once I get my holomatter avatar."

"I understand," I told him. I hadn't even considered that Sideways would have been confined to base when he didn't have Decepticons to bash on.

We sat in silence for another few minutes. I was about to say something when the comm went off. "Check in," Arcee said. "No sign of Mech activity on my end."

"Same here," Bumblebee replied.

"And here," said Bulkhead. "Just a lot of cows."

"Nothing here, either," Sideways added. "Hey, Wade, any chance of nailing down the location a little closer?"

"This is as close as I could get you guys," was Wade's response. He was back at the Ark with Ratchet, Kup, and Windblade. They were our backup. The Maximals were also on standby, as were the Dinobots. Optimus Prime made sure we had all our bases covered.

Speaking of Optimus, he hadn't checked in yet. "Optimus?" I said. "Is everything all right where you are?"

"No sign of Mech activity," he said after a moment's hesitation. I wasn't the only one who caught it.

"What are you thinking, Optimus?" Arcee asked.

"We're being watched," he said. "We anticipated that we would be, and we did our best to scramble our communications, but nearly all of us have vehicle modes that Mech is familiar with."

"Everyone except me," Sideways said. "But I'm still sitting out in the open, so if Mech sees me, they'll still know we're up to something."

I sat there, thinking. Our communications were scrambled, hopefully enough that Silas and his cronies wouldn't be able to eavesdrop on us, and they wouldn't recognize Sideways. "Maybe we should call them out then," I finally said. I was expecting a chorus of voices telling me how stupid an idea that was, with Optimus Prime being the loudest voice in that chorus, but it never happened.

"That might not be a bad idea," Optimus said. "As you said, Sideways, Mech has no idea what you look like now, but they will be aware that are, as you pointed out, 'up to something.' We should use this to our advantage."

I took a deep breath. It was time. "You ready for this?" I asked Sideways.

"More than," was the reply.

"Okay, "I said. "Unscramble our signals and let's see who's listening. Hey, Silas!" I called out once the signal was clear. "I know you're out here, and I know you can see us. Why not be a gracious host and open the door? I mean, I did go through all the trouble to find your address, after all."

There was silence for what seemed like forever. Part of me knew Silas might not take the bait. He was a military genius, after all. But he was also a bully, and bullies couldn't resist going after a potential victim.

"Well, well, well. Agent Possible. I wondered who was in that little two door." Silas sounded as calm and arrogant as ever. And it seemed like he didn't know the car I was in was an Autobot. "I would ask how you found us, but to be honest, I don't really care. You've been an annoyance for too long."

"I was thinking the same thing about you," I retorted. "Let's end this right here and right now. Just you and me. Optimus and the others don't need to know where I am. In fact, I'll turn off my transponder right now."

"I don't think so," as the reply. "I will admit that you're closer to us than I would like, so I think I'll keep you in the dark about where we actually are. Besides, I have a hard time believing that the car you're in hasn't been upgraded by either the Autobots, or that idiot Trakker and his MASK technicians."

"Sounds to me like you're scared," I said in a taunting voice. "You hid your face behind a mask, your identity behind a pretty stupid alias, and now you're hiding from little old me. You are such the coward! You blasted Bueno Nacho Headquarters from orbit, and tortured two helpless captives. It probably made you feel like a big man, didn't it?"

Silas only chuckled. "I'm not some super villain you can play mind games with, kid," he said, a little more curtly than I think he intended. "In the grand scheme of things, you mean nothing. In fact, you mean less than nothing! I'm not going to waste my time with you." And with that, he cut off communications.

"Well," Sideways said, "it worked in theory, at least."

"Yeah," I grumbled as I switched back to the scrambled frequency. "Unfortunately, I'm out of ideas."

"Then it's a good thing I'm here," Wade said. "I was able to track his signal while you were egging him on! I found them."

A grin came to my face. "Spankin.' I think it's time to go say hello."

The main base was only twelve miles from where Sideways and I were parked. It was underneath an old, dilapidated barn on unused farmland. Sideways and I made a beeline for them, while the other Autobots bridged back to base. It was faster to ground bridge back to the Ark ,and then ground bridge to the barn than it was to just drive straight there. Sideways and I were going to be on our own for a while. That was fine with both of us. We had some payback to dish out.

We came to a stop and I got out. Sideways stayed in vehicle mode. There was no need to show our hand just yet. It was, however, past time to get Silas to come out and play. He had to know we were there, and if I knew him half as well as I thought I did, I knew he would be so ticked off that I'd found him.

I decided to play the waiting game. Besides, that gave the rest of the team time to get to the barn and give us some much needed backup. That was the plan, anyway. Silas had plans of his own.

No sooner had we pulled into the barn than a section of floor opened, allowing an elevator platform with a dozen Mech troopers to emerge. Silas was front and center, decked out in what looked like the Project Circuit Breaker battlesuit.

"I should have known you would find us," he snarled. "You're like a bad penny that keeps coming back."

I powered up my suit, bringing the weapon systems up to full. "You and I have some unfinished business," I said. "For killing Drakken, kidnapping Ron and Shego and then torturing them, and for what you did to Sideways, I am taking you down." My helmet closed over my head, and the visor and faceplate snapped into place. I deployed my blades and got into a fighting stance. "Let's do this."

Mech's leader just chuckled. "One of you against all of us? You're even dumber than I thought."

"She's not alone." Sideways transformed to robot mode and deployed his guns. "Remember me, Silas?" he asked with venom in his voice. "The name is Sideways. You know, the 'bot you butchered and rebuilt into a Frankenstein mockery of what I used to be?"

"Project Cy-Kill," Silas said in an almost hushed voice. "How did this happen?"

"For us to know and for you to never find out," I snarled. "You can't win, Silas. It's over. Lower your weapons, put your hands up, and surrender. Now!"

"How cute," Silas sneered. "Yet again you think you've won. You and what army, kid?"

The ground bridge opened behind us, and the Autobots came filing out in their robot modes, weapons fully deployed. "That one," I said in a matter of fact tone.

Optimus stepped forward. "There are no innocent lives for you to cower behind this time, Silas. Surrender."

Silas didn't speak. He just held his left hand up, then pointed forward. His forces attacked, and we were ready for them.

Since we were far away from prying eyes, nothing was held back. And since this particular barn was already on its last legs, and the field didn't belong to anyone, we weren't too concerned about property damage. Neither was Mech.

Energy beams punched holes in the rotten wood of the barn. Considering the fact that those beams could do worse to me, I was glad the walls took the hits. I was dodging blasts as much as I could, but the energy beams moved, literally, at the speed of light. By the time I saw them, it was already too late. Fortunately, I had really good shields. Unfortunately, those shields were already being taxed by the hits they were taking.

I needed room to move. I aimed my own blaster at one of the walls, fired, and ran for the wide open spaces. Surprisingly, Silas followed me. That made me suspicious. He so had to be up to something. I decided it was best not to let on that I knew he had something up his sleeve. I would play along for now.

I turned to face Silas, and powered up my energon blades, making them crackle with light. "Ready to dance?" I snarled.

"Ready to finally get you out of my hair," was the response.

I scanned the suit he was wearing, and Silas himself. The last thing I wanted to do was waste time on a synthodrone. He was human, and the suit was much more advanced than the one they had put Ron in back in Lowerton. I hoped that my own power suit was more advanced than his. I was more than ready to end this.

Like I said, I learned my lessons. I decided to take the same approach Snake Eyes took with me when we sparred at the Pit. I decided to wait Silas out. Let him fight himself so I didn't have to. He had discipline, but not nearly as much as an Arishikage ninja.

He clenched his fists, unclenched them and flexed his fingers, then clenched his fists again. He circled me, and I followed. I didn't attack. I didn't make it look like I was going to attack. I was patient. I was waiting. And I was so tweaking Silas off.

"What's your game, Possible?" he demanded. He was getting twitchy. He wanted to move, to fight, as much as I did, but I had the better control.

I didn't respond. I was using silence as another weapon. I wanted to make him mad, and it was working. Hopefully he would get mad enough to trip himself up. I understood why Snake Eyes used this tactic on me, and on other people he sparred against. This was his way of making his opponents fight themselves.

I remembered what Scarlet had told me, that I lasted longer without attacking than anyone else. That had to be why Snake Eyes broke with his pattern and attacked me first. He knew that I was patient, and that I wasn't fighting my own instincts nearly as much as other people he had faced. It was totally brilliant, too. Make your enemy fight himself. That's what I was doing to Silas, and it was working.

He lashed out with a series of battlesuit enhanced punches. I easily dodged them. "Come on and fight me!" he bellowed. I ignored him and continued to wait him out. "You were saying how much you wanted a piece of me!" He aimed a kick at my head, which I blocked with a quick sweep of my left arm. "Well here I am! Fight me, dammit!" Another flurry of punches came at me, and I blocked them all without even starting to breathe heavy.

This continued for I don't know how long. He would yell and scream, and he would send punch after kick my way, and none of them hit their mark. And with each successive attack, he got weaker and more tired. I was so going to have to thank Snake Eyes for this. I got a combat lesson as well as a bucket list sparring session. Not only that, but I was getting what I needed to take this creep out.

Silas launched some totally weak-sauce punches at me. The last one I caught in the palm of my hand. He looked at me with a shocked expression on his face. "Wha-?"

"Finished?" I asked in a casual voice. "Good. Because class in now in session." I squeezed his fist until I heard bones start to pop. He let out a pained groan, and I forcefully released (and by that, I mean I threw) his fist. I think I dislocated his shoulder when I did it. Ask me if I care. Actually, I do care. Her deserved all the hurt I could dish out.

"This is for Shego," I snarled as I kicked Silas in the chest, knocking him back. "This is for Drakken!" An uppercut sent Silas flying backwards. He landed flat on his back. I let him get back up. "This is for Sandy Carrington, the innocent cleaning lady you blew up!" I landed a right cross, followed by a left. "This is for Hana, and all the years she spent without her brother!" A punch to the gut doubled him over. "This is for Ron, and all the years of torture!" A knee to the face sent him flying backwards. Blood exploded from his now shattered nose.

I stalked up to him, and glared down at his prone form. "Let me guess," he said in a nasally voice, "the next hit is for you?"

I placed my foot on his throat. He let out a panicked, gurgling sound. "No, Bishop, this is for me. You have the right to remain silent. If you give up that right, anything you say can and will be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to an attorney. If you can't afford one, an attorney will be provided to you at no cost. Do you understand these rights?" He didn't answer. He just groaned. "I'll take that as a yes." I retracted my helmet and gave him a smirk. "Oh, and this is also for me." I released his throat, bent down, and punched him in the face. He was out cold. "Booyah."

I looked over at the Autobots just in time to see Sideways finish disabling the heavy weapons of a few Mech troopers. He came over to me and looked down on Leland Bishop's bloodied form. "Payback's a glitch," he said with venom in his voice.

"Not the word I would have chosen," I said, "but it works." I looked back at the extremely one-sided battle. Mech was so being taken down. And with their leader now in custody, this organization's days were officially over. I got on my comm. "Possible to Witwicky. Silas is down, and the rest of his goons are right behind him. Send in the clean up team."

"Acknowledged, Possible," Spike Witwicky said. "Good work."

I looked down at Silas again. I could very easily have crushed his windpipe and ended his miserable life, but that would have been the easy way out. He stole six years from Ron and Shego, and he stole the lives of countless others. He would pay by spending the rest of his life locked away.

I looked up at Sideways. "We're done here."

Silas had a broken nose, a dislocated shoulder, and a broken hand. And that was with me restraining myself. When I went to his holding cell, he had been patched up, and put in the same style of jumpsuit Shego had been wearing after we got her out of the Lowerton facility. He growled at me as I entered the holding area.

Unlike Shego, who basically lived in a dorm room, the leader of Mech was in an actual jail cell, complete with metal bars. "So much for the laws against cruel and unusual punishment," he said when he saw me. "If you think you've seen the last of me or Mech, you are sadly mistaken."

"Keep telling yourself that if it makes you feel better," I said. I felt no need to tell him that we had decrypted his entire database, and were now rounding up every member of Mech in every military and government organization in the United States, as well as their operatives in Global Justice. Mech was as good as dead. I could have gloated, but I didn't really feel like it. I was there for one last look at the monster who caused so much pain.

"What do you want?" Silas demanded. "To know why I kidnapped your stupid friend?"

I didn't answer. This whole cell block was under surveillance, and the recordings would be used in his trial. I wasn't going to bring up Ron's monkey powers, or the fact that Silas wanted them. I didn't even bring up the fact that he had used Ron's instinctive knowledge of monkey kung-fu to program his Circuit Breaker synthodrone with.

"Or did you want to know why I put him in the Circuit Breaker suit back in Lowerton?"

"I already know the answer to that one," I said. "I know how evil you are. You were forcing Ron to fight me, and possibly kill me. You were still torturing him. And if I had seriously hurt or even killed Ron while defending myself, I would have had to live with the fact that Ron had died at my hands for the rest of my life. It would have destroyed me. You're a bully. You're easy to figure out."

"So now he's free," Silas said in a taunting voice. "Do you think he'll ever forgive you for the way you turned your back on him all those years ago?"

Before I could answer, a voice from behind me said, "I already have." I turned around and saw Ron. He was using a cane instead of the crutches. He was showing Silas that he was getting stronger. He strode confidently to the bars of Bishop's cell. "This is goodbye, Silas," Ron said in an even voice. "The next time I'm going to see you is when I testify against you for what you did to me."

Silas only chuckled. "You're not free! I'm going to be in that head of yours for the rest of your life."

Ron reached for my hand, which I gladly gave him. He squeezed, as if needing reassurance and strength. I returned the gesture, showing him that I had his back. Silas noticed this.

"Oh, how precious," he said in a mocking voice. "And how long is this going to last, huh? She ditched you for a pretty face once before! How do you know she won't do it again?"

"Because I know her," Ron said. He released my hand and turned to leave. He took a few steps, stopped, and looked over his shoulder. "You're right. You will be in my head for the rest of my life. Just like KP will be in your head for the rest of your life. Have fun reliving that ass kicking she gave you." A grin spread to Ron's lips. "I know I will."

There was a lot of paperwork to do; after action reports, stuff like that. It took a long time to get through it all, too. It was close to midnight when I finished everything, and I still hadn't eaten dinner. I had a sandwich from the cafeteria that I had grabbed earlier and completely forgotten about, but after five hours, the egg salad was so unappetizing.

I hit "send" on my report and was getting ready to leave for the night when my office phone rang. I thought about letting it go to voicemail, but then I remembered that the last call I got on this line was from Megatron. If the Decepticon leader was calling back, it might be important. I picked up and said, "Possible."

"Kim? Wait, it's got to be close to midnight, why are you still there?"

I smiled, recognizing the voice immediately. "I could ask you the same question, Bonnie." Surprised? Don't be. Bonnie and I came to an understanding our senior year.

Every Fourth of July, the Cheer Squad would have a fundraising picnic and barbecue. I used that day to inform the girls that I was stepping down as captain and quitting the team. Bonnie threw a conniption fit.

"So just because that loser croaked, we have to suffer?" she demanded in a whiny voice. "That is so not fair! I may hate listening to you, K, but you've actually managed to bring us some championships! And now, because of this, I'm going to lose!"

I completely lost my cool. "Dammit, Bonnie, it's not about you!" I snapped. Her eyes opened wide with shock that I had just screamed at her. "It's not about you," I repeated, "and it's not about me! It never was! It should be about Ron!"

"But-" she started to say. I didn't let her finish.

"I learned what's really important," I said, "and winning at all costs isn't it! I just hope you don't have to lose the person you love most in the world to learn that lesson. You're talking about losing championships and competitions. I lost my best friend. There will always be other meets and contests. There will never be another Ron Stoppable."

It took a while, the rest of the summer, in fact, but it got through to her. Bonnie and I weren't friends by any stretch of the imagination, but there was a respect there. That's why I wasn't surprised by her call.

"Yeah, well, I'm an insomniac these days," Bonnie said. Then she went quiet for a moment. "Is it true?" she asked in a quiet voice. "Is Ron really alive?"

"It's true," I said. "He'll be strong enough to go back to Middleton soon."

There was another silence. "If he's coming home, then we're going to do this right." I could hear the smile in Bonnie's voice. "Leave it to me, K! I'll put together the best welcome home party ever!"

Agent Fowler gave me some much needed downtime after the final Mech mission. I had intended to get some rest, and get settled into my apartment some more, but some people had other plans. Instead of being curled up on my new couch reading a book, I was on stage. This wasn't the kind of music I would normally listen to, let alone do what I was doing, but I let my body move with the melody. I was there against my own better judgement, and despite myself, I was having a pretty good time.

The instrumental bridge ended, and I took a breath, filling my lungs. The acoustic guitar built up, and the lyrics returned to the screen in front of me. I opened my mouth and let those words spill out.

"How I wish, how I wish you were here," I sang. "We're just two lost souls swimming in a fishbowl, year after year. Running over the same old ground, and how we found, the same old fears. Wish you were here." And with that, I let the music fade out, along with the karaoke screen.

The crowd hooted and hollered as I got off stage and rejoined Monique, June Darby, and Marissa Fairbourn. They were all clapping louder than anyone else.

"Not bad for someone who says she doesn't listen to Pink Floyd," June said. She was a nurse with Unit E who had been caring for Ron.

Beside her was Marissa, a fellow agent, as well as the daughter of two members of G.I. Joe. She was more than a little tipsy. She gestured over to a nearby table. "They shent over another round," she slurred.

"I think you've had enough," I said.

"Come on, Poshible, live a little!" Marissa leaned in close, and I could smell the vodka on her breath. "Maybe one of us will get lucky."

I rolled my eyes. "I have a boyfriend," I said. "One who, I might add, I have a hot date with tomorrow night."

Monique nudged my shoulder. "I want a full, uncensored and unedited account of all the night's festivities. And I do mean all of them!"

I shot her a look. "Sorry, Mon, but I don't kiss and tell."

"Who said anything about kissing?" Mon asked. "I'm talking about you two doing the mattress mambo! The nasty! You know, getting it on!"

"Why do you care?" I asked her.

"Well, I'm not getting any," she said. "I might as well live vicariously through someone who is." She looked over to Marissa. "And I don't go home with random guys I meet in bars, either."

"Neither will she," June said. "I'm her ride home." To emphasize her point, she took another drink of the water she had sitting in front of her. I was also teetotalling this evening. I was Monique's designated driver. It was my job to make sure she made it to her flight home on time in the morning, whether she was hungover or not.

The sound of someone trying, and failing, to sing a Queen song just like Freddie Mercury assaulted our ears. I looked at the stage, and it was one of the guys who had been sending drinks our way all night. I shook my head.

"Oh, dear God," June said, laughing, "he's doing air guitar."

I laughed out loud. "Still want to get lucky with one of those guys?" I asked Marissa. But she didn't answer. She was passed out face first on our table.

"And on that note, ladies," June said, standing up, "I think it's time to head out."

I couldn't have agreed more. I looked at my companions for the night and smiled. It had been a long time since I had done a girls' night out. I hadn't realized how much I needed it. We got Marissa to June's car, and then Mo and I went to mine.

I saw Mon and Felix off the next morning. I got the big hug from Monique I expected, as well as her promise that she would be at Ron's welcome home party. Felix was more subdued. He knew he and his boss were on thin ice about hiding a Vehicon drone from us. And he knew that he had a long way to go to patching up his friendship with Ron. I told him that going to the party would go a long way towards making things right. I could only hope he listened to me.

The rest of the day was me getting ready for my date. I hadn't been on one since college. I told Ron that I had been on only two dates in six years. One was with a real creep named Garrison Blackrock. That was a huge mistake. He was using me to improve his reputation. He was one of those rich pretty boys, and for some reason, he felt he still needed to look like a big man on campus. Granted, that campus was Stanford, and there were people there who had more money than he did, but still.

The second was with a real sweet guy named Bradly White, or "Rad" to his friends. Why Rad? Don't ask me. He said his parents were real 1980's aficionados. Our date turned into the two of us talking about missed opportunities; me and Ron, and Rad and a girl he knew named Alexis. We decided that, although the date was nice, we were better off as friends. Besides, we were still too hung up on those missed opportunities to really move on.

When I got to the Unit E base, I made a beeline for Ron's room in the infirmary. I was wearing a green long sleeve shirt and a matching skirt. I had a paper shopping bag in my hand and a smile on my face. Ron was going to love his surprise!

When I got to his room, Ron was coming out of the bathroom. He had just shaved, and was wearing only a pair of black cargo pants. Ron was still really thin. I wasn't used to that, or to the almost countless scars on his body.

"Oh, uh, hey, KP," he said nervously. It looked like he wanted to cover himself. I set down the bag and took his hands.

"You don't have to be embarrassed with me, Ron. Ever. These…" I looked at the crisscross of stab wounds, the burns, and one bullet wound, "are signs that you're a survivor." They were also signs that I had abandoned him, but I thought that was better left unsaid.

"I know," he said uncomfortably. "It's just, I was never a catch before, and now…"

I silenced him with a kiss. "I love you for who you are, Ron Stoppable. Not what you look like. But if you really want to cover up, I have just the thing." I went for the bag and pulled out a black, long sleeved shirt. I gave it to Ron and he slipped it on. "There's something missing," I said. Then I snapped my fingers. "I know!" I reached into the bag again and pulled out a red, short sleeve jersey.

"Booyah!" Ron exclaimed. He took the shirt from my grasp, and was about to put it on when he got a good look at it. "Wait, is this one of my old ones?"

I smiled and nodded. "I asked your 'rents if I could have them. I would sometimes sleep in one of them. The rest of them, like this one, were folded up in my dresser. It was like having a piece of you with me. Now finish getting dressed and let's get going. We have a date to get to!"

We went to a nice but not fancy restaurant, and then we went to the new Zombie Mayhem movie. Ron was totally in heaven. I had shown him the first two while he was in the infirmary, and now he got the chance to see one in the theater. It wasn't my kind of movie, but like I told Bonnie all those years ago, this wasn't about me. This was about Ron. For the first time since Diablo Night, he was able to get out and actually live.

After the movie, we went for a walk in the park, then we went back to my place. Ron was amused by how… spartan my apartment was. I had a couch, a coffee table, no TV, and only one end table with a lamp. The bedroom had slightly more to it; a queen size bed, dresser, and nightstand. I spent more time at work than at home, and when I was at home, I was asleep. The bed made more sense than the couch, really.

We sat in the living room and talked. Well, that was what we planned on doing. Then the make out session started. Then hands started to wander. And then, well…

The first time wasn't so great. It was awkward, a little uncomfortable, and over much more quickly than either of us had wanted. The second time, though, that was just… booyah.

I know I said we were going to take things slow, but in this case, we made an exception. We lay together, wrapped in each other's arms and entangled in the sheets, just enjoying being close. My head was resting on Ron's chest, and I could hear his heartbeat. It was so relaxing. I was very close to falling asleep when Ron shifted and placed a gentle kiss on my head.

"I love you," he said.

I let out a contented sigh and said, "I love you, too."

"I never thought I'd ever get to do this," he said.

"What's that?" I asked. "Make love with me?"

"Make love with anyone." Ron shifted again so we were side by side, facing each other. "I wasn't sure how long I was going to live, KP. I mean, after everything those guys did to me when I was their prisoner, there were days when I thought they were going to kill me." He closed his eyes and was quiet for a minute. "There were days that I wanted them to kill me, just so the pain would stop."

I leaned in and kissed him. "You're safe now," I said. "You're free, and there is no way Mech will ever be able to hurt you again."

"I can still see it, though, Kim! Some nights I have nightmares about it! There are times that I'm afraid to go to sleep because I think that, when I wake up, I'll be back in that cell."

I caressed Ron's cheek. His hand, almost on its own, went to my chest. He wasn't feeling me up, he was running his fingers over the "Never Be Normal" tattoo I had over my heart. He touched it a lot when we were making love. Well, when he wasn't touching other things.

I put my hand on his and held it close to me. "It's going to be a long road," I said. "But you're not alone. I've already called the psychiatrist I saw after you were taken. His name is Dr. Phil Dale, and he helped me get through some pretty dark times."

"Yeah, he called me already to set up some appointments after I'm back in Middleton." Ron looked me in the eyes. "I'm going to miss you when I go back."

I smiled at him. "I'm going to miss you, too. But Middleton is only a couple hours away from here by air. And in an emergency, I'm sure the Autobots will let me use the ground bridge to get to you. You will never be anyone's prisoner again, Ron. I promise." It was my turn to be silent. "I have another promise to make," I finally said. "I know I can't give you back those years that were taken from you, or make up for my role in you being taken, but I promise, I swear on my life, that I will make every year we have together the best years of our lives!"

Ron wiped a tear from his eyes. "Are you proposing?"

I let out a chuckle. "No," I said. "We only just got together. Although, the thought of spending the rest of my life with you is so appealing." I kissed Ron again and held him close to me. "I finally have you back, Ron. I am never letting go. Ever."

Ron kissed me, and then we went for round three.

In a way, I had become friends with Oklahoma. I'd even heard about this western themed amusement park in Oklahoma City called Frontier City. I thought it would be a fun place for Ron and me to check out sometime. But that wasn't why I was here. I was in the panhandle on a spider hunt.

My power suit's scanners were attuned to BlackArachnia's unique bio-signature. Optimus Prime and I were both on the scene, but the big 'bot was staying back. The last time he and the spider lady tangled, he wound up with a nasty dose of cyber venom. She didn't like me all that much, either, but at least she didn't want to send me to the scrap heap.

I came to a deep cave. I shrugged off the backpack I was wearing. "I know you're in there!" I called out. "I'm not here to fight. Just to talk."

A giant spider that looked like a mishmash of organic and mechanical parts came out. "Great," she said. "A salesman." She leaped into the air and transformed, the grinding noise that went with it was labored and painful sounding. She looked down at me. "What do you want?"

I retracted my helmet. "You've learned English," I observed.

"I kind of had to," she said. "I needed to know what you freaky little things were saying, didn't I?"

"I'll let the insult slide this time," I said. I opened the pack and pulled out a Cybertronian data pad. I offered it to her. "This is a map of all energon deposits in the area. I figured you might be hungry."

BlackArachnia started to reach for it, then stopped. "Why should I trust you?"

I lowered my arm, and the pad. "Fine. Don't take it."

BlackArachnia quickly swiped it from me, and gave me a dirty look. "Did Orion send you?" she asked, referring to Optimus by his original name.

"He came with me," I said. "He's a few miles back, waiting for me. Or waiting for the all clear to come and see you. He misses you."

The spider lady let out a disgusted grunt. "Yeah, right. He really misses the freak." She lowered her head. "He misses the 'bot he didn't trust."

"He trusted you," I said. "He didn't trust Sentinel Prime. Optimus thought Sentinel was making a play for you."

"I was a big girl," BlackArachnia huffed. "I didn't need Orion to protect me."

"He's a guy," I said. "Sometimes they feel like they have to be the big protectors. It's the same here on Earth." I was glad that Ron never pulled that on me, even when we were just friends. I wound up protecting him more than he did me.

"Why do you care?" BlackArachnia's eyes were boring into me, trying to see what I was thinking.

"Optimus is my friend, and he's hurting," I said. "He loves you. He never stopped. He wants to help you if you'll let him." I held my hand up to my ear, ready to activate my commlink. "He can be here in a few minutes if you want to talk to him."

She looked like she was about to say something, then stopped. "No," she said quietly.

I lowered my hand. "Okay." I reached into my bag and produced another data pad. "This has a complete history of Cybertron from the time you went missing, to the day the planet's core shut down and the population had to evacuate. Everything is there. Optimus left nothing out."

She hesitated, then took the pad. "Tell me something," she said. "Why do you follow him? He's not from your planet. He's not your species. He's not even the same kind of lifeform as you! Why do you trust him?"

"He's tried to help my people,"' I replied. "He's been protecting us from the Decepticons. And he helped me get Ron back. He returned the person I love most to me. But more than that, I trust him with my life, BlackArachnia. Optimus Prime has never done me or my world any wrong." I turned to walk off, knowing that this encounter was over, and that Optimus wouldn't be able to plead his case to her. "But more than that, he's my friend, and friends help each other."

A few minutes later, I met up with Optimus where we had ground bridged in. He was still in vehicle mode. "I'm sorry," I said. "She didn't want to talk to you."

Optimus opened his passenger side door. "Thank you for trying, Kim," he said. "Did you give her the maps and the history?" I nodded that I had. "Thank you." We sat in silence for a moment. "I will not attempt to find her again," he finally said. "She has made the decision to sever ties with me. I will not be one of those, I believe the human word is 'stalkers,' who can't take no for an answer."

"Don't give up on her," I said. "I think there's a part of her that misses you as much as you miss her."

"It must be her decision," Optimus said. "I won't make it for her. In the meantime, we have work to do." With that, Optimus called for the ground bridge, and we went home.

"What are we doing here, KP?"

Three weeks had passed, and Ron had been released to go back to Middleton. Unit E had found a doctor and physical therapist to work on the rest of Ron's rehabilitation, and he was going to be seeing my old shrink, Dr. Dale. We had arrived back in our hometown a few hours ago and, after getting Ron reacquainted with the place, we headed off to the Middleton Convention Center. The sign out front said, "Reserved for a Private Event."

I smiled and took Ron's hand. "You'll see. Now come on."

The main hall was dark when we walked through the doors, and remained that way for half a heartbeat. The lights came up, and the assembled group shouted, "Welcome back!"

Ron stumbled back, but I helped him stay on his feet. I was almost wishing he had brought his cane, but he was trying to walk without it whenever he could. This stumble wasn't because of his injuries, though. This was surprise.

Before us stood all of Ron's friends, and those who were barely friends. A large banner that read, "Welcome Home, Ron" was strung across the room. Beneath it stood Wade, Monique, and even Felix. Tara, who was now working as a reporter for the Middleton Inquirer, was the first to come up to Ron, kiss him on the cheek, and embrace him. Bonnie, yes Bonnie, soon followed.

"Good to have you back, loser," she said with a smile. She then came over to me, letting the rest of the cheer squad reunite with our long absent mascot.

"Nice job, B," I said. Securing the whole convention center, getting the decorations, and rounding up our old classmates couldn't have been easy.

"You gave me plenty of lead time," Bonnie said. "Besides," she looked over at an overwhelmed Ron being showered with hugs and kisses, "this was about him."

Bonnie had changed over the years. I'd like to think my "It's not about you" speech had something to do with it, but I think she just grew up. She stopped comparing herself to her sisters, and decided to find out who Bonnie Rockwaller really was. Now she ran a dance school in Upperton, and was doing quite well for herself.

Bonnie looked over at me. "You two looked chummy. Are you finally…?"

"Yes," I smiled. "It took six years longer than it should have, but we're together."

"Good," Bonnie said. "Maybe now you'll forgive yourself."

"I'm trying. It might still take a while." I looked back over at the various happy reunions happening. Ron was finally, finally, talking to Wade. Maybe the whole of Team Possible would be back on the same page sooner rather than later.

I went to the refreshment table and got a soda, then sat down. Like Bonnie said, this was about Ron right now. It was also about the rest of his friends. I'd had weeks to reconnect with him, and now it was their turn. After the party was over, I'd have him to myself again. We'd need that time, too. I was going back to Jasper in the morning. Mech may have been gone, but Megatron and the Decepticons were still out there.

I took this assignment thinking it would be temporary. I would help Unit E take Mech out, get justice for Ron, and finally get the closure I needed. I got so much more than that. I made new friends, and had a new family in the Autobots. I found Ron alive, and brought him home. I was even able to go from unrequited love to a full on relationship.

My name is Kim Possible. I'm a former world saving teen hero, a former Global Justice agent, and a current agent with Unit E. I'm assigned to the Autobots, a team of shape changing robots from the planet Cybertron, and I'm helping them in their battle to destroy the evil forces of the Decepticons.

I'm also a very lucky woman. I got what most people don't. I got a second chance. I'm going to cherish it, and Ron, for as long as I live. I would be going back to Jasper, Nevada tomorrow morning, but the rest of the night belonged to Ron Stoppable. I stood up and went to join the party. We had all more than earned it.

And that, as they say, is that! This story has taken the longest to get out of any story I've written for this site. I've experienced the end of my radio career, a dead computer, several different jobs, and a move in the time I've worked on this. I'm surprised I got it done. Thank you all so much for being patient with me.

What's next? I don't know. I'm probably going back into semi-retirement, but that could change with the right story idea. Until then, this is Waveform saying, thanks for all the support!