Notes: This is the sequel to "Bonnie, From Behind" and "Ron, In Reverse" (the second chapter, in case you missed it). If it seems like Bonnie has completely forgotten what Ron did for her there, don't worry, she's just being Bonnie.

Summary: Monkey Fist's surrender is unexpected, and so is the sudden transformation that begins in Ron. But when the Mystical Monkey Power begins to take control of his entire life, Ron finds they have very different ideas about what he needs.

The Primal Primate

A Kim Possible Fanfic by

Nate Grey (XMAN0123-at-aol-dot-com)

"KP, I think I'm gonna ask Tara to the dance next week."

If Kim gave any sign that she heard her best friend speaking, she didn't show it. Instead, she narrowed her eyes and carefully finished cleaning her grappling gun with a well-oiled cloth.

"Uh...KP?" Ron asked.

"I heard you, Ron," Kim replied, putting the gun back in her mission pack, and sliding the whole thing back under her bed.

"So...what do you think?"

Kim turned to face him. "What I think is that Tara is number...three on your list of girls you always ask to the dance, right?"

"Yeah, but what do you think?"

She shrugged. "I don't know, Ron. How is it any different from every other time you've asked her?"

"Every other time, I just asked her out of the blue," Ron explained. "This time, I made a preemptive strike."

"Meaning?" Kim asked.

Ron smiled smugly. "I waved to her in the cafeteria earlier this week. And I said hi to her right before you started the flippy drills yesterday at cheer practice."

Kim blinked a few times, still confused. "Uh huh. You going somewhere with this?"

"Don't you get it, KP? She knows I'm noticing her! Now she'll be more likely to say yes!"

"You think because you waved and said hi that she'll suddenly go to a dance with you?" Kim asked with a slight smile.

"Well, no. But my chances have gone up, at least! That's gotta count for something!"

"Not if she doesn't say yes, unless you're working on her for next year," Kim pointed out. "And I'm not saying she won't. I just don't want you to be disappointed again."

"Don't sweat it, KP. I can take rejection. But I think I've really got a shot this time."

"So, is this your way of saying I shouldn't be turning down any offers I've gotten?" Kim asked. "Or were you planning to fall back on my not having a date like last year?"

She was almost glad to see Ron wince. In truth, she hadn't really minded going with him. It had been turning down all those cute boys that had been hard in the end. Kim still would've preferred that they both got their own dates, and then just saved a dance for each other at some point. She was getting the distinct feeling that Ron felt the same way, only the offers didn't really pour in for him like they did for her. Every year, he dusted off his list of potential dates, and every year, he ended up running back to her at the last minute. Well, at least he still tried to get his own date.

"No, I'm gonna stand on my own two feet this year," Ron decided. "Even if they're alone at the dance."

Kim punched his shoulder playfully. "You've always got a spot on my dance card, if worst comes to worst."

He smiled faintly. "Yeah, I know. Thanks, KP." He sighed. "It would be great if she said yes, though."

Kim nodded. "Well, can I offer some free advice?"

"I'm all ears!" Ron replied eagerly.

"Don't, I repeat, DON'T ask Tara when she's within ten feet of Bonnie. And I'll know if you did by the look on your face."

"Are you trying to imply that Bonnie controls Tara?"

"No, Ron. I'm saying that if you ask Tara out while Bonnie is within earshot, the only way she'd say yes is if she felt sorry for you after Bonnie got done chewing you up and spitting you out verbally. I doubt you want a yes under those conditions. You can do better than a pity date."

"Hey, if pity snags me Tara, I can take Bonnie's barbs."

Kim shook her head. "I didn't tell you that just for you, Ron. I was thinking of Tara, too. She and Bonnie are tight. Not like we are, but still pretty tight. Whether Bonnie is there or not, Tara will be thinking of what she'd say. We just have to hope that she likes you more than she likes staying on Bonnie's good side and going with some muscle-bound lunkhead that can't spell his name to save his life."

Ron stared at her. "Kinda down on the jocks this year, are we?"

Kim snorted. "Brick TOLD me I should go with him. It's my duty as a cheerleader, apparently."

"And you said?"

"That he could go to hell."

"Ouch, KP!"

"He was a straight JERK, Ron! Like I couldn't do better than him!"

"Can't he read? You can do anything!"

"No on both counts," Kim sighed. "I can't change the way people think. If I could, Tara wouldn't ever be under Bonnie's influence. No one would, for that matter."

"Ah, but we need the in-crowd, KP. Someone has to keep the jocks busy between games, or they'd just keep charging into things. And I think I speak for all of those things when I say I'd rather see Brick dancing with Bonnie than dancing on my face out of sheer boredom."

Kim frowned. "Ron, is he still giving you trouble?"

Ron blinked, slowly realizing what he'd just admitted. "Not so much. Hardly ever. On occasion. Rarely. Just a bit."

"More than you'd like?"

"Well, I don't like it at all."

"Then it's too much," Kim said firmly. "Ron, I know you can take care of yourself. I've seen you tackle Drakken more than once, and you can't have gotten too bad since the last time we sparred. So why is it that Brick is still a headache for you?"

"See, he has these really meaty fists, and they're kind of drawn to my head-"

"Stop it, Ron. I'm serious. Why aren't you defending yourself? Or, at the very least, why aren't you dodging?"

"It doesn't matter, KP," Ron said, clearly uncomfortable.

Kim glared at him. "Do you remember when that harpoon nicked my leg?"

"I'll never forget it! There was so much blood, and-"

"And you cried like a baby because you thought I was really hurt."

Ron turned bright red. "What does that have to do with-"

"That's the way I feel whenever I see you with a black eye. Or a busted lip. More than that, it makes me angry. It reminds me that no matter how much good I do, there are still some people in this world that are so petty, they have nothing better to do than pick on my best friend, who wouldn't hurt a fly. I'm sick of feeling that way, Ron. If I ever find out that Brick even looked at you wrong, I'm going to slam his face into a locker."

Ron shook his head. "KP, don't. I don't need you to protect me."

"I know you don't! But you won't do it yourself!" Kim cried.

"I have my reasons."

"Name one."

"You're supposed to save the world, not me."

Kim grabbed his head with both hands. "You ARE my world, stupid! That's why I'm so mad right now! No one has any right to put their hands on you, ever! And you shouldn't let them!"

Ron pulled away, his face flushed. "KP, please, just drop it."

"Not unless you can tell me exactly why I shouldn't care when my best friend gets needlessly hurt. Can you honestly tell me that if Brick hurt me, you wouldn't be out for blood?"

Ron looked away. "That's different."

"No, it isn't. You're still my best friend either way. It might not be a mission, Ron, but that doesn't mean I stop watching your back."

"And I appreciate it. But I don't want you defending me when it's not a mission. I handle Brick my own way."

"You mean you GET handled."

Ron glared at her. "I'm not talking about this anymore. You don't understand."

"I sure don't," Kim replied bitterly. "Guess I missed the memo where loving your best friend became a bad thing."

Ron bit his lip to keep from saying anything. Finally, he stood up. "I need to go," he said simply, before walking out of the room.

Kim sighed in frustration and shook her head. She actually did understand why Ron wouldn't want her fighting for him. What she couldn't figure out is why he wouldn't fight for himself.

Tara tried to look determined as she walked out of Club Banana with Bonnie. It was time for some good old fashioned honesty, no matter how mad it would make her friend.

"Bonnie? I think Ron is going to ask me to the dance."

Bonnie didn't even blink. "And?"

"Well, he's asked every time. Roughly three days after every dance is announced, like clockwork."

"What's your point, Tara?"

Tara decided to just get it over with. "I think I'm going to say yes."

Bonnie didn't explode on the spot, or shoot her a look. "He has a list he uses every year. You're number three." As an afterthought, she added, "I'm number two."

"How do you know?"

"Amelia pried it out of him when she got tired of being asked. Then she told me. She's number one."

It occurred to Tara that Bonnie might still be trying to convince her not to go with Ron, although not in her usual way. "I'm still going to say yes, I think."

"Why?"

"Well...he does ask. He wouldn't if he didn't find us attractive, right? Plus, he's sweet, and funny, and-"

"Weird," Bonnie added.

"Yeah," Tara admitted. "But's he's not a bad guy. You know that. He'd be more interesting to talk to than most of the guys I've said yes to."

"So what are you telling me for? You want my blessing, or permission?"

Tara glared at her. "I'm telling you because we're friends, and we always compare dates. I don't NEED your permission to go out with Ron."

"Fine," Bonnie muttered, clearly upset about something.

Ron carefully pulled the head of the Middleton Mad Dog off of his own head and settled it in his lap. He'd been avoiding Kim all day, and he was amazed at how hard it was. So much of his day revolved around spending time with her. But then, she was his best friend, so he shouldn't have been surprised. What surprised him more was how much he missed her, even though she'd been just a few feet away during cheer practice.

"Why can't she understand, MD?" Ron muttered, staring into the Mad Dog's snarling face. "Can't she just respect that I have a reason?"

There was no answer, and if Ron had gotten one, he probably would've dropped the head and run away screaming.

A finger poked his shoulder. "Hey, Mad Dog. Tara is currently Bonnie-free. Might wanna swoop in while you can."

Ron's head whipped around, surprise coating his features as he stared up at Kim.

"Don't look at me like that. Just because we're fighting doesn't mean I stop caring completely about your happiness."

Ron instantly felt even worse about walking out on her. "KP..." he began.

Kim shook her head. "We can talk anytime, Ron. You need to get yourself a date right now. I ran into three guys today that plan on asking Tara out." She turned to leave, but he grabbed her hand.

"KP? Thanks," Ron said quietly.

She didn't turn around, but she did squeeze his hand gently before walking away.

Ron tucked the Mad Dog under his right arm and took a deep breath, strolling over to where Tara was lacing up her sneakers. "Hey, Tara."

She looked up and flashed him a sunny smile as she finished. "Hey, Ron."

"Got a minute?" he asked, hoping he sounded casual enough.

Tara nodded. "Sure, just catching my breath. What's up?"

Ron could clearly see what she meant. Kim had drilled the squad a bit longer and harder than usual (he really hoped that wasn't his fault). At any rate, he could see that Tara was coated in a thin sheen of sweat. He tried hard to be too obvious about his noticing (not to mention his liking what he saw). "Um, I was wondering...uh...if you had a date to the dance next week?"

Tara looked surprised. "Why would you wonder that?"

Ron blushed, but played it off rather well. "I feel it's my duty to make sure every cute girl has a date to the dance, so I've just been going around asking."

"Oh," Tara said, sounding slightly disappointed. "I thought you'd come over to ask ME to the dance..."

Ron coughed nervously. "So, hypothetically speaking, if I WERE to ask you to the dance, your answer would be...?"

"Yes," Tara replied at once. "That is, if you WERE asking me. But you're not, are you? I was sure you were going with Kim again..."

"We were both interested in expanding our horizons this year," Ron said. "And we got sick of going together."

Tara couldn't help the small giggle that escaped her. "So, technically you don't have a date yourself?"

"Actually, I was hoping to fix that today."

"Really? How?"

Ron glanced around and leaned close to her ear, as if sharing some big secret. "See, there's this really pretty blond cheerleader I've had my eye on for a while now, and I'm trying to work up the courage to ask her out."

Tara blushed, though whether it was from Ron's proximity or the obvious secret was uncertain. "Maybe you should try offering to let her hold your Mad Dog. I'll bet she thinks it's kinda cute and fuzzy."

"Nah, I don't think she's a dog person," Ron sighed. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "Say...YOU wouldn't wanna...?" He held out the Mad Dog invitingly.

Tara happily accepted the Mad Dog and rubbed it against her cheek. "It's no good," she decided with a sigh. "I'd rather have the boy beneath the Mad Dog taking me to the dance. If only he'd ask me..."

"I'm sure he'd beg and plead at your feet, if he thought he stood a chance." He moved as if to do that, but Tara placed a hand on his arm.

"Okay, we've beat around the bush long enough. Ron, would you like to take me to the dance?"

His eyes widened. "You mean I can? Really?"

"On one condition."

"Name it."

Tara hesitated only for a second. "You have to ask Bonnie to dance at some point."

Ron blinked a few times. "Okay, but why?"

"As a favor to me. Deal?"

"Deal." His face lit up a bit. "So...you and me? Together? At a social function where everyone can see us?"

Tara nodded and smiled. "That's the idea, yes."

"And you don't mind being seen with me?"

"Not if you don't mind being seen with a 'dumb blonde' like me."

"Hey, you're not dumb! That's an unfair stereotype!"

Tara smiled. "I know. Just wanted to see if you'd defend me. I think you'll make a great date. And after that, who knows?"

Ron gaped. "You mean you'd be seen with me for more than one night?"

"Speaking of unfair stereotypes: Ron, you are not a loser. If you were, Kim wouldn't hang out with you."

"I thought you didn't like Kim?"

"Bonnie doesn't like Kim," Tara corrected. "I don't hang out with her much for Bonnie's sake. But I can still see she's a good person. And good people have great taste in friends. So I'm wondering why you two didn't speak all through practice."

"Oh, that." Ron scratched the back of his neck nervously. "We're, uh, having a little spat. No big."

"I hope not. You two are like milk and cereal; you go together. I'd hate to be the one that comes between you."

"Don't worry, Kim doesn't have any problem with you."

"You mean she doesn't now," Tara pointed out. "I'd really like it if you could patch things up with her before the dance. How Kim feels will play a large part in how happy we are together. And I don't want you feeling like you have to choose between us."

"What about you and Bonnie?" Ron asked.

Tara smiled. "Let me worry about her. You just worry about Kim."

"Peace offering," Kim said as soon as Ron came through her door. She held up a large box.

"Uh...I didn't know we were bringing gifts," Ron admitted nervously.

"That's okay. You're here. That's enough for me. Open it."

Ron removed the lid. "Wow! A new Mad Dog head!"

"Rabid eyes and extra thick foaming action. Wade hooked me up."

"But you didn't have to do this, KP."

"I wanted to, Ron." Kim paused and took a deep breath. "Can I go first?"

Ron sat down. "Okay."

"I meant everything I said yesterday. The thought of you being hurt for no reason makes me furious. But you said you had one, and I believe you. I don't understand why you won't share it with me, though. Is it that personal, or is it that you just don't want me to know?"

Ron sighed heavily. "If it was anything else, you'd be the first to know, KP. But I need to keep this to myself. I'm sorry."

"I thought you'd say that," Kim murmured. "So I suggest a compromise. As long as I don't see you getting beat up, I won't interfere. But any incidents that I see come under my jurisdiction. You can't ask me to watch you get hurt and do nothing."

"That's fair," Ron agreed. "So long as you don't hang around me more than usual, in hopes of witnessing said events, anyway."

"I won't, I promise."

"So we're cool, then?"

"Only if I can have a hug from my best friend," Kim replied, holding out her arms.

Ron grinned as he stood up, crossed the room, and wrapped his arms around Kim. "Missed you, KP," he murmured into her hair. He expected her to say the same.

Instead, Kim closed her eyes and pressed her face into his shoulder. Even then, it was still all too easy to hear what came out of her mouth.

"I love you, Ron."

His whole body went stiff. "You, uh...meant that in a best friend way, right?" he asked slowly, his voice trembling.

"Of course," Kim said softly, pulling back to stare into his eyes. "It's why I can't stand to watch you get hurt. I still wish you'd tell me the reason, but I won't let that stop us from being best buds."

"Glad to hear it, KP. Now we can get back to being one big, nutritious bowl of cornflakes."

Kim blinked. "Um...what? Where did that come from?"

"Tara. She thinks we make a good team. Oh, and she said yes!"

"Ron, that's great!" Kim said, giving him a big squeeze. "I knew you could do it if you just kept trying."

"Yeah, I think I gradually wore her down. Hope Bonnie doesn't give her too hard a time over me, though."

"I wouldn't worry too much. If Tara said yes to you, then at least she still makes her own decisions."

A familiar beeping interrupted them, and Kim pulled out her Kimmunicator. "Go, Wade."

"Sorry to break this up, guys, but duty calls."

"Hey, no prob, Wade," Ron replied. "By the way, awesome job on the fierce new MD, my man!"

Wade smiled. "Glad you like it, Ron. I hope it's rekindled your fighting spirit, because you're going to need it. Monkey Fist is calling you out, but not for the usual reason, if you believe the message."

Kim's eyes narrowed. "What does he want, Wade?"

"That's the weird thing. He says he wants to surrender, but he'll only do it if Ron takes him in personally. I've got his coordinates; he's on a beach in Hawaii. Nothing monkey-related there as far as I can see, though."

"I don't like this," Kim said. "It sounds way too easy. What do you think, Ron?"

Ron shrugged. "Gotta be a trap, but we almost have to go, KP. We couldn't take the chance that he might be serious. We might never have to worry about monkey ninja madness again."

"Guess it's settled, then," Kim agreed. "Wade, transportation?"

"Already done. U.S. Air Force is on the way. ETA: fifteen minutes."

Next Chapter: The rather suspicious surrender of Monkey Fist...goes exactly as it should?

Reviews!

gargoylesama

Very good Ron/Bon potential.

Well, that's one way to look at it. But it would take a lot more effort, especially on Bonnie's part, to make them work. And there's still Tara to consider. The story will, however, deal somewhat with Bonnie's feelings for Ron, whatever they may be (or grow into).

Serpent King

Me like. While neither Bonnie nor Ron are on my top 3 favorite KP characters, I still like this story.

They aren't my top three, either. I prefer Kim, Shego, and Monique. But I like a challenge every now and then. Plus I couldn't figure out why people kept putting Ron and Bonnie together, at first.

gargoylesama

I am sorry that I didn't see this when it was posted. I enjoyed reading it. A different take on the Bonnie/Tara friendship. I really enjoy stories that flesh these two. From my Bonnie story that is probably obvious. This does seem to be a one shot, but there is so much potential for more.

Tara doesn't get much to talk much (if you look hard, she's almost always there in the background), but from what I've gathered, she manages to stay on Bonnie's good side without actually being mean. Which puzzles me to no end. Had to explore it a bit. Your story definitely showed me the other side of Bonnie (the Bon-Bon side).

Serpent King

Interesting. Did the bonding incident not have any effect on Kim? I don't think I've ever seen a super Kim fic. Though her leaping ability is inhuman.

I feel like Kim is super enough: the leaping is a perfect example. "Able to leap cheerleader pyramids in a single bound..." Not to mention that routine she did in "A Sitch in Time," and THAT was when she was starting out, no less.

Triaxx2

Interesting, the ability to direct energy in order to adjust density. And she's just as big a monster as usual.

I got the idea from Mr. Incredible…and Strong Guy. Sort of. It's hard to explain exactly.

I don't really consider Bonnie a monster, just amazingly insensitive. At least where her own friend(s) are concerned. With Kim and Ron, it's blatant meanness, though.

Jezrianna2.0

Wow. Wow! WOW! Great story! I'm in awe. You handled everything perfectly. Your insights into Bonnie's and Tara's feelings were incredible. This story is going on my favorites list.

That's a list I'm very proud to be on!

And I wouldn't call it insight, so much as assumption.

Cursed20

Wow. Great story! Please update soon--the pairings are really nice.

Also, about Bonnie's strength thing. 10X won't really do much, since she is a petite girl. Now nothing against girls, but most skinny ones with Bonnie's build at 10X strength would probably be slightly stronger than a football player with Brick's build. I say this not in terms of lifting but as in overall body strength. You might want to make Bonnie x100. After all, putting a dent in tiles would have to put you at around Spiderman level unless you had some amazing training.

Keep in mind that Bonnie is guesstimating when she says she's ten (or eight) times stronger than Kim, and that her power doesn't work like Spidey's (nor does she completely understand it at this point). The big difference is that Spidey's strength applies to his whole body and he doesn't necessarily have to focus to use it, where Bonnie has to have one or more focal points for hers. And don't sell Bonnie short. She doesn't have regular missions like Kim, but she is no slouch when it comes to cheerleading or ballet. That may not seem like amazing training to you, but at the very least it means she can pull off Kim's vertical leap (during one of the Wannaweep eps) and be just as flexible, if not more.

Mooncat

Nice! Love the fact Bonnie is the focus character. Dialogue was spot on Fun and enjoyable fic. I'm not much for a "Ron gets the girl" type fic, but this fic was very charming.

Ah, c'mon. How often does Ron really GET the girl? Just look at the first episode. I mean, he practically reinvented being shot down.

Daryl

forget ron why didn't you just make the story pairing bonnie and tara and just do your series focusing on them as a couple

I have other fics for that pairing. Bonnie and Tara's feelings for each other (and Ron) will come into play, but maybe not in the way you're hoping.

imageisnothing

awesome fic this is what should happen nice portrayal of bonnie's character

I like to think most people are mean for a reason. With Bonnie, we've seen that she's the baby of the family, and I can vouch for how annoying that can be. Also she's popular, which can be stressful, being so fake 24/7. She has this overwhelming need to be the best, which Kim is constantly challenging. So they hate each other.