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Disclaimer: All Kim Possible characters are the copyright of Walt Disney Corporation. I’m just
borrowing them to write up a story with no intention of making any money. This is for fun. All other characters in my stories, that Disney doesn’t own, are mine.

My hats off to campy for beta/proofreading this chapter for me. Thanks! (big grin)

A/N: This story has been inspired by my Ron/Yori art of them kissing at the prom. I knew the only way such a scenario would happen is that Ron and Yori have gotten together at the end of “Gorilla Fist” and Yori moved to Middleton. So my brain thought of the possibilities of what might happen if Yori was in the picture in “So the Drama”. The situations would not be the same, as we knew in the TV series. Consider this story an AU from “Gorilla Fist” onward.

I know that according to production numbers, “Gorilla Fist” happened just before “StD”, yet to expand the time table between “Gorilla Fist” and “StD”, I’ve decided to add a few episodes between them – “Rappin’ Drakken” and “Team Impossible.” (I haven’t seen “And the Molerat Would be CGI”, so I can’t add it) This way more time would be devoted to the dynamics of how Kim and Ron cope with Yori added to the equation.

It’s highly recommended that one has seen “Gorilla Fist”, “Rappin’ Drakken”, “Team Impossible” and “So the Drama” to better understand what is going on in this story in comparison to what was shown in the episodes. With Yori added to the mix, the episodes wouldn’t be exactly as we know.

Just to let everyone know, I’d decided that this story would be my first venture into WIP writing. Yes, I know it goes against my own personal preferences, but given the great length I have in mind for “A Bond of Honor”, making it a WIP would able me to return occasionally to writing stories for TUY, TRU, and others. Writing a chapter at a time for “ABoH” would be better than waiting a long time for me to post the entire story I have in mind.

Oh, this is a stand-alone story. It’s not associated with my TUY or TRU series.

Story rating: Rated K+ (aka PG)

Summary: Ron and Yori start a relationship after “Gorilla Fist”, adding a new factor into Kim and Ron’s friendship as well as Team Possible.

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A Bond of Honor
Chapter 1 – New Beginnings
By JuPMod (aka JPMod)

“‘It’s a bond of honor,’” she mentally mused as she walked across the wooden bridge with her best friend beside her, her red hair flowed in the breeze coming from the valley way below. “Yet when she kissed Ron on the cheek, Ron wasn’t surprised.” Her green eyes momentarily rolled to the right to look at the blonde teen boy, who currently had an expression like he was far away. “Something happened between them. I know it. That look he shared with her was obvious.” Mentally, she frowned. “So why does this confuse me? Yori has gone back to Japan, so how could she and Ron get together if they are like so far apart from each other?” The question only made her wonder some more as her eyes focused on the path in front of her again.

For Kimberly Ann Possible, world-known heroine, she was concerned regarding what has happened between her best friend, Ronald Stoppable, and a Japanese girl, Yori. After she had gone after them and gotten herself involved in their mission to rescue Yori’s ninja teacher, Sensei, Kim had noticed something particular between the two. She really didn’t have a clue until Yori kissed Ron on the cheek and once again the pair shared something with their eyes.

Turning his head, Ron knew that look on his best friend’s face. It meant she was really thinking hard about something. “What’s the matter, KP?” His question startled Kim for a second, snapping her out of her thinking trance.

“Oh, nothing,” Kim replied with a small grin, waving away his worries. “Let’s get back home. I know we may not currently have the indulgence of a helicopter, but once we’re off this mountain, we’ll contact Wade to see what he can get us in a way of a ride back.”

Ron smiled. “Sounds like a plan, KP.” His gaze again focused on the other side of the bridge and the staircase that would lead down off the mountain.

As they reached the other side and began going down the stairs, Kim behind Ron, the redheaded leader of Team Possible just couldn’t keep Yori off her mind. The teenage ninja had proven to be quite a fighter and trustworthy during the fight with DNAmy’s gorillas, yet a nagging feeling grew in her. “I hope that she will not hurt Ron” With a mental dismissal, she berated herself. “Once more, she’s going back to Japan. Ron will be in Middleton. They’re not going to see each other again perhaps for a long time. You have nothing to worry about regarding Yori, Possible. Get your mind back to reality. Case closed.”

Feeling she has satisfied her own questions, Kim once again concentrated on her journey. However, that nagging feeling continued to be with her all the way back to Middleton.

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Lying under the covers of his bed in his Fearless Ferret pj’s, Ron continued to stare up at the ceiling as his brain raced on what had happened in the past two days. He only just arrived home from the mission a few hours ago. His folks, who weren’t home at the start of the mission, didn’t ask much what the mission was about. Far as they were concerned, after so many missions he had with Kim, they had thought it was the usual bad guys and crazy stuff he and Kim experienced. His quick summary of helping Yori find and rescue Sensei was enough for them, and they left him alone to eat, take a shower, and do some homework, before hitting the sack.

What he hadn’t told his ’rents was the new sitch he had formed with Yori. She was a great friend to him during his one-week stay at Yamanouchi during the student exchange, thus he didn’t hesitate to help her find Sensei when she came to him asking for help. However unlike the time he was at Yamanouchi, he was aware of certain signs during the mission, before Kim showed up, that Yori maybe like-liked him.

Ron was no idiot. He might not be a bright bulb when it came to certain academics and certainly wasn’t an honor-roll student like Kim, however his grades were within the average range and that was good enough for him. His laid-back attitude with his motto “Never be normal” made him a brunt of jokes and a target for the school bullies and top-of-the-food-chain students like Bonnie, yet he had learned that their views shouldn’t concern him regarding his life. Yes, on the outside, Ronald Stoppable appeared to be an idiot, but he knew he certainly was not one.

One thing he had learned in the past year was to tell the signs when a girl really liked him enough to consider becoming his girlfriend. Ever since Kim had told him, during the time of the Middleton Festival and the infamous Moodulator Incident, that Tara really like-liked him, he had racked his brain on how he could have missed the signs before Tara lost interest and moved on to Josh Mankey. He had backtracked to the night the cheer squad was stranded at Camp Wannaweep and recognized the first sign – the time Tara kissed him on the cheek. Since then, Tara had been interested in talking with him during cheer practices, laughed at his jokes, and showed that she respected him. Boy, he certainly missed the signs all right, given they were almost the same things Kim displayed toward him, yet he knew Kim had no interest of becoming more than ‘just best friends’ with him.

During the mission, Ron saw Yori displaying the same things Tara did. She had kissed him on the cheek twice at Yamanouchi. She laughed at his jokes, and it was clear she respected him for who he was as a person. However, he wasn’t sure Yori liked him that way due to the conflicting information whether Yori wanted to be more than friends as Tara or just friends as Kim.

The blonde teen knew it was best to ask Yori straight out what she really felt for him. He still remembered vividly when he asked her during the helicopter ride from South America to the United States Southwest.

“Yori?” he asked, looking at her.

She turned from looking out the window to face him. “Hai, Stoppable-san?”

He knew it was unlikely the two helicopter pilots, in front of them, would say anything. Besides, it wouldn’t matter anyway regardless what her answer would be. “Yori. I’m curious about something.” Seeing he had her undivided attention, he continued. “How do you feel about me?” The question made her eyes go wide. “At the time I was at Yamanouchi, you kissed me on the cheek twice. You showed you like me as good friends. Since then, another girl I’ve known in Middleton High showed she really liked me and wanted to be more than friends. Yet I was so blinded to the signs she showed that by the time I was told she like-liked me, she had moved on to another boy.” He swallowed. “You show signs that you may like me, yet I really need to be sure.”

The beautiful ninja gulped, but after a minute or so, her lips slowly formed into a small, kind grin. “Hai…” she softly answered, “Ron-san. I do.”

Ron blinked. He certainly wasn’t expecting a straight out reply. “You mean it?”

Yori giggled, making her shoulder-length raven hair sway a bit. “Hai, I do mean it.” She reached over to hold his hands in hers. “You’re honest, kind, brave, and honorable. You’ve showed all that at Yamanouchi, and you have not changed since then.” Her grin widened. “It will be my honor to be by your side, Ron-san.”

He couldn’t believe it at first, but Yori’s expression left no doubt. She did really like-like him. His lips formed a matching grin to hers. “Well, if it’s okay with you, it will be my honor to be by your side, Yori.” Her grin became a full smile.

His grin fell into a frown. “Yet there’s one problem. How can we be together if you live in Japan and I live in America? I like the notion of us to be together, but how?”

She too frowned, but after a few moments in thought, her expression became sly and he knew she has the answer.

“What?” Ron asked, dying to know how they could be together.

She chuckled. “It will be your honor to wait and see, Ron-san.”

His groan made her giggle some more. “Why don’t you just tell me?”

“You’ll see,” Yori said with a grin. “After we rescue Sensei, there might be a possible solution. I’m not 100 percent certain, but I have good confidence that if it is approved, we’ll be able to see each other.” She squeezed his hands. “Trust me.”

Looking into her dark eyes, Ron knew immediately what to say. “I do.”

Frowning at the memory of that moment, Ron still wondered what could Yori do to bridge the gap between them. She said to trust her, and he knew he did. His short time with her at Yamanouchi had proved to him he could trust her almost as much as he trusted Kim.

Yawning, the blonde teenager closed his eyes, and his last thought, before sleep took him, was how good it would be to see her again, whenever that may be.

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The sound of a closing locker door could be heard in the hallways of Middleton High School. Nothing new to everyone since the sounds of locker doors opening and closing was heard all day for five days a week throughout the school year.

Turning away from her closed locker before she leaned back against it, Kim’s expression was thoughtful and concerned. For more than a week, since that mission with Yori to rescue Sensei, Ron was acting a bit down at late. Oh, no one could tell, for he acted much like his usual, goofy Ron-like self, yet only she was able to catch the subtle hints he was showing that something was bothering him. There were times he would space out, and again that was nothing new to any of the other students or even teachers. However, Kim at times noticed he would do so at Bueno Nacho or during lunch in the school’s cafeteria, which was not like him, given he loved food. It was one reason why he was such a great cook.

Narrowing her eyes, the redheaded Middleton High Cheer Squad Captain, in her green tank top and blue khakis, decided it was about time she confronted her best friend on what was bothering him.

Making the decision, she set off to her friend’s locker. It was the end of the school day now, thus she figured she would invite him to Bueno Nacho and treat him to a grand-size naco meal. She would then ask him what was eating him.

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“Ugh! Another day, another school day over. I’m glad to get out of here,” Ron mentally said as he approached his locker. As usual, he had to endure Barkin in one of his classes, and it had happened in his last class of the day. The ex-military man was his typical, hard-nose self when teaching, and as expected, he was somewhat gruff toward Ron. The blonde boy wondered, for the millionth time since his freshman year, what did Barkin have against him? Kim and the rest of the class escaped unscathed, but he had to stay after class for Barkin to give him extra homework. Some days just tanked so low at times.

Opening his locker, he was about to put away his books when a white, folded note fluttered out onto the floor in front of him. He picked up the note and read the words ‘Ron-san’ in front of it. His brown eyes went wide as he immediately opened the note, for only one person he knew ever called him by that name.

Scanning the written contents, his lips slowly formed a grin. “Rufus, buddy,” he began, making his small pink friend pop his head out of the pant’s pocket to look up at him, “we have a date at Bueno Nacho!”

“That’s good to hear, Ron,” a voice came out of nowhere, startling the blonde to swiftly turn around to face the speaker. He let out a puff of air upon seeing Kim, who gave an apologetic grin. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Ron gave a grin and waved her apology away. “Ah, no big, KP. Just a lot on my mind.”

Looking at the sheet of paper in his hand, Kim pointed to it. “What’s that?”

His eyes gazed downward to the note, and Ron immediately began folding it up. “Oh, nothing. Extra homework from Barkin.”

Kim frowned in disbelief. “Again?”

“I kept telling you, KP,” Ron narrowed his eyes, “Barkin has something against me!” He snorted as he slipped the paper into a pants pocket on the opposite leg from Rufus. “I thought after that time our bodies were stuck together and I was made an honorary pixie scout, Barkin at least wouldn’t target me as much. Seems things are worse now.”

Shaking her head with a small smirk at his friend, Kim had to admit that the school’s vice-principal did sort-of have something against Ron. No one knew exactly why. It seemed like Barkin was Ron’s arch school foe as Bonnie was to her.

“Anyway,” Kim said, “you said you’re going to Bueno Nacho a moment ago, and I was thinking the same thing.” She gave a caring grin. “I’ll buy you a grand-size naco meal. My treat.”

Ron’s mind went into overdrive. “Ah, thanks, Kim,” he grinned, masking his real feelings. “I appreciate it. Can I take a rain check on that? I want to eat alone for a change.”

Kim blinked in surprise at her friend. “Ah, sure.” Her face quickly gave a mock grin. “I’ll go home and do some homework. I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“Sure thing, KP,” Ron replied with a wide smile. His hand swiftly picked up his backpack out of the locker, placed his books into it, and slung it over his shoulder. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He closed his locker and made way toward the school’s exit.

After he was out of sight, Kim dropped her mask and gave a grim face. She knew something was definitely up with Ron. It was not like him to pass up a free meal, especially a free grand-size naco meal. She made another decision to find out what her best friend was hiding.

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Walking into Bueno Nacho, Ron looked around the place. It was busy as usual with Ned behind the counter. There were a few students in the booths, but no one that knew him. His brown eyes spotted her, and he walked toward her with a grin on his face.

Upon his approach, she smiled, rose from the booth, placed her hands together, and bowed toward him in the traditional Japanese respect of honor. “Ron-san, it’s good to see you again.”

“Likewise, Yori,” Ron replied as he took in her appearance. She was wearing that Japanese school outfit – short-sleeved, blue shirt; very short, black skirt; black socks; and black, flat shoes. From the corner of his eyes, he could see some of the boys, including Ned, were looking at her. No doubt that short skirt displayed her shapely legs in a revealing way.

With a hand, the Japanese girl gestured to the booth and the food items on the table. “I’ve ordered your favorite meal for you, including nachos for Rufus-san.”

Upon hearing his name and what was waiting for him, Rufus popped out of Ron’s pants pocket and hopped onto the table. “Mmmmm! Nachos!” he cried before chomping down into one tray of the cheese-covered chips. Both Yori and Ron chuckled at Rufus’s enthusiasm before settling down into the booth opposite each other.

“So,” Ron began, still grinning, “I take you being here means you found a way for us to spend time together despite the distance between our homes?”

Yori smiled in way that said he was right. “Hai. It was simple, really. I moved here.”

“Say what?” Ron was flabbergasted, and even Rufus stopped eating to look up at Yori with a surprised expression. “You mean you’re living here now?” He pointed to down to indicate the city. “Here in Middleton?”

“Hai,” Yori nodded.

His mind began to form many questions. “Okay, I’m like confused, Yori,” he said as he reached for a burrito. “What about your training? School? Your family? I know you’re the same age as I, so who will be looking after you? You know minors in the USA are not allowed to live on their own.” Ron took a bite of burrito as he continued to look at the beautiful girl across from him.

With a grin, Yori started explaining. “For your first question, Ron-san, hai, I will continue my training. As for how, I’ll explain later, for this is not the place to tell.

“As for school, I’ll be going to your Middleton High School tomorrow to take your high school equivalence test. Before I left Japan, I was at the senior level in high school, so it shouldn’t be much of a problem for me to pass the test and reach the same level or graduate with a high school diploma.”

Ron was impressed. He knew the school standards in Japan were far tougher than America, so Yori shouldn’t have any problems passing high school here.

“As for family,” she paused for a moment before her face fell a bit. “I don’t have any family.”

His face became sympathetic, as did Rufus’s. “I’m sorry, Yori. You’re an orphan?” Seeing her nod, he reached over to hold her hand, which she squeezed back. “I didn’t know.”

With a somewhat sad grin, Yori shook her head. “I really didn’t felt like telling you when you were at Yamanouchi or when we were together last week, Ron-san.

“I’ve been an orphan since I was seven years old when my parents died in an accident. Sensei adopted me and I’ve lived at Yamanouchi ever since.”

Ron blinked. “Whoa. Sensei is your adopted father?” She again nodded with a grin. “Well, no wonder you were worried for him when he was kidnapped.”

“Hai,” the lithe girl replied. “As for who will look after me here in Middleton, I’m already living with my perspective guardian, so everything is taken care of. He’ll continue my training.”

This news made Ron realize what she was referring. “Wait, are you telling me that –”

Her free hand reached out to place a finger over his lips to silence him. “As I said, Ron-san, I’ll explain later,” she said with a grin.

After she lowered her finger and gently removed her other hand from his, Ron gave his usual Ron smile. “No prob with me, Yori,” he said grandly as she began eating a salad and Rufus returned to eating his nachos. “The Ron-man will wait.” He raised his burrito to take another bite out of it. “So,” he spoke around his chewing, “when did you arrive?”

“Yesterday,” Yori responded before she forked more of her salad, “I haven’t yet seen much of the city.” She forked the green leaves and vegetables into her mouth.

After swallowing, Ron gave a smug grin. “Well, how about we do this?” She swallowed her food and kept her eyes on him. “Tomorrow is Friday, so we’ll have dinner at Zing Mai’s tomorrow night, and on Saturday, after I attend morning Sabbath with my ’rents, I’ll show you around town.”

Yori smiled. “That will be wonderful, Ron-san.” Her eyebrows rose in curiosity. “Does Middleton have a shopping mall?”

Ron’s smug expression dropped, for he knew what she was asking. “Yes, we have a shopping mall. Let me guess, you want to go shopping.”

Her smiled widened, and Ron knew where they mostly would be spending Saturday. “Hai. I need new clothes. I’m now living here in America, so I might as well blend in. To quote that saying, ‘When in Venice, do what the Venetians do.’”

He softly laughed, which made Yori raised an eyebrow at him. “Actually that is ‘When in Rome, do what the Romans do.’”

Giving a small grin and a shrug, Yori stabbed her salad with her fork. “As I said, now that I’m here in America, I’ll need new clothing to blend with society. I didn’t have much in the way of clothing at Yamanouchi.” She forked her salad into her mouth.

Raising his burrito and taking a bite, Ron shrugged as well with a grin as he ate. He knew he was doomed to going shopping, but in order to help Yori adjust to her new home here in Middleton, he was willing to endure the hours of torture in Middleton Mall for her.

The two teens and one naked mole rat continued to eat their meal while conversing on what Yori might expect in school. Far as Ron was concern, it was a nice start to their new relationship.

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“I don’t believe it!” Kim nearly screamed inside her head. She was currently outside Bueno Nacho behind some bushes, observing what was going on inside, and she could see her best friend was sitting at their usual booth with a girl she thought would not likely see again for a long time. “What’s Yori doing here?” Her eyes narrowed on the fact that the Japanese girl was sitting in her spot.

Her mind raced as Kim watched Ron eat casually with Yori. It didn’t look like the girl came for Ron to embark on another mission; after all, she was dressed in that blue outfit she had worn last week when Yori came to Middleton High. The only explanation that fitted was that the ninja girl was here to see Ron.

Kim nearly growled. “Why that little, sneaky ninja!” Closing her eyes, she tried to calm herself down. “Calm down, Kim girl. No need to go ballistic. Going in there and confronting them like an out-of-control freak will not do any good. You jumped to conclusions about Yori last week and doing so now will not help matters.”

Exhaling a long breath, the redhead opened her eyes and backtracked away from the fast food joint. She headed toward home with her mind thinking on what she saw. Yori, she knew from the mission of rescuing Sensei and the battle with DNAmy’s gorillas, was a good person, and she clearly respected Ron. Kim knew Yori like-liked Ron, so the question she asked herself was this… “If Ron and Yori started dating, what does that leave me?” She mentally shook her head. “No need to jump to conclusions. Yori might just be here for a friendly visit. Nothing more.”

Despite her self-reassurances, Kim felt that gut feeling she had last week return, and she didn’t like it at all.

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TBC (End of Chapter 1)

:) (Smile) — Description
Disclaimer: All Kim Possible characters are the copyright of Walt Disney Corporation. I’m just
borrowing them to write up a story with no intention of making any money. This is for fun. All other characters in my stories, that Disney doesn’t own, are mine.

My hats off to campy for beta/proofreading this chapter for me. Thanks! (big grin)

A/N: This story has been inspired by my Ron/Yori art of them kissing at the prom. I knew the only way such a scenario would happen is that Ron and Yori have gotten together at the end of “Gorilla Fist” and Yori moved to Middleton. So my brain thought of the possibilities of what might happen if Yori was in the picture in “So the Drama”. The situations would not be the same, as we knew in the TV series. Consider this story an AU from “Gorilla Fist” onward.

I know that according to production numbers, “Gorilla Fist” happened just before “StD”, yet to expand the time table between “Gorilla Fist” and “StD”, I’ve decided to add a few episodes between them – “Rappin’ Drakken” and “Team Impossible.” (I haven’t seen “And the Molerat Would be CGI”, so I can’t add it) This way more time would be devoted to the dynamics of how Kim and Ron cope with Yori added to the equation.

It’s highly recommended that one has seen “Gorilla Fist”, “Rappin’ Drakken”, “Team Impossible” and “So the Drama” to better understand what is going on in this story in comparison to what was shown in the episodes. With Yori added to the mix, the episodes wouldn’t be exactly as we know.

Just to let everyone know, I’d decided that this story would be my first venture into WIP writing. Yes, I know it goes against my own personal preferences, but given the great length I have in mind for “A Bond of Honor”, making it a WIP would able me to return occasionally to writing stories for TUY, TRU, and others. Writing a chapter at a time for “ABoH” would be better than waiting a long time for me to post the entire story I have in mind.

Oh, this is a stand-alone story. It’s not associated with my TUY or TRU series.

Story rating: Rated K+ (aka PG)

Summary: Ron and Yori start a relationship after “Gorilla Fist”, adding a new factor into Kim and Ron’s friendship as well as Team Possible.

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A Bond of Honor
Chapter 1 – New Beginnings
By JuPMod (aka JPMod)

“‘It’s a bond of honor,’” she mentally mused as she walked across the wooden bridge with her best friend beside her, her red hair flowed in the breeze coming from the valley way below. “Yet when she kissed Ron on the cheek, Ron wasn’t surprised.” Her green eyes momentarily rolled to the right to look at the blonde teen boy, who currently had an expression like he was far away. “Something happened between them. I know it. That look he shared with her was obvious.” Mentally, she frowned. “So why does this confuse me? Yori has gone back to Japan, so how could she and Ron get together if they are like so far apart from each other?” The question only made her wonder some more as her eyes focused on the path in front of her again.

For Kimberly Ann Possible, world-known heroine, she was concerned regarding what has happened between her best friend, Ronald Stoppable, and a Japanese girl, Yori. After she had gone after them and gotten herself involved in their mission to rescue Yori’s ninja teacher, Sensei, Kim had noticed something particular between the two. She really didn’t have a clue until Yori kissed Ron on the cheek and once again the pair shared something with their eyes.

Turning his head, Ron knew that look on his best friend’s face. It meant she was really thinking hard about something. “What’s the matter, KP?” His question startled Kim for a second, snapping her out of her thinking trance.

“Oh, nothing,” Kim replied with a small grin, waving away his worries. “Let’s get back home. I know we may not currently have the indulgence of a helicopter, but once we’re off this mountain, we’ll contact Wade to see what he can get us in a way of a ride back.”

Ron smiled. “Sounds like a plan, KP.” His gaze again focused on the other side of the bridge and the staircase that would lead down off the mountain.

As they reached the other side and began going down the stairs, Kim behind Ron, the redheaded leader of Team Possible just couldn’t keep Yori off her mind. The teenage ninja had proven to be quite a fighter and trustworthy during the fight with DNAmy’s gorillas, yet a nagging feeling grew in her. “I hope that she will not hurt Ron” With a mental dismissal, she berated herself. “Once more, she’s going back to Japan. Ron will be in Middleton. They’re not going to see each other again perhaps for a long time. You have nothing to worry about regarding Yori, Possible. Get your mind back to reality. Case closed.”

Feeling she has satisfied her own questions, Kim once again concentrated on her journey. However, that nagging feeling continued to be with her all the way back to Middleton.

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Lying under the covers of his bed in his Fearless Ferret pj’s, Ron continued to stare up at the ceiling as his brain raced on what had happened in the past two days. He only just arrived home from the mission a few hours ago. His folks, who weren’t home at the start of the mission, didn’t ask much what the mission was about. Far as they were concerned, after so many missions he had with Kim, they had thought it was the usual bad guys and crazy stuff he and Kim experienced. His quick summary of helping Yori find and rescue Sensei was enough for them, and they left him alone to eat, take a shower, and do some homework, before hitting the sack.

What he hadn’t told his ’rents was the new sitch he had formed with Yori. She was a great friend to him during his one-week stay at Yamanouchi during the student exchange, thus he didn’t hesitate to help her find Sensei when she came to him asking for help. However unlike the time he was at Yamanouchi, he was aware of certain signs during the mission, before Kim showed up, that Yori maybe like-liked him.

Ron was no idiot. He might not be a bright bulb when it came to certain academics and certainly wasn’t an honor-roll student like Kim, however his grades were within the average range and that was good enough for him. His laid-back attitude with his motto “Never be normal” made him a brunt of jokes and a target for the school bullies and top-of-the-food-chain students like Bonnie, yet he had learned that their views shouldn’t concern him regarding his life. Yes, on the outside, Ronald Stoppable appeared to be an idiot, but he knew he certainly was not one.

One thing he had learned in the past year was to tell the signs when a girl really liked him enough to consider becoming his girlfriend. Ever since Kim had told him, during the time of the Middleton Festival and the infamous Moodulator Incident, that Tara really like-liked him, he had racked his brain on how he could have missed the signs before Tara lost interest and moved on to Josh Mankey. He had backtracked to the night the cheer squad was stranded at Camp Wannaweep and recognized the first sign – the time Tara kissed him on the cheek. Since then, Tara had been interested in talking with him during cheer practices, laughed at his jokes, and showed that she respected him. Boy, he certainly missed the signs all right, given they were almost the same things Kim displayed toward him, yet he knew Kim had no interest of becoming more than ‘just best friends’ with him.

During the mission, Ron saw Yori displaying the same things Tara did. She had kissed him on the cheek twice at Yamanouchi. She laughed at his jokes, and it was clear she respected him for who he was as a person. However, he wasn’t sure Yori liked him that way due to the conflicting information whether Yori wanted to be more than friends as Tara or just friends as Kim.

The blonde teen knew it was best to ask Yori straight out what she really felt for him. He still remembered vividly when he asked her during the helicopter ride from South America to the United States Southwest.

“Yori?” he asked, looking at her.

She turned from looking out the window to face him. “Hai, Stoppable-san?”

He knew it was unlikely the two helicopter pilots, in front of them, would say anything. Besides, it wouldn’t matter anyway regardless what her answer would be. “Yori. I’m curious about something.” Seeing he had her undivided attention, he continued. “How do you feel about me?” The question made her eyes go wide. “At the time I was at Yamanouchi, you kissed me on the cheek twice. You showed you like me as good friends. Since then, another girl I’ve known in Middleton High showed she really liked me and wanted to be more than friends. Yet I was so blinded to the signs she showed that by the time I was told she like-liked me, she had moved on to another boy.” He swallowed. “You show signs that you may like me, yet I really need to be sure.”

The beautiful ninja gulped, but after a minute or so, her lips slowly formed into a small, kind grin. “Hai…” she softly answered, “Ron-san. I do.”

Ron blinked. He certainly wasn’t expecting a straight out reply. “You mean it?”

Yori giggled, making her shoulder-length raven hair sway a bit. “Hai, I do mean it.” She reached over to hold his hands in hers. “You’re honest, kind, brave, and honorable. You’ve showed all that at Yamanouchi, and you have not changed since then.” Her grin widened. “It will be my honor to be by your side, Ron-san.”

He couldn’t believe it at first, but Yori’s expression left no doubt. She did really like-like him. His lips formed a matching grin to hers. “Well, if it’s okay with you, it will be my honor to be by your side, Yori.” Her grin became a full smile.

His grin fell into a frown. “Yet there’s one problem. How can we be together if you live in Japan and I live in America? I like the notion of us to be together, but how?”

She too frowned, but after a few moments in thought, her expression became sly and he knew she has the answer.

“What?” Ron asked, dying to know how they could be together.

She chuckled. “It will be your honor to wait and see, Ron-san.”

His groan made her giggle some more. “Why don’t you just tell me?”

“You’ll see,” Yori said with a grin. “After we rescue Sensei, there might be a possible solution. I’m not 100 percent certain, but I have good confidence that if it is approved, we’ll be able to see each other.” She squeezed his hands. “Trust me.”

Looking into her dark eyes, Ron knew immediately what to say. “I do.”

Frowning at the memory of that moment, Ron still wondered what could Yori do to bridge the gap between them. She said to trust her, and he knew he did. His short time with her at Yamanouchi had proved to him he could trust her almost as much as he trusted Kim.

Yawning, the blonde teenager closed his eyes, and his last thought, before sleep took him, was how good it would be to see her again, whenever that may be.

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The sound of a closing locker door could be heard in the hallways of Middleton High School. Nothing new to everyone since the sounds of locker doors opening and closing was heard all day for five days a week throughout the school year.

Turning away from her closed locker before she leaned back against it, Kim’s expression was thoughtful and concerned. For more than a week, since that mission with Yori to rescue Sensei, Ron was acting a bit down at late. Oh, no one could tell, for he acted much like his usual, goofy Ron-like self, yet only she was able to catch the subtle hints he was showing that something was bothering him. There were times he would space out, and again that was nothing new to any of the other students or even teachers. However, Kim at times noticed he would do so at Bueno Nacho or during lunch in the school’s cafeteria, which was not like him, given he loved food. It was one reason why he was such a great cook.

Narrowing her eyes, the redheaded Middleton High Cheer Squad Captain, in her green tank top and blue khakis, decided it was about time she confronted her best friend on what was bothering him.

Making the decision, she set off to her friend’s locker. It was the end of the school day now, thus she figured she would invite him to Bueno Nacho and treat him to a grand-size naco meal. She would then ask him what was eating him.

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“Ugh! Another day, another school day over. I’m glad to get out of here,” Ron mentally said as he approached his locker. As usual, he had to endure Barkin in one of his classes, and it had happened in his last class of the day. The ex-military man was his typical, hard-nose self when teaching, and as expected, he was somewhat gruff toward Ron. The blonde boy wondered, for the millionth time since his freshman year, what did Barkin have against him? Kim and the rest of the class escaped unscathed, but he had to stay after class for Barkin to give him extra homework. Some days just tanked so low at times.

Opening his locker, he was about to put away his books when a white, folded note fluttered out onto the floor in front of him. He picked up the note and read the words ‘Ron-san’ in front of it. His brown eyes went wide as he immediately opened the note, for only one person he knew ever called him by that name.

Scanning the written contents, his lips slowly formed a grin. “Rufus, buddy,” he began, making his small pink friend pop his head out of the pant’s pocket to look up at him, “we have a date at Bueno Nacho!”

“That’s good to hear, Ron,” a voice came out of nowhere, startling the blonde to swiftly turn around to face the speaker. He let out a puff of air upon seeing Kim, who gave an apologetic grin. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to startle you.”

Ron gave a grin and waved her apology away. “Ah, no big, KP. Just a lot on my mind.”

Looking at the sheet of paper in his hand, Kim pointed to it. “What’s that?”

His eyes gazed downward to the note, and Ron immediately began folding it up. “Oh, nothing. Extra homework from Barkin.”

Kim frowned in disbelief. “Again?”

“I kept telling you, KP,” Ron narrowed his eyes, “Barkin has something against me!” He snorted as he slipped the paper into a pants pocket on the opposite leg from Rufus. “I thought after that time our bodies were stuck together and I was made an honorary pixie scout, Barkin at least wouldn’t target me as much. Seems things are worse now.”

Shaking her head with a small smirk at his friend, Kim had to admit that the school’s vice-principal did sort-of have something against Ron. No one knew exactly why. It seemed like Barkin was Ron’s arch school foe as Bonnie was to her.

“Anyway,” Kim said, “you said you’re going to Bueno Nacho a moment ago, and I was thinking the same thing.” She gave a caring grin. “I’ll buy you a grand-size naco meal. My treat.”

Ron’s mind went into overdrive. “Ah, thanks, Kim,” he grinned, masking his real feelings. “I appreciate it. Can I take a rain check on that? I want to eat alone for a change.”

Kim blinked in surprise at her friend. “Ah, sure.” Her face quickly gave a mock grin. “I’ll go home and do some homework. I’ll see you tomorrow then?”

“Sure thing, KP,” Ron replied with a wide smile. His hand swiftly picked up his backpack out of the locker, placed his books into it, and slung it over his shoulder. “I’ll see you tomorrow.” He closed his locker and made way toward the school’s exit.

After he was out of sight, Kim dropped her mask and gave a grim face. She knew something was definitely up with Ron. It was not like him to pass up a free meal, especially a free grand-size naco meal. She made another decision to find out what her best friend was hiding.

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Walking into Bueno Nacho, Ron looked around the place. It was busy as usual with Ned behind the counter. There were a few students in the booths, but no one that knew him. His brown eyes spotted her, and he walked toward her with a grin on his face.

Upon his approach, she smiled, rose from the booth, placed her hands together, and bowed toward him in the traditional Japanese respect of honor. “Ron-san, it’s good to see you again.”

“Likewise, Yori,” Ron replied as he took in her appearance. She was wearing that Japanese school outfit – short-sleeved, blue shirt; very short, black skirt; black socks; and black, flat shoes. From the corner of his eyes, he could see some of the boys, including Ned, were looking at her. No doubt that short skirt displayed her shapely legs in a revealing way.

With a hand, the Japanese girl gestured to the booth and the food items on the table. “I’ve ordered your favorite meal for you, including nachos for Rufus-san.”

Upon hearing his name and what was waiting for him, Rufus popped out of Ron’s pants pocket and hopped onto the table. “Mmmmm! Nachos!” he cried before chomping down into one tray of the cheese-covered chips. Both Yori and Ron chuckled at Rufus’s enthusiasm before settling down into the booth opposite each other.

“So,” Ron began, still grinning, “I take you being here means you found a way for us to spend time together despite the distance between our homes?”

Yori smiled in way that said he was right. “Hai. It was simple, really. I moved here.”

“Say what?” Ron was flabbergasted, and even Rufus stopped eating to look up at Yori with a surprised expression. “You mean you’re living here now?” He pointed to down to indicate the city. “Here in Middleton?”

“Hai,” Yori nodded.

His mind began to form many questions. “Okay, I’m like confused, Yori,” he said as he reached for a burrito. “What about your training? School? Your family? I know you’re the same age as I, so who will be looking after you? You know minors in the USA are not allowed to live on their own.” Ron took a bite of burrito as he continued to look at the beautiful girl across from him.

With a grin, Yori started explaining. “For your first question, Ron-san, hai, I will continue my training. As for how, I’ll explain later, for this is not the place to tell.

“As for school, I’ll be going to your Middleton High School tomorrow to take your high school equivalence test. Before I left Japan, I was at the senior level in high school, so it shouldn’t be much of a problem for me to pass the test and reach the same level or graduate with a high school diploma.”

Ron was impressed. He knew the school standards in Japan were far tougher than America, so Yori shouldn’t have any problems passing high school here.

“As for family,” she paused for a moment before her face fell a bit. “I don’t have any family.”

His face became sympathetic, as did Rufus’s. “I’m sorry, Yori. You’re an orphan?” Seeing her nod, he reached over to hold her hand, which she squeezed back. “I didn’t know.”

With a somewhat sad grin, Yori shook her head. “I really didn’t felt like telling you when you were at Yamanouchi or when we were together last week, Ron-san.

“I’ve been an orphan since I was seven years old when my parents died in an accident. Sensei adopted me and I’ve lived at Yamanouchi ever since.”

Ron blinked. “Whoa. Sensei is your adopted father?” She again nodded with a grin. “Well, no wonder you were worried for him when he was kidnapped.”

“Hai,” the lithe girl replied. “As for who will look after me here in Middleton, I’m already living with my perspective guardian, so everything is taken care of. He’ll continue my training.”

This news made Ron realize what she was referring. “Wait, are you telling me that –”

Her free hand reached out to place a finger over his lips to silence him. “As I said, Ron-san, I’ll explain later,” she said with a grin.

After she lowered her finger and gently removed her other hand from his, Ron gave his usual Ron smile. “No prob with me, Yori,” he said grandly as she began eating a salad and Rufus returned to eating his nachos. “The Ron-man will wait.” He raised his burrito to take another bite out of it. “So,” he spoke around his chewing, “when did you arrive?”

“Yesterday,” Yori responded before she forked more of her salad, “I haven’t yet seen much of the city.” She forked the green leaves and vegetables into her mouth.

After swallowing, Ron gave a smug grin. “Well, how about we do this?” She swallowed her food and kept her eyes on him. “Tomorrow is Friday, so we’ll have dinner at Zing Mai’s tomorrow night, and on Saturday, after I attend morning Sabbath with my ’rents, I’ll show you around town.”

Yori smiled. “That will be wonderful, Ron-san.” Her eyebrows rose in curiosity. “Does Middleton have a shopping mall?”

Ron’s smug expression dropped, for he knew what she was asking. “Yes, we have a shopping mall. Let me guess, you want to go shopping.”

Her smiled widened, and Ron knew where they mostly would be spending Saturday. “Hai. I need new clothes. I’m now living here in America, so I might as well blend in. To quote that saying, ‘When in Venice, do what the Venetians do.’”

He softly laughed, which made Yori raised an eyebrow at him. “Actually that is ‘When in Rome, do what the Romans do.’”

Giving a small grin and a shrug, Yori stabbed her salad with her fork. “As I said, now that I’m here in America, I’ll need new clothing to blend with society. I didn’t have much in the way of clothing at Yamanouchi.” She forked her salad into her mouth.

Raising his burrito and taking a bite, Ron shrugged as well with a grin as he ate. He knew he was doomed to going shopping, but in order to help Yori adjust to her new home here in Middleton, he was willing to endure the hours of torture in Middleton Mall for her.

The two teens and one naked mole rat continued to eat their meal while conversing on what Yori might expect in school. Far as Ron was concern, it was a nice start to their new relationship.

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“I don’t believe it!” Kim nearly screamed inside her head. She was currently outside Bueno Nacho behind some bushes, observing what was going on inside, and she could see her best friend was sitting at their usual booth with a girl she thought would not likely see again for a long time. “What’s Yori doing here?” Her eyes narrowed on the fact that the Japanese girl was sitting in her spot.

Her mind raced as Kim watched Ron eat casually with Yori. It didn’t look like the girl came for Ron to embark on another mission; after all, she was dressed in that blue outfit she had worn last week when Yori came to Middleton High. The only explanation that fitted was that the ninja girl was here to see Ron.

Kim nearly growled. “Why that little, sneaky ninja!” Closing her eyes, she tried to calm herself down. “Calm down, Kim girl. No need to go ballistic. Going in there and confronting them like an out-of-control freak will not do any good. You jumped to conclusions about Yori last week and doing so now will not help matters.”

Exhaling a long breath, the redhead opened her eyes and backtracked away from the fast food joint. She headed toward home with her mind thinking on what she saw. Yori, she knew from the mission of rescuing Sensei and the battle with DNAmy’s gorillas, was a good person, and she clearly respected Ron. Kim knew Yori like-liked Ron, so the question she asked herself was this… “If Ron and Yori started dating, what does that leave me?” She mentally shook her head. “No need to jump to conclusions. Yori might just be here for a friendly visit. Nothing more.”

Despite her self-reassurances, Kim felt that gut feeling she had last week return, and she didn’t like it at all.

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TBC (End of Chapter 1)