No Child of Mine

A Fanfic by the Tenchi Knight

Disclaimer: This piece of fanfiction is intended for entertainment purposes only. The author receives no compensation for his time or for his writings. All characters are copyright their respective owners and are used without permission.

'Five... Four... Three... Two... One... Zero...' Kim mentally counts as she watched the clock tick away the seconds. As soon as the thin hand touched the '12' she smiled and the bell rang.

"All right, people; class is dismissed!" Mister Barkin announced. "Now get out of here and have a good summer vacation!"

Kim stood and walked out of the school at a leisurely pace while her friend of twelve years, Ron Stoppable, danced around her madly.

"No school... uh uh uh... no school... yeah, yeah..." He sang as he danced.

"Stoppable!" Mister Barkin called and Ron's dance stopped. "I expect to see you first thing Monday morning."

"What? Why?" He whined.

"I already told you, you failed to make your US History and CWP requirements." He said tiredly.

"Oh... yeah..." He said, suddenly depressed.

"Don't worry, Ron, it's only gonna be a couple weeks and you'll be free." Kim said. "It's no big."

"That's easy for you to say, you got an A in both classes!" He said.

"That's because I studied and didn't play Zombie Obliterator 4 every waking moment I had free." She said. "Ron, if you had just applied yourself, you wouldn't have to take accelerated summer school."

"Yeah... But I had to obliterate the zombie invasion!" Ron whined.

"You did, and now you're doing the learning you should have done before." Kim said. "Now come on, let's get some ice cream."

"Ok..." He said, sounding sullen.

"Ron, it's not like the world is ending or anything..." Kim said.

"I know, but it still tanks..." He said, shaking his head.

LATER THAT DAY...

"So how was your last day at school, Kimmie?" Doctor Ann Possible asked as she walked into the kitchen.

"Spankin!" Kim chirped. "We didn't really do anything!"

"Sounds like you've had a good day, then." Ann said. "How long does Ronald have to attend accelerated summer school?"

"Two weeks," Kim said. "CWP and history."

"That's what he gets for playing video games instead of doing his homework." Ann said.

"That's what I told him." Kim said.

Beep-beep-ba-beep...

"Sorry, mom..." Kim said and pulled out her kimmunicator. "Go, Wade. What's the sitch?"

"Kim, I just intercepted a report of a murder..." Wade said.

"Ok..." Kim said, confused by this.

"It was Big Daddy Brotherson." Wade said.

"Big Daddy's dead?" Kim asked, shocked.

"Yes, but that's not the biggest news... the prime suspect is Shego!" Wade said.

"No way!" Kim exclaimed. "Wade, get me a ride there ASAP."

"Already done," Wade said. "Should I call Ron?"

"No." Kim said. "He will probably just say that she is guilty. I don't need him going off about her so I'm gonna handle this by myself."

"Ok..." Wade said. "Your ride should be there in about fifteen minutes."

"Thanks, Wade." Kim said and cut the connection.

"Kimmie, do you think that's a good idea?" Ann asked, concerned.

"Mom, Shego wouldn't do that. I know she wouldn't." Kim said.

"But how are you sure?"

"I just know Shego." Kim said and dashed up the stairs to her room.

TEN MINUTES LATER...

Kim jogged down the stairs and to the door.

"Kimmie... be careful out there..."

Kim looked at her mother and nodded before jogging out to the street where a UH-1 Huey helicopter had just touched down, its rotors still spinning at full speed. Kim ducked down and ran to the door before pulling it open and jumping into the helicopter. Once inside, she shut the door and sat down.

"Deputy Lawson, we have to hurry."

"Don't worry, Kim. I'm already getting back on it." He said and lifted on the cyclic.

TWO HOURS LATER...

"We're coming up on the LZ now." Deputy Lawson said as he looked at the street below which was flooded with police cars and news vans.

"Thanks, Deputy Lawson." Kim said.

"With all you do for us, Kimberly, it's the least we can do for you." He said and Kim pushed the door open before throwing out a thick rope bolted to the floor then leaping out and sliding down it easily. As she touched down, a police officer jogged over led Kim to his cruiser.

"Kim Possible?" He said, sounding confused. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here about Big Daddy. Who's in charge?"

"I am." He said. "I still don't understand..."

"Tell me everything you know. I want to know everything about this scene."

"This is a criminal investigation, Miss Possible, not a rescue mission."

"I realize that but your number one suspect is Shego. That should be reason enough to bring me in on the case." Kim said. "Now dish the details."

"Fine," He said. "At about three o'clock, Big Daddy Brotherson was found dead by his assistant who had come to check on him after he failed to answer his phone. Apparently he had a secret meeting with someone and they decided that they didn't like what he was saying."

"Do you know who the meeting was with?" Kim asked.

"No." He said. "His assistant wasn't told who it was."

"Was there any video?"

"None."

"Fine. I want to see the scene."

"It's being investigated. You'll get a copy of the report when they're done with their investigation." He said.

"I said I want to see the scene."

"And if I say no?"

"Then I'll be on the phone with some very high-ranking friends and you'll be up to your neck in Global Justice agents faster than you can say 'jurisdictional precedence.'" She said.

"Fine. I'm sure you know the procedure."

"Don't touch anything."

"Exactly." He said. "Take this..."

He handed her a badge and she nodded before walking up to the police line and flashing it to a uniformed officer who lifted the ribbon. Kim walked up to the front of the building and took a deep breath before stepping into the club. The first thing she noticed was how distinctly different the interior and exterior were. From the outside, the club was relatively nondescript. You couldn't tell that anything had happened within. Even the club proper looked normal, aside from the dozens of police, both uniformed officers and crime scene investigators. But once inside the private meeting room Big Daddy reserved for his more sensitive meetings, however, it was another story. From the broken table and smashed glassware strewn across the floor to the cracked walls and scorched ceiling tiles, the room was a canvas for destruction. As she reached the sheet-covered body of Big Daddy Brotherson, she stopped and looked at him silently.

"Would you like to see him?" A female CSI asked. Kim glanced up at her and idly noted that the statuesque blonde woman should be a model and not a crime scene investigator.

"Yes." Kim said.

The woman reached down and pulled back the sheet. Kim looked at him silently, her lips pursed together tightly.

"Plasma," She said softly. "That's a plasma burn and those are claw marks. Shego's trademarks."

"This isn't her work." The CSI said, covering the large man once more.

"What do you mean?" Kim asked.

The young woman stood up and tucked a lock of her long blonde hair behind her ear before fixing Kim with her stunning hazel eyes.

"Shego would never murder a man in cold blood. There has to be another reason for this."

"How do you know Shego?" Kim asked, feeling strangely aggressive.

"I worked with her for a short time before she left Team Go." The young woman said. "In that time, I had the opportunity to sit down with her and really learn what she was about and she would never do anything like this."

"I hope you're right..." Kim said softly.

"If you do talk to her… do me a favor and tell her that Janice DuPonte sends her regards." She said.

"I will." Kim said, nodding.

AT SHEGO'S APARTMENT...

"WHAT THE HELL?" A green skinned woman demanded as she stared at a computer screen. "This shit isn't happening! I'm wanted on suspicion of MURDER?"

She pushed back from the table and growled.

"How in the hell am I gonna get THIS settled?" She asked herself. "Maybe I should call Kimmie. She's got a knack for doing the impossible and that sounds like what I'm facing right now..."

ELSEWHERE...

Kim pulled out her kimmunicator as she was walking from the club and dialed Wade.

"Hey Kim, do you have any information?" He asked.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say this was Shego." She said. "I mean I know she wouldn't do anything like this but the damage—claw marks, the plasma burns—it all points to Shego."

"I don't know what to say, Kim." Wade said. "Maybe she's finally gone and done it."

"I really don't think that she is capable of that but the evidence says otherwise."

"She has tried to kill you in the past."

"But do you really think she was trying to kill me?" She asked.

"Well..." He said and then looked off to his left. "I just got a hit. It says 'Princess, I'm innocent. Call me.' And it has a number. Do you want me to send it to you?"

"Please and thank you." Kim said.

"Kim, be careful."

"Don't worry, I'll be fine." She said with a surety that made Wade stare at the monitor with a concerned expression.

"Kim, are you sure about that?" He asked.

"Yes, Wade, I am."

"All right..." He said. "I'm forwarding the number now."

She watched the screen and nodded as she saw 'MSG RCVD' flash on the screen.

"Thanks, Wade. I'll call if anything's up." She said and cut the connection. She then touched one of the keys and watched as the image of a small phone appeared on screen. She put the kimmunicator to her ear and listened to it ring twice before she heard a click and then a voice.

"I didn't do it." Shego said simply.

"What would you have done if it wasn't me?" Kim asked.

"Only seven people have this number and most of them don't have the gall to call me unless they absolutely have to." Shego said. "Besides, I knew it was you when your nickname came up."

"And what does it say for me when I call you?" Kim asked.

"Pumpkin," Shego said with a chuckle. "But kidding around aside... There's someone out there who's able to use plasma that's killing villains and pinning my name to it."

"And how do I know this isn't an elaborate ploy of yours to get me to destroy my reputation by trying to save yours?" Kim asked.

"This isn't a ploy, Kim." Shego said.

"Ok. I believe you. Where are you?"

"Go to the Airport Hilton and check in under the name Kimberly Goeres." Shego said.

"All right," Kim said. "I'll see you there?"

"Not if I see you first..." Shego said and hung up with a chuckle.

"Ugh..." Kim said, rolling her eyes as she put the kimmunicator in her pocket.

"Who was it you were talking to?" A young man asked, walking up to Kim.

"What's it to you?" Kim asked.

"Well, from what I heard it was someone that I'm rather interested in."

"And who would that be?"

"Shego." He said.

"Just who are you?"

"Detective John Spruance, Homicide." He said, holding out a business card to her.

"What do you want from me?"

"I knew Shego when she was in Go City and I know that she's not the one who's to blame. There are others who don't see things in the same way as I do and who'd look to hang her at first chance. A good way to think of me is I'm the only friend she has on the force right now." He said. "I want you to liaise. I want you to work with me and Shego to get this all sorted out and to help me figure out who is responsible."

"And if I don't cooperate?" Kim asked.

"Then I'll be forced to be a bit more heavy-handed." He said. "The choice is yours."

"I think you've already made the choice for me." She said bitterly and took the card. "Don't call me, I'll call you."

"I'm sure you will." He said smugly and walked off.

"With friends like that..." She said to herself and dialed Wade once more.

"What's up, Kim?" He said.

"I need you to get everything you can on Detective John Spruance." She said.

"Sure thing," He said.

"Thanks Wade." She said.

THIRTY MINUTES LATER...

Kim walked into the Airport Hilton and strode to the black marble counter where a young woman is working.

"Welcome to the Airport Hilton. Can I help you?" She asked, looking up with a smile.

"I have a reservation." Kim said.

"Under what name?"

"Alicia Goeres." Kim said.

"One moment while I look..." She said and typed for a second before nodding and looking up with a smile. "Yes, right here. I just need your signature..."

She put a paper on the counter and Kim signed it easily before handing it back to the young woman who put down a plastic key-card on the marble.

"It is the penthouse suite. Please wait one moment and your personal concierge will escort you to your room and see to it that all your needs are met."

"Thank you, but that's not necessary." Kim said, shaking her head.

"Are you quite sure?" He asked. "The service is entirely complimentary and it is our desire that your every need has been accommodated."

"Right now… yeah, I am." She said with a nod.

"Very well," He said. "If ever there is anything you need, simply dial zero and your concierge will answer."

"I… thank you." She said, taking the key and walking to the elevator.

WADE'S HOUSE...

"Ron's calling... I wonder what's up..." Wade said and answered the call from the towhead. "What's up, Ron?" Wade said, watching as Ron appeared on screen.

"KP's gone missing. I need your help finding her."

"Chill out, Ron. She's just out on a solo-mission."

"What? What kind of solo mission?"

"She had to handle something and knew that you would be a liability rather than an asset. I'm sorry; Ron, but I can't tell you." Wade said.

"Oh, come on!"

"No can do." He said.

"Fine. Just tell me if she gets into trouble." Ron said.

"All right," Wade said. "But only if she asks for help."

"Thanks, Wade." Ron said.

"Don't mention it. Kim's calling in, I've got to go." He said and cut the connection before opening the line to Kim. "What's up, Kim?"

"I'm going to be staying the night at the Airport Hilton." Kim said. "Shego's putting me up since she wanted to meet me face-to-face."

"What?" He said, confused.

"Shego wanted to meet me face-to-face so she's putting me up for the night at the Airport Hilton." Kim said. "I'll check in later to see if you've heard anything more."

"All right. Stay safe out there, Kim." He said.

"Later, Wade." She said and cut the connection.

AT THE HOTEL...

The elevator dinged and the door opened to show a short hall. She walked out of the elevator and slipped the key card into the door, opening it. She walked inside and looked around at the opulent surroundings; from the fine oak dining room table to the plush carpet to and the over-stuffed leather couch that Shego was comfortably draped across... "Shego?" She said, realizing that she had in fact seen the villainess.

"Hey there, Kimmie. I was wondering when you'd get here." Shego said.

"How did you manage to get here so fast?" Kim asked.

"I was five miles out when we talked and had already reserved the suite." Shego said. "So let's look at the situation: Big Daddy is dead and I'm the prime suspect. Only thing is, I'm innocent. You see, I was in the Bahamas when this went down and I caught a flight up here when I heard I was a suspect."

"It doesn't make sense, though. Why come here if you've been accused of murdering Big Daddy?"

"My location doesn't really matter since I don't follow the same sort of time-table that most people do and can travel relatively freely and quickly from point A to point B without having to report my location to anyone so even if I were in the Bahamas, they would argue I came up here and did it then went back down there."

"So instead you come up here and get a hotel room…" Kim said.

"Because I knew you would be coming and I wanted somewhere I could meet with you without worrying about anyone interfering before I could get your help with this." She said. "Besides, if it happens again I'll have the best alibi possible: I was with you. So are you hungry?"

"Kinda…" Kim said. "But it's not exactly the best time to go out for lunch so room service?"

"I'll take a rack of bar-b-cue pork ribs, a piece of corn bread, and a cold beer." Shego said casually.

"Unexpected…" Kim said. She walked over to the phone and dialed the operator.

"How can I be of service, Miss Goeres?" A young woman asked.

"I'd like two racks of bar-b-cue pork ribs, two orders of corn bread, and two bottles of Guinness sent up to my room." She said.

"Certainly, ma'am." She said. "Is there anything else that I can assist you with?"

"No, thank you." She said and hung up.

"Two? Kimmie, are you going to have a drink with me?" Shego asked with a quirked eyebrow.

"After today? I'm going to need a drink." Kim said, hanging her head and sighing heavily. "I know you didn't do that to Big Daddy. That did look like something you could have done but I know you didn't."

"I appreciate the vote of confidence, Kimmie, but how do you know?" Shego asked.

"What?"

"How do you know that I wouldn't do it?"

"You're not the kind of person who would kill without reason."

"And you know this how?"

"I don't know how... I just know that you're too good of a person to murder someone in cold blood." Kim said. "As much as you try to bill yourself as evil, there's always been that touch of restraint in your actions that showed me your conscience was still there and that there was a spark of good in you."

"You know, you're cute when you're idealistic." Shego said with a small smile.

Kim stared at Shego for a long moment before shaking her head.

"One of these days I'll understand you." Kim said. "But until then..."

"Kimmie, the day you understand me is the day the world stops spinning."

"Then I guess I want that to happen."

"You want to understand me? Why?"

"I don't know. I just do. It's something that I think about a lot… why you say the things you do and act the way you act."

"Thanks, Kimmie. That means a lot to me." Shego said with uncommon tenderness. "So how was your flight?"

"Good... I was stressing because of the whole thing with the murder but the flight itself was good..." Kim said, sitting down on the loveseat. "You?"

"Good. I took the hovercraft and landed on the roof so it wasn't too bad." Shego said.

"Sounds like the way to go."

"Cha." Shego said lazily. "It's nice. One of these days I'll have to take you for a ride."

"That you will." Kim agreed.

"So what do you know about the crime?" Shego asked.

"Big Daddy was murdered by someone using plasma and claws. They were obviously someone with clout because they got a private meeting with him and dangerous since they managed to kill both him and his bodyguard. I haven't seen the coroner's reports yet since they haven't done an autopsy but already people are drawing conclusions."

"It's to be expected. Something big goes down in the villainy world and if it smells of me, then it must be me." Shego said tiredly. "I just wish that sometimes when it is me that it would smell like someone else instead of me since a lot of things end up like smelling like me for some reason."

"Probably because you're the most capable criminal that's still active in the villainy world," Kim said.

"Why thank you, Kimmie. Coming from you, that means a lot."

"You're welcome, Shego." Kim said with a giggle.

"So how was he? Was he on the floor or on his chair?"

"He was in his chair."

"Did it look like he had tried to get up?"

"No."

"Where was the other chair?"

"In the corner."

"Was it ripped?"

"No, it was dented like they had kicked it backwards."

"What was his pose and expression?"

"Shock and confusion. That's what I could see, at least. He seemed like someone who'd realized they were dealing with a whole new weight class far outside their own."

"So maybe he thought he was dealing with someone who was harmless instead but who was really powerful." Shego said.

"That makes sense. He'd be tricked into letting down his guard. But who could do that and pull off that level of carnage?"

"I don't know..." Kim said, shaking her head. "I don't know."

ELSEWHERE...

"Big Daddy's been taken care of." A young female voice said. "Shego's already been accused for the crime."

"Good." A sinister male voice said. "Take the next target."

"As you wish," The girl said, her eyes fixed on a figure in the distance.

AT THE HOTEL...

"Why do you think it is that you're being framed for this?" Kim asked.

"Doi. I'm a threat to whomever it is who's doing this and they're trying to get me out of the way."

"Who do we know who would sink to this level?"

"You mean murdering an innocent villain?"

"An innocent villain." Kim said with a chuckle. "That sounds funny."

"If they haven't done anything to deserve to die, they're innocent." Shego said seriously. "Whoever this is, they're dangerous and we're going to have to find them and stop them before they strike again."

"But how? We don't know their MO other than they are trying to imitate you." Kim said. "To pin everything on you in the end."

"And that's what scares me." Shego said. "You see, this is the beginning of my 'end-game' scenario."

"End-game scenario?"

"Where I take over the world. It was never my goal to just work as Doctor Dee's sidekick. This was just setting up the dominoes so when the time was right, everything would click into place."

"Who do we know who'd be able to make everything work like this besides you?"

"Nobody. That's just the thing. There were still more pieces to go before everything was ready." Shego said. "Right now, if I tried it, I'd fail."

"So then who do you think is executing this whole thing?" Kim asked.

They hear a knock at the door and Kim walks to it, opening the door and revealing a young woman in a handsome uniform standing behind a cart.

"Your order," The young woman said, gazing at Kim with dark green—almost blue—eyes.

"Bring it in," She said, stepping to the side and letting her walk inside with the cart.

"Mmm..." Shego hummed as she sat up and gazed at the young woman dressed in black slacks and a fitted maroon double-breasted jacket. "That looks downright tasty..."

The young woman coolly lifted the lid and Kim walked over, inhaling deeply.

"That smells so good..." She said, eyeing the ribs.

"Is there anything that I can do for you while I am here?" The young woman asked.

"Yes. Tell me your name and how much you make per hour." Shego said.

"My name is Arisanna and I am paid a salary as I am your on-call concierge." The young woman said. "Is there anything that I can do for you while I am here or anything which you would like for me to get for you?"

"Well, if you're offering, then I'll take a pair of cotton PJs – preferably in black or green – and something in Pink for Princess." Shego said and Kim shot her a confused look.

"Certainly. I will bring them up to your room as soon as they are available." She said with a mock-bow.

"Thank you." Shego said and Arisanna walked out of the room without another word.

"Pajamas?" Kim asked.

"Well, I have a feeling we might be spending some time here so I figured we might as well be in something comfortable while we're here." Shego said. "Besides, I went straight from lounging seaside to throwing this on and flying up here from the islands so I'm keen on hitting the shower as soon as possible."

"Oh." Kim said. "So I was wondering... what's it like being a villain?"

"What's it like being a hero, Kimmie?" Shego asked rhetorically. "It's the thrill of the hunt, it's the exultation of doing something that nobody else can do, and it's the swell of pride you feel when someone says your name and it means something. That, and it's lonely... oh so lonely. You never trust anyone fully because they might stab you in the back. You're forced to rely on yourself and you see what sort of a cut-throat world we really live in."

"So have you ever been tempted to coming back to the hero side?" Kim asked. "You wouldn't have to worry about being stabbed in the back."

"Are you so sure of that, Kimmie? You never really know who or what a person's about, no matter what side they're on."

"What about me?"

"What about you?"

"Do you think that I'd stab you in the back?"

"Under the right circumstances, yeah, I do."

"I can't believe you just said that..." Kim said softly, shaking her head.

"If you were faced with either stabbing me in the back or sacrificing your family, what would you do?"

"I'd save both of you."

"You don't have that option." Shego said.

"I would make it."

"And if you couldn't?"

"I'd sacrifice myself." Kim said. "I couldn't live with myself if I sacrificed them, and I couldn't live if I sacrificed you."

"Wow, Kimmie, that almost sounds as if you care about me."

"Well of course I care about you!" Kim exclaimed and then clapped her hands over her mouth.

"Fascinating... go on..." Shego said and Kim shook her head, her hands still across her mouth. "Oh, come on, Princess, you can tell me everything..." Kim shook her head again and Shego laughed at her self-consciousness. "You know, you're cute when you're embarrassed."

"Ths no hah it wash s'posed ta come out." Kim said, her words muffled by her hands.

"What was that, pumpkin?" Shego asked and Kim moved out her hands an inch.

"That's not how it was supposed to come out." She said softly.

"Ah." Shego said. "So how was it supposed to come out?" Kim looked at her silently and Shego chuckled softly. "Don't worry about it, princess. I know what you mean. So tell me, what are we going to do about this whole shindig? I don't want to have to beat a murder rap."

"Do you have any idea who it would be who'd want Big Daddy dead?" Kim asked.

"Not really, no." Shego said. "I mean he's always kept on an even keel with most villains and nobody I know of would have anything to gain by killing him."

"So then you think he's an innocent victim?"

"As innocent as Big Daddy could be." Shego said with a chuckle. "Have you seen the scene?"

"Yes. All the evidence pointed to a plasma wielding and highly trained martial artist as the killer. Unfortunately, since you're the only known plasma wielding, martial artist villain, you're the prime suspect." Kim said.

"There was no physical evidence? No hairs or fingerprints?"

"Nothing they told me about or that I could see." Kim said. "I'll have Wade look into it a little bit later to find out what the police have found."

"Thanks, princess." Shego said. "So what have you been up to besides this whole sitch?"

"Are you really making small talk?"

"Well, what else is there to do?" Shego asked and hiked one well manicured eyebrow which earned a blush from the cheerleader.

"Small talk's good." Kim said. "I haven't really been up to much. We've been working on a new routine for the upcoming game but it's hard. Hope can't quite stick the landing on her third flip and Marcella is constantly missing her mark for the second cheer."

"Where are Liz and Crystal?"

"Why?"

"Well, Liz is better at doing flips when teamed with Crystal and Hope is better for the cheers."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, from what I've seen, yes. Of course, it was only a dozen or so of your games and practices."

"You're kidding... really?"

"Yeah." Shego said. "You'd be surprised how many places there are around your school to hide if you have the right sort of skill set to get into them. I've got to say I did like seeing you shaking your pom-poms out there, Kimmie." Shego said. Kim's cheeks flushed as Shego again wagged her eyebrows at her. "You're so fun to torture, pumpkin."

"You're evil..." Kim said, burying her head into the couch and covering her face while Shego laughed at the blushing cheerleader.

"I've been saying that for years, pumpkin." Shego said with a laugh. "It's my thing. So do you think that would work better for the squad?"

"It might."

"Good."

"I never thought that you'd be interested in cheerleading."

"Doi. Nubile svelte bodies fit into skimpy outfits prancing around on display? Yum! That aside, I know you get some of your moves there so I like to keep up on the trends to have an idea what you're going to pull on me in our next fight. That, and... well..." She said and then mumbled something.

"What was that last part? I missed it."

"I wanted to be a cheerleader when I was younger." Shego said softly, her cheeks flushing with color.

"Wow. That's almost as unexpected to hear as you saying 'nubile svelte bodies in skimpy outfits'." Kim said.

"Why's that?"

"You never really struck me as the cheerleader type."

"When I was a little girl, I saw how popular the cheerleaders were with everyone and I wanted to have the same thing so I tried out one year but didn't make the cut. The next year, I was going to try out again but the meteor struck and I got my glow and that ended my stint in cheerleading."

"Oh." Kim said. "And nubile bodies?"

"Think back to the last practice you had. Tell me it wasn't hot as hell when Marcella and Crystal were doing their little dance. Go ahead and tell me. Those girls have smoking hot bodies and the way they were sexing it up was enough to drive anyone to distraction. In fact, I think that you almost broke the skin while you were chewing on your index finger while watching them."

"It's not like that... I was just studying their forms." Kim said.

"Yeah, forms clad in spandex and lycra." Shego teased.

"So are you saying you're... into... well..."

"Either, really." Shego said. "I do what feels good with who I find attractive."

"Oh."

"Does that make you uncomfortable?"

"No... It's just kinda surprising."

"What about you, Kimmie?"

"What about me?"

"Your predilections," Shego said. "You tried really hard to deflect and it worked, getting me to out myself. Now I want to know about you. Do you like it when they're doing their thing? Do you like it when those hotties with their tight little bodies are bumping and grinding to the beat, when their hips are swaying this way and that and their hair is swishing back and forth?"

Kim sits there quietly, her cheeks coloring slightly.

"Or what about when they do their high kicks and you see a flash of thigh?" Shego asked.

"Well... kinda... but I never thought of myself in that way." Kim said.

"I might have a test for you to show you how you feel. Now tell me what you think of this…" Shego said as she stood, walked over to Kim, then leaned down and captured the redhead's peach lips with her own in a soft kiss. Kim moaned softly in her throat as the sensations crashed over her like waves breaking on the surf. And then, just as suddenly as the pleasant sensations had begun, they ended and Kim opened her eyes to see Shego sitting on the couch once more.

"W-wow..." Kim breathed.

"I'm glad I had that effect on you, princess. You weren't that bad yourself. Now tell me, did you like it?"

"Uh huh." She said, nodding.

"And do you want to try it again?"

"Uh huh." She said again.

"Then there's a good chance that you're bi or a lesbian." Shego said. "Either that, or I'm so good that I make straight women want me. Well, whatever it is, I'm freaking hungry and there's a platter of ribs with my name on it."

Kim blinked, taken aback, as Shego reached over and grabbed a plate then set it down on the table before taking the beers and setting them down, one next to her plate and the other closer to Kim.

"Are you going to eat too?" Shego asked.

"Yeah." Kim said and took her own plate and set it down.

"Something up, Kimmie?" Shego asked.

"No." She said softly as she looked down at her food.

"Kimmie, look at me." Shego said and Kim looked up just in time for the green skinned woman to lean forward and kiss her softly. When she broke the kiss, she saw Kim was staring at her.

"What was that for?"

"What was what for?"

"That kiss."

"Do I need a reason to kiss you? Kimmie, I told you I'm a hedonist. Whatever feels good is good." She said. "Besides, your lip gloss is tasty."

"Oh." Kim said, her cheeks flaring up with a blush as Shego licked her lips slowly, her eyes fixed on the redhead.

HOURS LATER...

"Bathroom's free, princess. You should try the shower out… it's amazing." Shego said as she walked out of the steam-filled room wearing nothing more than a towel and a smile. Kim glanced over and her breath caught in her throat as she saw Shego stop and run a glowing hand over her hair, drying it in an instant. The green skinned villainess then darted her eyes over to the cheerleader and she smiled and struck a pose. "See something you like?"

"You're beautiful." Kim said softly and Shego felt a rush as a full body blush swept across her.

"Thank you." Shego said softly. She walked over to the closet and cast a glance over her shoulder at the redhead who was still watching her then opened it and pulled out one of her classic cat suits before dropping her towel and standing with her exposed back facing Kim who sat and stared at the beautiful woman unabashedly, her hands gripping the sheets as she eyed her as she slowly slid first the left foot then the right into the suit. She then stood and slowly pulled the outfit on as if she were performing some sort of reverse striptease. To say Kim was enraptured by the sight would be like saying the sun is somewhat important to the survival of the earth.

Shego turned with her suit half-zipped and looked at Kim who quickly turned away, her cheeks flaming with embarrassment.

"It's nothing to be ashamed of, Kimmie." Shego said as she reached for the discrete zipper. Kim glanced back over just in time to see her grab the pull and draw it up and past her breasts, closing the suit up. "Hell, I might even watch you get dressed if I get the chance."

Kim blushed again then stood up and walked into the bathroom quickly. Shego stood for a second, staring at the door, then walked over and knocked softly on it. "Kimmie?"

No answer.

"Kimmie, I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable..."

No answer.

"Kimmie..."

No answer. Shego sighed heavily and walked over to the bed before sitting down.

"Why is this bothering me? Have I gone soft or something?" Shego asked herself. "I mean I'm 'Shego the badass' for heaven's sake! I take what I want and give nothing back and here I am taking care of Kimmie and worrying what she thinks and if she's angry at me! Ugh, this girl is going to drive me insane!" She shook her head and flopped back on her back, feeling unusually tired.

Fifteen minutes later, she heard the shower stop and then the curtain draw back. She sat up and waited with baited breath as she listened to the sounds within the bathroom—the whirr of the hair dryer, the gentle clatter of a hairbrush on the marble countertop—every sound painting a picture for her and causing her such exquisite torture. Finally the sounds stopped and she watched as the door opened and Kim stepped out wrapped in a towel and nothing more, her eyes downcast as she stood in the precipice between the two rooms. Kim walked over to a dresser where she had a pack with her mission clothes was sitting and stopped before it.

Shego stared silently as Kim stood at the dresser for a long moment before moving and letting the towel cascade down into a fluffy pile at her feet, leaving her gloriously naked back exposed before the pale skinned woman. Shego gasped softly as the supple peach colored skin came into view and her eyes drunk in the sights, committing them all to memory as if her life depended on it. Kim grabbed a pair of panties and leaned down, slipping first her right foot into one leg hole, then her left foot through the other and pulling them up. She then pulled on her mission pants, cinching down her belt before pulling on a skin tight black cotton-lycra blend top and turning to face the villainess whose cheeks were suddenly afire.

"Was it what you hoped for?" Kim asked softly.

"More." Shego whispered, feeling both embarrassed and awestruck.

"Good." Kim said, feeling embarrassed and excited by the show she had just given. Moments later, her kimmunicator went off and she walked over to the nightstand where it was resting. "Go, Wade."

"There's been another murder. Duff was just found bludgeoned to death with a six iron on the Cedar Rapids Golf Course."

"They didn't even let him finish his round before killing him?" Kim asked and Shego chuckled.

"Any witnesses?" Shego asked.

"Just one. A groundskeeper said he saw a woman with black hair in a black and green suit throwing green fire at Duff. He didn't see her face since her back was to him and he didn't stick around long but it sounds like another one that's going to be blamed on Shego."

"I've got an air tight alibi." Shego said. "I was here with Kimmie ever since she checked in."

"Well that helps cinch things for me, but unfortunately the police still think you're responsible and since nobody but Kim and I know you were there the entire time, they can blame it on mind control or something else." Wade said. "We're going to have to find some concrete evidence pointing to the real criminal."

"Great. I have to do the police's job for them so they don't arrest me." Shego groused.

"Anything else?"

"Just one thing. Ron wanted to know where you were but I told him you wanted to go it alone. He wants you to know that he's coming to save you if anything goes wrong." Wade said.

"Thanks, Wade." She said and cut the connection.

"How's he going to save you? By losing his pants?" Shego asked.

"He can hold his own in a fight if he puts his mind to it." Kim said.

"Huh. I'd like to see that one." Shego quipped. "So now we have a Big Daddy and Duff dead. I wonder who's next."

"Dunno. If it were me, I'd go after Dementor next."

"Why's that?"

"It's just a hunch. Two villains, both past their prime, and both who've let themselves go. That sounds like Dementor as well."

"And Señor Senior Sr." Shego added.

"But there's Junior to think about." Kim countered.

"Good point." Shego said. "Last I heard, Dementor was outside Bavaria at a sour kraut festival."

"Ewww..." Kim said, shivering. "I'll have Wade tip off the local polizei that something might be up and to keep an eye on him."

"Why don't we just go and stop it before it happens?" Shego asked.

"If you go and it happens anyway, then they'll blame you for it." Kim said. "I can't let you risk the exposure."

"You can't let me? Who're you to let me do anything?"

"I'm the heroine you asked for help. That's who I am. Now are you going to listen to what I'm saying or are you going to be hard headed about this?"

"I guess I can listen for now." Shego said, turning up her nose a bit in indignation.

"Good." Kim said. "The last thing I need is to have to bail you out of jail."

"They stopped setting bail for me years ago, Kimmie. You'd have to break me out."

"Yet another reason you should stay close."

"You mean beside the fact that you like having me around?"

"I guess." Kim said. "Of course, the shows are nice."

"Mmm... I've got to agree..." Shego said, chuckling.

ELSEWHERE...

"This should be easy." A young woman said as she stared at the picture of Doctor Dementor. She glanced up and watched as the squat Bavarian man walked down the street quietly. "Herr Doktor!" She called softly and he glanced over before stopping and taking a better look. "Komm, Herr Doktor."

She quickly darted around a corner and smiled evilly as she ran into the blind alley, knowing he was sure to follow. Once she saw him enter the alleyway, she again called to him. "Komm zu mir, Herr Doktor."

"Shego?" He asked with a confused expression on his face as he walked forward, a sense of foreboding washing over him.

"Nein. Ich bin nicht Shego." She said as she stepped out behind him. He spun and gurgled as she drove her hand into his throat, her clawed gloves easily tearing through his flesh. "Ich bin das Kind. Gute Nacht, Herr Doktor."

She pulled her hand back and he fell to the ground, a shocked expression on his face. She smiled down at him for a moment before leaping up and grabbing hold of a window sill before vaulting to the opposite roof.

HOURS LATER...

"No witnesses?" Kim asked.

"One person had their window open above the alley heard them talking in German before she killed him. He said he called her Shego and that she had said she wasn't, but that she was 'the child.' I'm not sure what to make of that but at least there's something we can work from." Wade said as he stared at the screen.

"Good. Pull up everything you can and keep your ears open for anything happening to villains and any talk about Shego." Kim said.

"Will do. Anything else I can do for you?" He asked.

"Not right now, thanks." Kim said.

"All right, Kim. I'll call if anything comes up."

"Thanks, Wade." Kim said and disconnected the call. "Who do you think is next?"

"Monty." Shego said. "I'd put my money on him next."

"Yeah, that sounds about right. Should I call Global Justice?"

"Ugh. Not those self-righteous pricks. They couldn't protect a pile of beef in a room full of vegans." Shego said, rolling her eyes.

"Team Go?"

"Yeah, right." Shego said.

"We have to get help from someone." Kim said. "We can't do it and he won't survive on his own."

"And if we do call someone and they're killed?" Shego countered. "I don't want to be responsible for someone else's death."

"So you're saying that someone is going to die and it's up to us to choose who?" Kim asked.

"No, I'm saying that someone may die and no matter what I'm partly to blame."

"Why?"

"I knew it was going to happen but I did nothing to stop it." Shego said. "So what do we do?"

"We should just call Monty and warn him." Kim said. "Tell him someone's coming to kill him but that we don't know who or when but they'll be like you."

"Oh, that will go over well. I can just imagine it now." Shego said. "Hi, Monty. Someone's gonna try and kill you with powers like mine. Big Daddy..."

FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER...

"...Brotherson was killed first and then someone killed Duff Killigan, and now Doctor Dementor and we think that it's the same person."

"And by 'we' you mean you and Miss Possible?" Monty asked.

"Yes, Monty." Shego growled. "I told you he wouldn't believe me."

"Monty, this isn't a joke." Kim said seriously.

"Kim Possible!" He exclaimed. "I had assumed that Shego was playing some sort of practical joke!"

"No. This sitch is real." She said.

"Oh... Well in that case... What? Who are you?" He asked.

"What?" Kim asked, confused.

"What are you doing in my room?"

"Monty? Monty! Run!" Kim shouted.

"Aargh!"

Kim stared at the phone as the strangled cry made its way through the tiny speaker and then put it back to her ear. "Monty?"

"Monty can't come to the phone right now." A soft female voice said.

"What did you do to him?" Kim asked.

"Same thing I did to Big Daddy, Duff and Dementor." She said. "And the same thing I'm going to do to the Seniors next."

The line went dead and Kim's eyes went wide with horror.

"The Seniors are next." Kim whispered and Shego sighed.

"And there's not a thing we can do to stop it unless we go there and protect them ourselves."

"We can't." Kim said. "If you go out there and they're killed, you'll be arrested and probably get the death penalty."

IN KIM'S HOTEL ROOM...

"Are you sure?" Shego asked.

"She said the seniors are next." Kim said again. "What do we do, Shego?"

"There's nothing we can do, pumpkin." Shego said. "We have to wait until she comes after us or we can go after her directly. Not unless you want me to go out there."

Kim vehemently shook her head and Shego lifted her eyebrow.

"I still don't see why you're so concerned for me, princess." Shego said.

"I guess it's because you've become a fixture in my life. I mean it seems like I can't go a week without seeing you either as an enemy or as a temporary ally and I can't see my life without you in it."

"Careful there, princess, you sound like you're crushing on me there."

"I'm not." Kim denied with a vehement shake of her head and Shego chuckled.

"Methinks the lady doth protest too much." Shego said with a grin and Kim's cheeks lit up with a bright blush. "And your body betrays you too."

"It's not true." She said.

"You know, for some reason I don't believe you. I think that you're hiding a crush that you've had for me for years and you're just afraid to admit the truth that you really like me and that's why you agreed to help me out with this instead of just hunting me down like a dog."

"I didn't hunt you down because I knew that you weren't capable of it." Kim said.

"So there was no hidden desire for me?" Shego asked softly.

"Well... maybe a little..." Kim said softly and Shego grinned.

"I knew it!" She crowed.

"But that wasn't the main reason!" Kim quickly added.

"Sure..." Shego said slyly and Kim hung her head.

"You're impossible."

"And you're Kim Possible. So?" Shego asked and Kim stared at her for a long moment before rolling her eyes.

"Oh, that was bad." Kim said. "Seriously?"

"I'm not the one who named you, pumpkin. Take it up with mom and dad." Shego said.

"Mom and dad? Making plans already?" Kim asked.

"Oh yes. It will be a spring wedding, you in a glistening sequined white wedding dress, me dressed in a form-fitting black and green wedding dress…"

"Wait… both of us in dresses?"

"Well, I can pull off a tuxedo if I want but really I want to get married in a dress."

"How about dresses for the ceremony and tuxedos for the reception."

"That will make the honeymoon escape easy."

"And we wouldn't risk our dresses… wait a second… are we planning our wedding?" Kim asked.

"Sounds like it, princess. So are you interested?" Shego asked and waggled her eyebrows at the heroine who blushed hotly. "So what do you want to do?"

"What?" Kim asked, confused.

"Well, we are waiting for our friend 'The Child' to attack the Seniors and see if they can survive so what do we do in the meantime?"

"Well… I don't know…"

"Maybe we could talk about that picture you've got of me hanging in your locker."

"The mug shot?"

"The one behind it." Shego said. "The one of me as Miss Go wearing that pink apron and holding a casserole."

"Well… you see…"

"Well?"

"I miss you being Miss Go." Kim said softly. "I miss spending time with you, hearing you laugh and seeing you smile and relaxed, how you used to be so laid back and we were friends… and I miss that."

"So you kept that up as a reminder of days gone by."

"Yeah."

"Thanks, Kimmie. That means a lot to me."

"You meant a lot to me."

"Excuse me?"

"When you were nice to me… when you were Miss Go… you meant a lot to me. You were my best friend." Kim said. "So when she was locked up, it was like part of me was locked up as well."

"What if I told you that she wasn't completely gone?" Shego asked and Kim's eyes widened. "What if I told you that I still like baking… and watching romantic comedies…"

"I'd tell you not to lie to me because if you do and I find out about it, there will be hell to pay." Kim said, feeling suddenly very guarded by Shego's change in attitude.

"I wouldn't lie to you about that, Kimmie." She said. "When I went back, she changed me. I can't lie to you, princess, even if I wanted to. I just can't do it."

"Why is that?"

"Because I can't lie to myself and you are part of me, even as I am part of you."

"How do you figure that?"

"What do you mean?"

"How do you think that I'm part of you and you're part of me?"

"If you spend enough time with someone, you tend to pick up their habits. I find myself saying 'please and thank you' sometimes and Doctor Dee even gave me a ration about it."

"So what happened to him?"

"You mean before or after I threatened to singe every hair from his body?" Shego asked and Kim laughed.

"I can imagine his expression." She said with a smile. "That must have been priceless."

"I took a picture." She said, holding up her phone and showing the redhead a picture of the blue skinned man with a terrified expression on his face. "See?"

"Spanking." She said with a laugh.

"I really miss this." Shego said softly, her gaze downturned. "I really miss you, Kimmie."

"You do?" Kim asked, looking at the green skinned woman closely.

"Yeah." She said.

"Do you ever think we can go back?" Kim asked but her answer was cut off as her kimmunicator trilled in her pocket.

"Convenient nuisance." Shego groused as Kim pulled the offending device from her pocket.

"Go, Wade." She said.

"I got all the information on Detective Spruance I could which wasn't much."

"Spruance? That's a name I haven't heard in years." Shego said. "Not since Go City."

"Send it over." She said.

"Already did." He said and she heard a chime from her kimmunicator.

"You rock, Wade." Kim said. "Anything else?"

"No." He said. "Have you figured anything out about this mystery killer?"

"Only that the Seniors are next. We warned them but they don't want to listen. Monty is dead, though. She killed him while we were on the phone." She explained.

"Well, at least you have an alibi now." He said. "Your kimmunicator records any conversation on it and automatically logs the location, date, and time of the transmission in case something should happen to you and if both of you spoke to him, then you both are covered."

"We are." Shego said. "I just wish that it didn't have to come at the cost of Monty's life to have an alibi. Has law enforcement been notified about his murder?"

"I called them after I heard what happened." He said. "They didn't believe me at first but then when I played back the recording, they said that they were dispatching a patrol car and ambulance for him."

"Then there's all we can do for him. Thanks, Wade. You rock." Kim said.

"Anytime, Kim." He said. "I'll get back to you when I have more information for you."

The kimmunicator went dark and Kim looked over at the green skinned woman sitting across from her.

Now we have to figure out how we are going to stop her without getting killed or arrested in the process."

"Well, if anyone can do it, you can, Kimmie. After all, you are the great Kim Possible." Shego said and smiled as the redhead blushed at the compliment.

"And with the world famous Shego by my side, even the impossible is possible." Kim replied with a small smile of her own as Shego shot her a curious look.

"Indeed." Shego said. "So how do you think that we'll achieve the impossible this time, Kimmie?"

"I don't know yet… but we have to act fast before she kills somebody else." Kim said.

"Then you do realize we're going to have to get out there into the field and try to intercept her before she strikes again." Shego said.

"But what if we go to the wrong villain?" Kim asked. "After all, why would she tell us who she was going to be going after next?"

"I don't know, princess, but something makes me think that she was telling the truth. Call it a gut feeling but I think that she wasn't lying." Shego said. "That means the Seniors are next."

"We should at least warn Global Justice about this." Kim said.

"I don't trust them. Besides, they'd back-trace the call and find me here with you so that would put you at risk and land my butt in jail." Shego said. "Either way, that would be bad news for us."

"So what can we do?" Kim asked. "Besides, warn the Seniors?"

"Nothing." Shego said. "The best plan for us is to just lay low for now. We can have Wade continue doing his research into 'Das Kind' and anything else that could help us figure out how to stop her once and for all."

"So then we call them and then wait." Kim said softly and nodded. "All right. Do you know their number?"

"Actually I do." Shego said, dialing the number on her cell phone and turning on the speaker function.

"'Ello?" A heavily accented man said. "Who is this? 'Ow did you get this number?"

"Relax, Señor Senior. It's Shego." She said. "I'm here with Kim Possible. Someone is going to try to kill you and Junior."

"'Ow do you know this?" He asked.

"She told us this right after she murdered Lord Monkeyfist."

"She called you after killing him?"

"We called him to warn him and while we were on the phone she killed him and told us you were next." Shego said.

"Can you tell me what she looks like?"

"Black hair, green suit, and she can wield green fire." Shego explained.

"That sounds like Shego." He countered.

"That's the problem. I was here with Shego when she struck last time." Kim said.

"It is true!" He gasped and Shego rolled her eyes.

"Why is it so hard for people to believe that Princess and I would willingly work together?" Shego asked the air with an irritated expression.

"Perhaps it is the constant fighting or maybe the fact that she routinely arrests you and foils your employer's latest world-domination plan?" He asked smoothly. "Maybe that."

"I guess that would cause an issue." Shego said. "But that aside, you should really beef up your security and get somewhere safe because 'The Child' is coming for you and she wants you dead."

"I am sure that my security will be more than enough to defeat anything that this 'Child' has in mind." He said. "However my son and I will be wary of anyone who matches the description that you have given to us."

"Just remember: She has already killed Dementor, Duff, and Big Daddy. She will not hesitate to kill you if you give her the chance." Shego said.

"I understand." He said and cut the connection.

"And now we wait." Shego said. "Do you know what sounds good right now?"

"What?" Kim asked.

"A massage," She said, "A long deep-tissue massage."

"Yeah, that does sound good." Kim said with a nod and picked up the phone from the cradle and dialed the concierge.

"Yes, Miss Goeres, how can I be of service?" The young woman said as he answered the phone.

"My guest and I would appreciate if you would send a masseuse to my suite." She said.

"Certainly. Please allow thirty minutes for the masseuse to arrive."

"Of course." Kim said and hung up the phone. "Thirty minutes."

"Spanking." Shego said with a grin and Kim lifted an eyebrow at this. "What? I'm a thief. I steal for a living. You think your catch phrases are anything different?"

"No, I'm just surprised to hear you using them. That's all." Kim said. "It's not something I'd expect to hear from you."

"I guess that there are still some things that you have to learn about me, Princess." Shego said and shot Kim a sidelong glance.

"Then it's a good thing that you're under virtual house arrest until we find 'The Child.'" Kim said.

"Is it really house arrest if I'm here by choice?"

"Yeah, I think it would just be considered self-imposed house arrest." Kim said. "Shego, when this is all over, do you think you could help me with a routine that I've been trying to plan out for an upcoming competition we're involved in? I know it's an inconvenience but…"

"Yes." She said, cutting the redhead off.

"Really?"

"Do you think that I'd say no to that? Kimmie, you're asking me to help you – which is a yes – with cheerleading – also a yes – so it's a double yes already."

"Double…"

"After what you're doing for me, there's no way I would tell you no. Besides, it's hard for me to say no to you period. Tack on the fact that I'd be helping you with cheerleading and it's a no-brainer." Shego said.

"Thanks, Shego." Kim said with a smile.

"No big, after all you're helping me with The Child." Shego said. "Though I hardly think that helping you with a cheerleading gig will pay you back for this so I guess I'm going to be indebted to you for a long time… do you think you'd have a use for a sparring partner and sometime sidekick?"

"You're going to be getting out of the villainy business?"

"With the way things are now, I don't want to be anywhere near that lifestyle for a while." She said. "Besides, it was getting boring being a villainess and working for Drakken so I figure that this is as good a reason as any to get out and try something new."

"Just like it was when you walked away from Go City?" Kim asked.

"Yes and no. I was tired of playing by the rules while the people who made them broke them freely and I was tired of listening to what other people told me to do all the time." Shego said. "Of course, there were always the exceptions to the rules like John Spruance. He had a talent for figuring things out that few other people could and was better than most CSIs at reading a crime scene."

"Oh, speaking of CSIs, did you know a Janice DuPonte?"

"Tall blonde with a model's body? Looks dead sexy in a lab coat and even hotter in a cocktail dress?" Shego asked.

"Well I don't know about the cocktail dress but she does look good in a lab coat." Kim said and then blushed as she realized what she had said. "Ahem… she asked me to give you her regards. She was at Big Daddy's crime scene."

"As was John." Shego said, her expression turning dour. "This isn't good."

"What do you mean?"

"I studied with John for a few months and even helped him out on one of his cases before I left Go City." Shego explained. "And I had a very… extensive… working relationship with Janice as well. Hearing that both of them are outside Go City looking into a crime I'm being framed for tells me someone with some serious clout is trying to crucify me."

"Or they're trying everything in their power to keep you from being fed to the lions." Kim countered. "They both know you're not the one responsible. John wants to meet you but there's no way I'm going to let that happen until we have the real killer caught."

"But keeping him away from me is going to be a real challenge if he really wants to meet with me." Shego said. "He's got an almost sixth sense about how people operate and can figure out what they're going to do, like laying low in a hotel."

"But at the same time, he's never dealt with me." Kim said. "He doesn't know what I'm capable of, and he doesn't know what Wade can do so that gives me a definite advantage."

"True… but he knows me and he knows that I'll go to ground if something happens so he'll know I've holed up with all this heat." Shego said. "And it will only be a matter of time before he finds me."

"How are you sure?"

"Well, I only have a handful of places I could go. Villains are out of the question right now since someone's killing them and making it look like me. My brothers are out as well since they'd be obligated to turn me in. That leaves just a few people on the list, chief among them being you, princess." She said. "And since you've seen him, that means he knows you're in town and it will be a matter of time before he starts sniffing around the local hotels, starting here."

"Why here?"

"Because this is the highest class hotel within fifty miles," Shego said. "And he knows that I splurge on my accommodations. Thankfully, though, their security practices here are among the best so he'll have to produce a warrant to get any information from them."

"But with such a high profile crime in town, it won't be too hard to find an accommodating judge." Kim said. "So how long do you think we have?"

"Well, all things considered, we have two days if we don't leave the hotel room. If we do leave, however, our chances of staying hidden drop dramatically."

"Then I guess we have to stay here." Kim said with a small smile.

"Well, that was the plan." Shego said. "Unless you hadn't gathered that by now…"

"Oh, I had. After all, you did get a room with an on-call concierge."

"She's just a bonus." Shego said. "I knew that this hotel had a reputation for taking care of their guests but this exceeds even my expectations. I know I'll be giving this place five stars when I review my stay."

"So given the chance… would you?" Kim asked.

"Would I what?"

"Hook up with her?"

"Maybe if you weren't here but I wouldn't want you feeling left out and don't want to share you." She answered and Kim blushed.

"Oh." Kim said softly and Shego chuckled.

"Not quite the answer you were expecting?" Shego asked.

"No…" Kim said. "Well… not exactly."

"Oh?" Shego asked.

"The sharing part…" Kim said.

"Well, Princess, I don't want to share you with anyone." She said, gazing at Kim with an almost predatory look. "I want you to be mine and mine alone."

Kim shivered slightly at the feral undertone in the woman's voice and then jumped as she heard a knock at the door.

"I'll get that." Kim said, her voice shaky as she stood and walked across the room. When she opened it, she was treated to the sight of Arisanna standing there with a young man standing behind her, two tables in his grasp and a bundle wrapped in brown butcher paper in her hands.

"May I come in?" She asked.

"Of course." Shego said and watched as she walked into the room and set down the package on a nearby end table.

"Your pajamas as requested. I did not have your exact sizes so I found what I believed to be the best fit for the both of you." She said.

"Thank you, Arisanna." Shego said. "Are you the masseuse?"

"I am, yes." She said with a nod. "And this is my assistant, Edward. He is also a licensed masseur. Edward, set up the tables."

"Yes, mum." He said softly, inclining his head and setting down his burden before quickly assembling the two massage tables.

"Quite the worker-bee, isn't he?" Shego commented as she watched him work.

"When he sets his mind to a task, few things can tear him away from its completion." She said.

"So do we get a choice as to who we get a massage from?" Shego asked.

"Of course." Arisanna said, inclining her head.

"Then I want Edward." Shego said.

"Very well." She said. "Edward?"

"Yes, mum. I understand." He said.

"He doesn't say much, does he?" Shego asked.

"Not unless spoken to." She said, touching her throat discretely. Shego glanced over at the young man and lifted an eyebrow as she saw he was wearing a velvet choker.

"Is he yours?"

"He is, yes." She said.

"May I ask how long?" Shego asked and Kim looked over at her with a confused expression.

"Going on four years this October." She said.

"Did I miss something?" Kim asked.

"Edward is my slave." Arisanna said.

"Your… slave?" Kim asked, confused.

"Submissive." Shego said, drawing Kim's attention. "He willingly submits himself to her mastery."

"Oh." Kim said.

"Normally I would not discuss my relationship with Edward with my clientele; however I sense you are a kindred spirit. Am I correct in this assessment?"

"I've dabbled." Shego said. "But I could never really find the right person with the right personality."

"Perhaps it's because you've looked for the wrong personality type." She said and Shego's eyes narrowed. "You are a dominant person. You are powerful. You are self-assured. You stand with your head held high. Have you ever been powerless?"

"I was… once… but I swore never again." Shego said.

"Was it when the meteor struck?" Kim asked and Shego nodded, her eyes glistening slightly as she recalled the traumatic night that took her parents and gave her and her brothers their glows.

"I couldn't protect my brothers or save my parents and I swore I'd never be weak again."

"There is a difference between being powerless because you were defeated and choosing to submit to another." Arisanna said. "Have you ever submitted yourself fully to someone? Obeying their every command without question, without reservation out of a desire to serve and nothing else?"

"No." Shego said, shaking her head.

"Then try it." She said. "Are the tables ready, Edward?"

"Yes, mum." He said, standing beside one of the tables which were dressed with white linens and topped with a fluffy white towel.

"Excellent." She said. "Please excuse us while you get ready. We will return in a minute." She said and they walked out of the room without another word.

"Well that was odd…" Kim said.

"Submit." Shego said softly, still mulling over the conversation. "That's not exactly what I was expecting to hear…"

"And what was?" Kim asked, peeling off her shirt and tossing it onto the nearby couch.

"I don't know." She said.

"Have you ever considered it?"

"No."

"Then maybe you should give it a try. You never know until you do." Kim said, taking off her pants and tossing them next to her shirt, leaving her clad only in pink panties.

"With who, though? It's not like I can open the yellow pages and find a Dom."

"Strip." Kim said and Shego looked over at her almost naked form, the shock at being ordered overriding the sight of her bared body.

"What?" She asked.

"You need a dominant that you can trust, who won't do anything to hurt you even when you are completely submitted to their will." Kim said. "I will be that dominant."

"Princess, I don't think that will work." Shego said, shaking her head and Kim's eyes narrowed before she walked over and grabbed the older woman by the chin and stared her in the eye.

"Submit." Kim ordered, her gaze unflinching, and Shego stared into her olive eyes for a long moment before looking down at the floor.

"I submit." She said.

"When we are together in private, you will call me Miss Kimmie. In public, you may call me whatever you choose." She said. "What happens between us will stay between us."

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." She said softly, a slight blush forming on her cheeks as she used the embarrassing name.

"That's a good girl." Kim said, gently stroking Shego's jaw line. "Now strip and get up on the table for Edward."

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." Shego said and unzipped her suit without hesitation. Kim smiled as Shego acted, a sense of empowerment filling her with confidence. This sense of satisfaction, though, was quickly overshadowed as Shego's form was revealed and Kim found herself staring at the green woman's well proportioned body. Shego walked over to her table and lay down supine before drawing the towel over her derriere and turning to look over at the heroine who had just shaken herself out of her reverie and was walking to the other table. "You're beautiful." Shego said softly and Kim hesitated for a moment.

"What did you say?" Kim asked.

"I said you're beautiful, Miss Kimmie." She said softly, her cheeks turning a tawny color as blood rushed to the surface.

"Thank you, Shego." Kim said. "And I've never seen you blush… it looks good on you."

"Thank you, Miss Kimmie." Shego said, still blushing.

The moment ended, though, as Arisanna and Edward walked back into the room.

"Ready?" She asked.

"We are, yes." Kim said and Arisanna smiled.

"I'm glad to hear that." She said. "Edward?"

"Yes, mum." The subservient man said with a nod and walked over to Shego's side while Arisanna walked over to Kim's.

"Nothing happens over night." Arisanna said, putting a small dollop of warm massage oil on Kim's back. "If it does, then the chances are good that it will be short lived since, after all, it didn't have time to develop deep roots unless the roots were already there and just undiscovered. Was this the case?"

"I guess." Kim said. "That and the suggestion was what tipped the scales."

"I see."

"So about the choker…"

"It acts as a symbol of his willing servitude and a warning to other dominants to stay away from him." She said. "Much in the same way that one would wear a wedding band."

Kim glanced over at Shego who had her eyes closed and then glanced back up at Arisanna.

"I see." Arisanna said and Kim's expression became confused at this cryptic statement.

"What…" She started but stopped as her kimmunicator beeped from her pants' pocket. "Arisanna, could you grab that?" Kim asked.

"Of course." She said, stepping around the table and quickly retrieving the device before handing it to Kim and resuming her ministrations.

"Mmm… Go, Wade." Kim said as Arisanna found a particularly knotted bit of muscle and started working on it.

"Uh… should I call back later?" He asked, his face doing a passable impression of a tomato.

"I'm just getting a massage." She said. "What's the sitch?"

"I just received an anonymous hit on your website with a link to a video for you." He said.

"Anonymous?" Kim asked, confused.

"Yeah. That's what I thought. I did everything I could try—every back-trace, sniffer, and protocol I could think of—and nothing worked. No matter what, there was nothing to find." He said. "I'm forwarding the video to you now."

"Thanks, Wade. Did you get the information I asked you for?"

"Yeah. I just got confirmation from the courier that it was dropped off at your hotel for you." He said. "That's a swanky hotel you're staying at."

"Tell me about it. Right now I'm laying face down on a table getting a Swedish massage from my lovely concierge Arisanna."

"Oh." He said, his cheeks still afire.

"Have you heard anything else about our friend 'The Child'?" Kim asked.

"Nothing. She appears, she kills, and then she vanishes. She is a ghost. Any evidence they've collected is because she's wanted them to have it."

"How are you sure?"

"It's building an air-tight case." He said. "And it wouldn't take a genius DA to put her away for the rest of her natural life."

"Oh." Kim said.

"One good thing, though."

"What's that?"

"We have a source feeding us information." Wade said. "Janice DuPonte emailed me the files that were being built on the cases and is keeping me up-to-date as they get leads. Apparently she figured out who you are, and knows that you are on her side and wants to do what she can to help."

"Just be careful you don't burn Janice." Kim said.

"I will be." He said. "Do you have a message for anyone?"

"Just tell Ron and my parents that I'm all right and I'll be a few more days before I'm done on this mission." Kim said.

"Will do." He said, nodding.

"Thanks, Wade. You rock." She said and cut the connection. "I wonder what's on that video…"

She opened the file and watched as a silhouette of a head and shoulders appeared on screen.

"I know what you are trying to do. I know you are trying to warn my targets of my actions. I know you want to come out and fight me but you can't. This is a time when the best action is inaction." The silhouette said. "Just sit back and watch my masterpiece unfold. I assure you that the conclusion of this drama will not be one you expect."

"A flair for the dramatic," Arisanna said. "But she is no Shakespeare. May I ask what it is she is intending on doing?"

"As far as we can tell, she's systematically killing all the world's major supervillains in what seems to be a bid for supremacy over the villain world and in the process framing my companion here for the deaths so she will walk away scot free." Kim said. "But that's just our theory."

"Hence the fact you and she are remaining here for now in a form of protective custody." She said, her hands still working the now pliable muscles. "Do you have someone who is on the outside who is working to handle this situation while you provide an air-tight alibi to your companion?"

"I… No, I don't. Not really. I mean I have Wade who does the tech stuff and I can have Ron go and do some stuff for me but not everything because he doesn't trust her and thinks she's always guilty so I guess you could say I don't." Kim said. "And calling ahead to warn her targets doesn't work… we heard a murder happen."

"You're kidding." Arisanna said, her hands stopping for the first time in the conversation.

"Lord Montgomery Fiske, better known as Lord Monkeyfist." Kim said. "We don't know what happened to him but we heard her kill him and then she talked to us."

"What did she say?"

"That he couldn't come to the phone and that she had done the same to him that she had done to Duff Killigan, Doctor Dementor, and Big Daddy Brotherson."

"And they were?"

"The world's most dangerous golfer, a Bavarian mad scientist with a thing for oversized dachshunds, and a game-obsessed underworld heavy-hitter." Kim said.

"Ah." She said. "And the next target, you already know?"

"The Seniors." Kim said. "Señor Senior Sr. and his son, Junior."

"Have you warned them?"

"Yeah, but I don't think that will help them any. That's the problem. We warned Monty and he still died." Kim said.

"You said you were talking to him when he was killed. He didn't have time to prepare himself to fight. The Seniors may stand a better chance since they have more time to get ready for whatever is coming for them."

"I don't think that it will help because she is dangerous in ways only a few other people are." Kim said, glancing over at Shego.

"And that is?"

"She has the ability to create plasma."

"Much as Shego does?" Arisanna asked and Kim flinched. "You need not worry about my knowing, Miss Goeres. I am in your service and maintain a policy of iron-clad confidentiality at all times. You don't need to worry about a thing, I assure you." Arisanna smiled as she felt the redhead relax beneath her hands and continued her ministrations. "Besides, you and she are a beautiful pair and to see you separated would be a tragedy."

Kim's cheeks flared and she felt silent as the young woman massaged her back with masterful skill.

"If ever you need my assistance with anything – and I do mean anything – call me and I will do all I can to see to it that nothing stands in my way." Arisanna said.

"Thank you, Arisanna." Kim said softly.

"It is my pleasure to serve." She said and Shego smiled, the words echoing the feelings she was starting to develop for the redheaded cheerleader.

HOURS LATER…

"Shego." Kim said as she combed her fingers through the other woman's long hair slowly, the act almost hypnotizing to the villainess.

"Yes, Miss Kimmie?" The green skinned woman said, turning her eyes to the redhead.

"What if this doesn't work?" Kim asked.

"What do you mean?"

"What if she kills the Seniors?"

"Then we'll just have to wait for her to call again and that time we go after her ourselves." Shego answered without hesitation.

"Shego, I don't want you to go." Kim said softly, her hand stopping for a long moment. "I don't want you to get hurt."

"If I go, though, I could help you." Shego countered. "And if I don't go and something happens to you…"

"Then it only happens to me and not you." Kim said. "Besides, if she kills them and then vanishes before you can stop her, you'll be stuck holding the blame."

"I know… but that's a risk that I have to take."

"Not without me, you're not." Kim said firmly and Shego looked up at the redhead again. "You are not to go after her alone, do you understand me?"

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." Shego said, averting her eyes once more. She knew that there was no convincing Kim to change her mind now. She had it fixed in her mind what she was going to do and it would take something on the order of the world being moved off its foundations for that to change. It was one of the things that both endeared and annoyed the woman but at the same time she knew that if Kim wasn't that way, she would not be the globe-trotting heroine she was.

"I'm going to have to call Wade and have him prepare and send over my battle suit." Kim said. "I have a feeling that I'm going to need it when we go after her."

SEÑOR SENIOR'S PRIVATE ISLAND…

"Papa, do you not think that we should have more guards patrolling? After all, we did receive the warning from Kim Possible that someone is going to try to come and kill us." Junior said as he lay poolside, a mojito in hand.

"Never to fear, my son. I have already doubled the number of patrols and put the rest of the staff on alert so we will be safe." Senior said.

"But Papa, what if they are not enough?"

"Then we will simply escape in our jet."

"What if it's been disabled after the patrols and staff were all dead?" A voice asked from behind a tall shrub and the two men looked over to see a girl, probably no older than twelve, clad in black and green walk out with a smile on her face. "You would have a hard time escaping then."

"Who are you?" The elderly man asked with a distinct scowl.

"I am 'The Child.'" She said.

"You are the one who has been killing villains?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"That is for me to know and you to ponder before I kill you." She said, holding out her hands and flexing them, producing a green glow around each appendage.

"How… that's impossible!" He cried as he fell back, his face a mask of terror.

"Anything's possible for me." She said, her bright green eyes sparkling with mirth as she crouched and then leapt forward, knocking him flat on his back and sending his cane sprawling away from him. "Adios, Señor." She said as she drove her hand into his chest, piercing his heart and killing him instantly.

"PAPA!" Junior cried as he ran forward and lunged, trying to tackle her but to his surprise she sent him flying over her head with a simple twist of her body, leaving him to land with a grunt.

"You're not going to get me that easily, Junior." She said with a smirk that strongly reminded the Latin-American teen of a certain thief he knew. He quickly picked himself up and growled.

"You killed my papa!" He shouted and launched himself at her again, this time getting knocked to the ground as she deftly swept out his feet from underneath him.

"And now it's your turn." She said and flared her plasma around one hand menacingly.

AT THE HOTEL…

"I'm starting to get a bad feeling." Kim said. "I think that she's managed to get to them."

"How are you sure, Miss Kimmie?" Shego asked.

"I don't know… it's just a feeling." She said, taking out her kimmunicator and redialing Señor Senior's number. The phone rang three times and then she heard a click.

"Hello?" Kim said. "Can I speak with Señor Senior, please?"

"I'm sorry but he can't come to the phone right now." The Child said.

"No…" Kim gasped and Shego looked up with a horrified expression. "It's you…"

"Yes, it is." She said. "My work is almost complete. Just a few more things to tidy up and everything will be perfect."

"A few things? What are you going to do?"

"Just tie up a few loose ends and take care of a troublesome geneticist as well." She said. "Ta-ta."

The line went dead and Kim stared at the device for a long moment before looking at Shego who was lying with her head in her lap.

"Who do we know who is a villain and a geneticist?"

"DNAmy." Shego said without hesitation. "She's the only one I know."

"She's next. Do you know where she would be?"

"Most likely at her lab in Colorado." She said. "My hovercraft can make it there in just over two hours."

"Good. That gives us just enough time to get to my house and grab my suit before heading there because she is the next and I think last target. She said she had a few loose ends to tie up and then she would have everything settled. I think that this is the last time we can catch her in the act before it's too late and her plan succeeds."

"Her plan being to destroy me," Shego said. "Right?"

"Yes." Kim said. "C'mon, Shego. Let's get ready to go."

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." She said and obediently sat up and prepared to leave.

Kim picked up the phone and touched the zero, listening to it ring once before hearing a click.

"Yes, Miss Goeres?" Arisanna said.

"My compatriot and I will be leaving. I need to have the bill prepared and sent up to my room immediately." Kim said.

"The credit card we have on file will be billed for all services as per the agreement. There is nothing you need to do save for turning over your key card and signing the checkout paperwork to leave." She said. "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"Bring the paperwork up to my room, please." Kim said.

"Right away." She said and Kim hung up the phone before quickly disrobing and pulling on her mission clothes once more. As she looked over at Shego, she was treated to the sight of the green skinned woman in a half-zipped bodysuit and this time stared unabashedly as Shego drew up the zipper, well aware of the redhead's attention. It was only after the zipper reached her throat did Kim finally move and change into her mission uniform.

Kim looked over as she heard a knock at the door and adjusted her top before walking to the door and opening it to see Arisanna standing there.

"It's a shame to see you leaving so soon." She said, holding the paperwork on a clipboard in her right hand and a pen in her left. "May I ask the reason for your early departure?"

"She killed the Seniors and she's heading for another villainess now. We know the target and are going to try and intercept her before she kills again." Kim said. "This is our last chance."

"Then strike when the iron is hot. The next time you and your… compatriot… wish to stay with our hotel, I will arrange for one of your nights to be a free stay." She said.

"You can do that?"

"My job is first and foremost customer satisfaction. If I say that there was something unsatisfactory about your stay, it will be a non-issue and I assure you that the manager will listen to me when I say that to him." She said and then smiled. "After all, I am his niece."

"Thank you, Arisanna. If everything goes right, we will be staying here again." Kim said and quickly signed 'Kimberly Goeres' on the paperwork before handing it back to Arisanna who nodded.

"Is there anything I can do for you before I leave?" She asked.

"Just take these to the front desk if you please." Kim said, handing her the keycards which she took and put in her pocket.

"Of course. Have a nice day." She said, inclined her head, then turned and walked away, Kim closing the door behind her.

"We're checked out. Are you ready?" Kim asked.

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." Shego said. "I have everything I need."

"Excellent, then let's go." Kim said. And opened the door for Shego who walked out and down the hall to a nearby stairwell which she knew led to the roof.

TWENTY MINUTES LATER…

"Do you hear that?" Jim asked as he sat with his twin, a three foot tall model rocket sitting on a table between them.

"Sounds like a hovercraft." Tim answered, looking up at the sky. "But the strange thing… it sounds like one of Drakken's."

"A Hench Co. Model two-eleven?" Jim asked and was answered with a nod.

"Sounds like it's getting closer." Tim said, standing and looking up and around just in time for the vehicle to fly over the top of the house and stop over the back yard where they were working.

"Who do you think it is?" Jim asked.

"I don't know but I'm calling sis." Tim said, taking out his cell phone and dialing Kim's number.

IN THE HOVERCRAFT…

"Hey, Tim. What's the sitch?" Kim asked as she answered the beeping device.

"Hey, Kim. Someone's landing a hovercraft in the back yard and it sounds like one of Drakken's."

"Don't worry. I'm just stopping by to pick up my super suit before I have to go to a mission." Kim said. "Shego's giving me a ride since she and I are working together on this."

"Whoa… Shego? As in green fire Shego?"

"One in the same." Kim said. "Now can you move your table so we can land please?"

The twins quickly took hold of the table and moved it to the side of the yard just in time for the hovercraft to touch down and Kim to jump out and bolt for the house, leaving the green skinned villainess in the vehicle, her eyes fixed on the boys.

"Hey there, tweebs." She said conversationally. "Miss me?"

"Why are you working with Kim?" Jim asked.

"Shouldn't you be fighting her?" Tim added.

"Well, I would be fighting her but I called her for help because I'm being framed for murder." She explained and they gaped at her, disbelieving of what they just heard. "Someone's already killed five villains and they're doing everything they can to make it look like I did it."

"And how do we know you didn't do it?"

"Princess was right there with me when we talked to the killer just after she killed Monty."

"Lord Monkeyfist is dead?" Jim asked, incredulous.

"Monty, Duff, Dementor, Big Daddy, the Seniors. Now it seems that DNAmy is next on the list."

"What about Drakken?" Jim asked.

"You didn't mention him." Tim added.

"You're right… we totally forgot about him. I guess either he's one of the loose ends, then."

"Loose ends?"

"You think he's involved?"

"Well… it seems like it's coming off too well to be just him. His plans always have flaws that cause them to fail so if it is him, he's working with someone." Shego said. "And if that's the case, then I'm going to have to kill him and whoever he's working with… or at least give them some nasty scars to remember why not to mess with me."

"But if you kill them…"

"Your pardon goes out the window."

"True, so then it seems I'll just have to go with a good maiming, then." Shego said. "Suits me just fine."

"Ready?" Kim asked, walking out wearing her mission uniform over her super suit.

"Ready as ever, Princess." Shego said.

"I hope the tweebs weren't too much trouble."

"They weren't. They were just giving me a bit of advice is all." Shego said, starting the engines.

"Ah." Kim said and climbed into the hovercraft. "Tell Mom and Dad we're heading to DNAmy's lab to try and stop a murder and that we'll probably be home late."

Shego touched the controls and the hovercraft lifted easily off the ground, leaving the twins looking at one another.

"We?" Jim said once the noise of the turbofans subsided. "Did she say we?"

"She did." Tim said. "Think sis switched sides?"

"Dunno… if that's the case, Ron will flip."

"Yeah." Tim said. "We're gonna have to get it on tape."

"Hicka-bicka-boo." Jim said and Tim chuckled.

"Hoosha." Tim answered and gave his twin a high-five before they moved their work bench back to where it had been and continued working on their project.

IN THE HOVERCRAFT…

"So what was it you guys were talking about?" Kim asked.

"Well, we think that it might be Drakken behind this working with someone else."

"That makes sense." Kim said, nodding. "Who do you think that it is?"

"Well, they'd have to be intelligent and have to know about gene splicing… wait a second… you don't think…" Shego said, her eyes wide.

ELSEWHERE…

"Hello, Amy." Dr. Drakken said, walking into the lab where the portly scientist was looking into a microscope.

"Drewbie!" She cried, looking up in surprise. "Where have you been?"

"I had some things I had to take care of." He said. "Is there a problem?"

"You've been gone with my experiment for almost a full day! I need her back for more tests."

"Oh, the testing phase is over, Amy." He said with an evil smile and into the room walked 'The Child' with glowing hands and a sinister grin. "And she's passed her tests with flying colors… mostly red and green."

Amy's eyes went wide and she lunged for the phone but didn't even make it two steps before The Child was upon her, clawed hands alight with plasma that cauterized as it cut, making all the worse the wounds she delivered to the scientist.

"You know, I always had a feeling you'd end up being killed by one of your creations, Amy. I just didn't figure that it would be a girl who weighs ninety-five pounds soaking wet. I guess you're not all that after all." He said. "Have your fun with Amy but make sure that when Kim Possible and Shego show up that you're able to give them your undivided attention."

"Of course." The Child said with a grin.

THIRTY-FIVE MINUTES LATER…

"She's already been here." Kim said as Shego led her into the laboratory that had been destroyed by some sort of fight, or so it seemed. "Do you think that Amy is still alive?"

"Doubtful." Shego said, shaking her head. "She killed the others right away. She wouldn't keep Amy around."

"We should still try and find her."

"Agreed…" Shego said. "But I have a feeling we won't like what we find."

TWO MINUTES LATER…

"Found her." Shego said as she stepped into a room and then stepped right back out. "And she's very much dead."

"No sign of The Child?" Kim asked, looking around.

"No." Shego said. "But it's definitely her handiwork and the metal is still warm so she's close."

"Then let's go." Kim said and they walked through the next doorway and into a large open room with a door at the far end, a scorch mark on the lock.

"This feels like a trap." Shego said as they made their way across the space, their eyes scanning around as they moved.

"You have no idea." A voice said behind them and they spun just in time for a metal cage to drop from above and trap them together. "I wanted to have a minute to talk to you two before I remove the last two names from my list."

"Your hit list." Kim said and The Child nodded.

"Yes." She said. "You would call it that. There is something that you should know about me."

"And that is?"

"That you and I are the same." She said with a smile. "Everything that I am is in you."

"What are you talking about?" Shego demanded.

"She is saying that she is your child." Doctor Drakken said, walking into the room. "You see, I harvested DNA samples from both of you and had Amy combine the two into one perfect weapon, the one we call The Child."

"Why did you do that?"

"To kill off my competition and my greatest nemesis and also to eliminate a major kink in my world domination plans, namely the fact that you would rise up against me in the end." He said. "I just couldn't have that happening."

"So you betray me, steal our DNA, and use it to create our child?" Shego demanded. "How dare you! You had no right to do that!"

"Oh, what's the matter? Angry that I broke the genetic research clause in our contract?" He asked.

"I'm angry that you would take away the decision that belongs to me and Kimmie and us alone."

"And that is?"

"Whether or not we have a child." Shego said.

"Oh, snap… are you saying what I think you're saying?" He asked. "Is it true? Are you that way? That would make sense, after all—ACK!"

"Enough." The Child said, her hand on his right shoulder making his face twist into a mask of agony. "I'm tired of listening to your whiny voice."

"Let… go…" He croaked and she smiled evilly.

"Not quite yet." She said then with a quick move twisted his head to the left, snapping his neck and dropping him to the floor in a boneless heap. "Now that's taken care of… there's only one more thing to do. Momma… I know you recorded everything. Use it as evidence to exonerate Mommy. I'm sorry that you had to see what you did and for what I did but I had to do what I did. It was the only way to save your lives and stop him."

"What are you planning?"

"To do what you have failed to do so many times." She said. "To stop the villains once and for all."

"But I don't want to kill them!" Kim cried.

"I know, but it needs to be done. They will not stop otherwise. They've become too numerous, too powerful. It was a necessary evil." She said. "I will not lie and say I didn't enjoy doing what I did. I did enjoy it because I was trained to enjoy it. I was trained to enjoy killing because that's what I was created to do: to kill efficiently and to leave only certain signs behind."

"To frame me." Shego said and The Child nodded.

"I'm sorry, Momma. I really am but it was the only way." She said. "His plan had to succeed in order to stop him."

"So what are you going to do?" Kim asked. "Are you going to turn yourself in?"

"If they didn't throw me in a deep dark hole, they'd probably vivisect me and try to duplicate the process by which I was created." She said. "Turning myself in is out of the question."

"Then you're going to run?"

"Not exactly." She said and Shego's eyes went wide. "That's right, you've figured it out, momma."

"What is it?" Kim asked.

"She's going to kill herself." Shego said. "The last loose end. She does that and we have all the evidence we need to close this case and walk away spotless."

"Exactly." She said. "What greater gift can I give you than a lifetime of opportunities?"

"There has to be another way." Kim said, shaking her head. "I mean there has to be."

"There isn't." She said. "Mommy, I'm sorry I hurt you. Momma, I'm sorry I disgraced your reputation like that."

"It's all right now. Just don't do anything rash." Kim said, feeling a surge of panic at the girl's peaceful demeanor.

"Rash," She said softly. "Rash is what you do, mommy. Rash is racing off to save someone you barely know because they ask you for help. Rash is risking your life for someone who has tried to kill you numerous times in the past. I've had a lot of time to think about what I'm going to do and I've decided that it is the right choice. Good bye, momma, Mommy. I wish I had a chance to get to know you better before all this happened but life has a way of interfering with our best laid plans."

"NO!" Kim screamed but to no avail. They watched as she held her hands up and touched her fingers to her temples, flaring her plasma for a moment before she slumped to the floor in a lifeless heap. "No…"

"Kimmie…" Shego said softly and Kim turned to face her with an inscrutable expression. Shego just stepped forward and embraced the redhead, the gesture being all it took to burst the dam holding back her tears.

THIRTY MINUTES LATER…

Kim and Shego sat silently, their arms wrapped around each other's waists, drawing comfort from the mutual contact.

"How are you doing?" Shego asked softly, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I've been better." Kim said softly.

"Do you think that they'll be here soon?"

"They?"

"Whoever you sent the distress signal to."

"Oh… yeah." Kim said, nodding. "They should be here soon."

"Ok." Shego said, her hand sliding up and down Kim's side slowly, her fingernails leaving thrills with their passage. "Kimmie?"

"Hmm?"

"When this is over… will we be over?" She asked, her voice sounding small to her own ears.

"Not if I have anything to say about it." Kim answered. "You are mine and mine alone."

"Thank you, Miss Kimmie." Shego said and snuggled a little closer to the redhead who smiled.

"You're welcome, my pet." She said softly and looked over as she heard a loud bang outside the door. "It sounds like the cavalry is here."

The door slammed open and six fully suited tactical officers moved into the room, the lead officer carrying a shield for protection.

"Contact! Tangos down!" One said and they surrounded The Child, one officer nudging her with his M4 carbine before reaching down and turning her onto her back. "Tango one neutralized."

They checked Doctor Drakken's form and only once they were sure that all threats had been eliminated did they make their way to the cage where Kim and Shego were still waiting.

"Miss Possible, are you all right?" He asked.

"We're fine." Kim said. "We just need some help getting out of this trap."

"We have a hot saw in the van and can have you two out in a few minutes."

"Thank you." She said.

"It's no problem, after all you did save the LT when he broke his leg climbing Mount Whitworth." He said and Shego smiled.

"No big. I was up there on another mission so it was all good." She said. "Who's in command here?"

"The Colonel." He said. "She wanted to talk to you personally concerning your involvement in this situation and also with Shego and her participation."

"The Colonel came out on a mission?" Kim asked, eyes wide with surprise.

"Did you really expect any less? After all, we have had four villains killed in the last forty-eight hours and you have been nowhere to be seen." She said, walking into the room wearing a full SWAT uniform sans the helmet but with a balaclava. "It's been a while, Kimberly, Shego."

"You know the Colonel?" Kim asked and Shego nodded.

"Shego assisted in a few of our more interesting missions before she went rogue." She said. "Unofficially, of course."

"Colonel, Shego is innocent." Kim said.

"I know." She said. "After all, were that not the case, you would not be holding onto one another like that. Besides, I've already heard the entire recording and I know exactly what happened with your daughter and that you two are completely innocent. We'll have you two out in a few minutes."

"Thank you." Kim said and the woman nodded once before walking off. "She was our daughter."

"She was, yeah." Shego said, nodding. "Do you ever want another?"

"I've always wanted at least a daughter." Kim said. "But I wouldn't be against a few more kids. You?"

"I've always wanted to have kids… have a family like the one I grew up in. It was nice having siblings around… sometimes." She said and Kim chuckled. "I just gave up hope for that after the accident because I don't know how my kids will react or if I can even have kids at all."

"But if you could…"

"Then I would." Shego said with a nod.

"Oh. That's good to know." Kim said.

"Almost like knowing that you want the same thing I do." Shego replied and nuzzled a little closer to the redhead while two officers walked in with a hot saw and a large blanket.

"All right, ladies. It's going to be noisy and it's going to be throwing a lot of sparks. Keep this blanket over yourself and we'll have you out as fast as possible. All right?" He asked and they nodded as his partner handed the blanket through the bars. "All right, then. Let's get you out."

TWENTY MINUTES LATER…

"Do you have a way to get home, Kimberly?" The Colonel asked as Kim and Shego walked out of the laboratory.

"We do, yes." Kim said with a nod. "Shego is free to go?"

"We have a recorded confession and the woman who confessed has subsequently committed suicide so I would say that yes, Shego is free to go." The Colonel said and watched as Kim flinched a bit at the mention of the suicide. "How are you holding up after what you've witnessed?"

"I'd be lying if I said we were all right." Kim said. "But I have to admit that I was willing to kill if it meant saving more lives in the process."

"Good." She said. "And I trust Shego is doing much the same?"

"Yes." Kim said with a nod.

"That's good. I'm glad that you two have someone to lean on to deal with this. If you want to talk to someone about this, then take this card." She said and held out a business card. "This is the number for a counselor who works with our team and understands the stressors that are unique to our jobs."

"Thank you." Kim said, pocketing the card. "Let's go, Shego."

"Ok…" Shego replied, holding tight to Kim as if she were a lifeline.

As they exited the lab, Shego let out a deep sigh and Kim looked over at her with a concerned expression.

"Are you all right?"

"I'm just tired, is all." She said softly. "It's been a long day."

"Then I think that we should go home." Kim said.

"Well… my home is a crime scene… at least the last few lairs."

"Then you come home with me." Kim said. "And you're not going to argue about it."

"Yes, Miss Kimmie." Shego said, nuzzling into the smaller woman and taking a measure of solace from their relationship.

Unbeknownst to them, a pair of green eyes were watching carefully as they moved and talked, studying everything about them and putting together a map of exactly how they were bound to one another. Blonde eyebrows furrowed deeply in thought then shot up in surprise as things fell into place for the towhead.

"No way…" He said softly.

"Your eyes do not deceive you." A husky female voice said behind the blonde boy and he jumped.

"Who… how did you?"

"In my line of work, sometimes it's good to be noticed as soon as I walk into the room and sometimes it's best I know how to blend in with my surroundings." The Colonel said. "I would say that the two of them have developed quite the relationship in the past couple days."

"What do you mean?"

"Do you know what it was that has been happening the last few days?"

"No, Kim kept me in the dark."

"That's because someone was out trying to frame Shego and she knew that you wouldn't trust Shego's word even thought she did."

"So she chose Shego over me?"

"It looks that way." She said calmly. "The question I have to ask, now, is what will you do about it?"

"Shego's already made her move so there's nothing that I can do."

"Yes, there is." She said. "Be a good friend."

He sighed softly and then nodded.

"KP!" He called and the redhead stood up ramrod straight before turning to face the young man.

"Ron… what are you doing here?"

"You send out an SOS and expect me to not show up?" He asked. "The only reason I wasn't charging in the front door to rescue you is that the Colonel wouldn't let me leave the transport until the dust had settled."

"Oh." Kim said.

"KP, I think I have an idea why it was you didn't open up to me and tell me the real reason you got all secretive all of a sudden and then disappeared and I wanted to say that I understand. I mean I knew she meant a lot to you before and I can see she means a lot to you now so I just wanted to say good luck." He said.

"Good luck?" Kim asked.

"Yeah… you and Shego." He said and then blushed.

"Thanks, Ron." She said. "And sorry you found out like this…"

"KP, I know how crazy things can get around you so for you to switch teams and land Shego in under a week, feels almost normal." He said.

"I didn't really 'land' Shego as much as she landed in my lap… but I'm not complaining."

"Good, because if you did, I'd be saying you'd gone crazy." He said. "So have you told your mom and dad about it yet?"

"Not yet, no." Kim said. "They knew about as much as you did."

"I'm sure that they'll be cool about it." Ron said. "After all, they love you and I'm sure that no matter what they would accept you. I just want to know something… why didn't you come out and tell me before?"

"Shego and I were afraid that you would freak out when you heard the sitch and that you wouldn't anything that Shego had to say."

"Well, she does have a history of lies and double-crosses in the past." Ron said. "Plus she is one of the bad guys."

"Not after her pardon." Kim said. "She's kept her nose clean since then so she's still one of the good guys."

"Once a criminal, always a criminal." He said and Kim shook her head.

"Right, Zorpox." Shego said scathingly and he glared at her.

"She has you there, Ron." Kim said. "You did go evil for a time there."

"But I changed back." He said. "She's just changing from being evil."

"But she was good to begin with." Kim countered and he scowled. "She won't be doing anything evil anytime in the near future if I have anything to say about it, will you, Shego?"

"Nothing is worth sacrificing what I have with you, Princess." She replied and Kim smiled.

"Thank you, Shego." She said and gave Shego a gentle squeeze.

"That's something I'm going to have to get used to…" Ron said with a shiver.

"I'm sure you'll be fine." Kim said, irritated by his childish reaction to the show of affection. "Do you need a ride back to Middleton?"

"Uh… No thanks." He said. "I think that I'll catch a ride back with the Colonel."

"Maybe that would be better." Kim replied and he nodded slowly before turning and walking away. "I wish he wouldn't be like that. I mean he has his moments when he's actually mature, then he goes and acts like this."

"Boys will be boys." Shego replied. "Mego still throws fits from time to time."

"You're kidding."

"Complete with kicking and crying on the floor. It's a shameful thing to see."

"What could cause a grown man to act like that?"

"They canceled Queer Eye." She said with a deadpan expression and Kim looked at her for a long moment before sighing heavily and shaking her head.

"Wow. Just wow." Kim said.

"Yeah. The only way he got over that was Hego promised him the final season on DVD."

"And did he deliver?"

"We didn't see Mego for a week. The only sign we had of his presence was the occasional bathroom break or a delivery of Chinese takeout to his room." She said. "But he did eventually get over it."

"I'd hope so." Kim said.

"I wouldn't worry about Ron, though. He's more mature than Mego – which really isn't saying much – and can deal with the whole sitch a lot better." Shego said. "Just give him time."

"All right." Kim said, nodding. "Now c'mon, let's go home."

Shego nodded and allowed Kim to lead her back to the hovercraft while they were still under the watchful gaze of the Colonel. It was only when their hovercraft had left the ground did she make her move.

"Ronald." She said, startling the blonde from his thoughts.

"What? Oh, Colonel. Sorry about that. I have a lot on my mind." He said.

"I know." She said. "You seem troubled."

"Well… it's just that Kim's with Shego…"

"And you want to be with Kimberly?"

"Well… that would be nice… but I know she thinks of me more as her best buddy than anything else."

"Then why are you bothered?"

"I don't know… I guess it's just I'm afraid Shego will hurt Kim." He said. "I mean Shego is the bad guy. She's always been a bad guy and I can't imagine her changing."

"Love can cause people to do some pretty drastic things."

"Love? I don't know that she can love."

"Shego has had a very difficult life up until this point, Ron. I hope that you can appreciate that fact. That, combined with the fact that she has had to fight twice as hard to gain any respect in the villain world thanks to the fact that not only was she a member of Team Go before she changed sides and per the fact that she is a female in a primarily male-dominated industry." The Colonel said. "This is likely the reason why she has made it seem as if love were the last thing on her mind since it could be construed as weakness which is, in the villainy world, a very dangerous thing to show."

"I suppose…"

"Trust me on this, Ronald. I know what I'm talking about." She said. "I've dedicated a good part of my life to understanding the ins and outs of the villain world so I could know their weaknesses and exploit them if needed."

"Oh."

"Just as I've also studied Kimberly and all her varied associates," She said. "After all, she's been known to destabilize more than a few villain's plans so it's always wise to include her possible effect on whatever situation I may be studying at the time."

"I see…" He said.

"She is a good person at heart, Ronald. She's made some bad decisions and tried to convince herself and everyone else that she is pure evil but she is not. And being with Kimberly will only help to bring out the good in her."

"I hope you're right."

"I am." She said with a note of finality. "I take it you need a ride back to Middleton?"

"I do, yes." He said.

"We'll drop you off at your house." She said.

"Thank you, Colonel."

"Please, call me Avigayil." She said, removing her mask for the first time and smiling at him, her green eyes sparkling with mirth at his reaction.

"Right… Avigayil…" He said, his cheeks feeling warmer all of a sudden.

"And if you ever need to get hold of me for anything, here's my card." She said, holding up a business card which she slipped into his breast pocket and then patted. "My private number is on the back."

She took a step back then put on her mask once more.

"All right, people. We have to be out in fifteen minutes. Grab everything for analysis and take it to the transport." She called and Ron watched as the men began grabbing computers, files, and anything else not nailed down that could provide useful information about the things that had happened in the laboratory. "Stay with me, Ron."

"Yes Ma'am." He said and the corners of her eyes crinkled a bit as she smiled.

AT THE POSSIBLE HOME…

"Thank you, Wade." Ann said, hanging up the phone. "Kimmie is safe and she's going to be bringing back someone special with her."

"Oh? Who's that?"

"She didn't say." She said, shaking her head.

UPSTAIRS…

Jim and Tim shared incredulous expressions as they stared at the telephone sitting between them.

"Someone special?"

"You think?"

"Kim and Shego?"

"Wait… Kim's gay?"

"No way…"

"Could be."

"What a way to come out."

"Yeah, really."

"Mom's gonna flip."

"Dad too."

"Video camera?"

"Definitely. Hicka-bicka-boo…"

"Hoosha." They said in unison and shared a high-five.

IN THE HOVERCRAFT…

"Shego."

"Hmm?" Shego said, looking over at the redhead who was looking out at the horizon.

"How do you think that your brothers will take the news?"

"That I've gone straight or that I'm a lesbian?" She asked and then giggled.

"Oh, that was bad." Kim said, shaking her head. "But yes."

"They'll be happy that I went legit and as to the other part, I don't think they'll be surprised." She said. "How do you think your brothers will react?"

"Probably flip. Same for Mom and Dad. After all, going from dating Ron to dating you is a pretty big jump." Kim said. "And I want to tell them about 'The Child.'"

"Our child." Shego said softly.

"What?"

"She was our child. She was created from our DNA. She's our child."

"You know… I never thought of it like that." Kim said. "Now I see why you're still down."

"Yeah."

"Shego?"

"Yes, Miss Kimmie?"

"If you could… would you have saved her?"

"No." She said with a shake of her head and Kim stared at her with a horrified expression. "I have my reasons for saying that."

"And they are?"

"'I slay my children and then leave this land, without delaying long enough to hand them over to some more savage hand to butcher.'" She said. "That was from Medea by Euripides. She would have been executed for her crimes. I would rather her die by my hand quickly and without having to go to trial and then suffer the indignities of prison than live a few more years but have to spend them locked behind concrete walls."

"I guess you're right but still…"

"Still it is a horrifying thing to think about and if there were any option, I would have taken it to prevent her death." Shego said. "But no child of mine will suffer going to prison if I have anything to say about it."

"Do you want children?" Kim asked softly after a minute of thinking.

"I never really thought about it, probably due in part to the fact that I've never really been interested in men and also because of my glow… I don't know what sort of effect it will have on whether or not I can have kids and if it will have any effect that is passed down to them."

"But if you could?"

"I wouldn't mind a couple." She answered. "Of course, I'd have to be with someone I'd want to raise them with and who would want to raise them with me."

"Do you think you've met anyone who meets those requirements?"

"Well, there is this one cute redhead who comes from a fairly large family who, I think, would be a great mother." Shego said. "She's got lots of energy, plenty of stamina, and a heart like none other."

"She sounds great."

"She is." Shego said and Kim gently caressed her cheek.

AT THE POSSIBLE HOME…

"How long do you think it's going to take them?" Ann asked.

"I'm not sure." James said.

"Twenty minutes." Jim said, walking into the kitchen.

"Give or take a few." Tim added, hot on his twin's heels.

"And how do you two know that?" Ann asked, looking over at the twin terrors.

"She stopped by to get her super suit before she went on the mission." Jim said.

"She wanted to be ready for anything, not that we blame her." Tim added.

"Boys, the next time your sister stops by the house to get her super suit to go fight a villain, you need to tell us about it." James said. "If for no other reason than we know about when she will be home. All right?"

The boys nodded their assent.

"Good." He said.

TWENTY MINUTES LATER…

Ann looked outside as she heard the distinct whine of hovercraft engines overhead and then watched as Jim and Tim rushed through the house and out the back door.

"Kim's here!" They called from the back yard and this drew the doctors Possible at a more languid pace.

As they walked into the back yard, they were treated to the sight of Kim stepping out of the hovercraft and then Shego joining her.

"Welcome home, Kimmie-cub." James said. "How was the mission?"

"It was… difficult." Kim said. "Can we talk inside?"

"Sure thing." James said and the whole group walked into the house. "So tell me, why is it that Shego is with you?"

"Well… that's one of the things I wanted to tell you and mom about. I'm gay." She said and then braced for any sort of negative reaction.

"And Shego is your girlfriend?" He asked, his voice carrying no judgment.

"Yes."

"How long?"

"Have I been gay? Or have I been dating Shego?"

"Both?" He said and she chuckled.

"Two years and since yesterday." Kim said.

"Does Ron know?"

"Yeah. He took it badly at first but then he came to accept it." Kim said.

"That's good." He said. "Now, Shego, I'll tell you the same thing I've told to any boy who took Kimmie out on a date: you hurt my little girl and I'll send you on a one-way trip into the center of a black hole."

"I would never hurt Kimmie." Shego said. "Not if I had any choice in the matter."

"Good. Now can you please fill us in on what your mission was about?"

"Doctor Dee was making a play for supremacy." Shego said. "He used 'The Child' to kill off the other major villains and was framing me in the process."

"Drew?" James asked.

"Yeah. I never thought he had it in him either." Shego said. "But he did."

"Ok… well what is 'The Child'?" He asked.

"She was our daughter." Kim said softly and all attention was focused solely on her. "Doctor Drakken stole our DNA and had DNAmy blend them together and create a killer with Shego's strength and powers and my flexibility."

"Your daughter?" Ann asked. "Your actual daughter?"

"We gave her our DNA. The only difference was we didn't carry her to term." Shego said. "She had Kimmie's eyes."

"And your nose and mouth," Kim added and then sighed. "When we got there, DNAmy was already dead. She had killed her. We went looking for her and a cage dropped from the ceiling and caught us. That's when she stepped out of the shadows with Doctor Drakken. He told us his entire plan and then she turned on him. She broke his neck with one hand."

"Then she told us her plan which was to use Doctor Dee to take out the villains once and for all because they would just escape from prison if they were locked up again. She recorded everything for evidence and then after everything was said, she said goodbye and killed herself." Shego said, d voice thick with emotion. "She used her plasma and lobotomized herself while we watched."

Kim wrapped her arm around Shego's waist, holding her close and providing support to the taller woman.

"She did it for us." Shego said. "She did it so we could be free. She sacrificed herself to kill the others."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Ann said. "So now that you're no longer working with Doctor Drakken, I take it you're going to need somewhere to stay, am I correct?"

"Well…" Shego said and then looked at Kim.

"If you need somewhere to stay, you are more than welcome to stay with us for as long as you need. After all, you are part of our family now." Ann said.

"Thank you, Ann." Shego said and Ann held up her hand.

"Mom." Ann corrected.

"Mom." Shego said.

"So I take it that you're giving up on your life of crime, then?"

"Yes." Shego said with a nod. "It's just too dangerous anymore… besides, The Child gave her life so that I would be able to go free and not have to worry about anything happening to me because of what she did. If I go back… all her work and sacrifice will be gone and I know that they would try and hang everything on my head, even with her confession exonerating me."

"True, very true." Ann said with a nod.

"But more importantly than that, I don't want to lose Kimmie because I couldn't go legit and ended up in prison again." Shego said and Ann smiled.

"That's the reason I was hoping to hear." Ann said. "Now I was wondering…"

Ann stopped as they heard a beeping from Kim's pocket and she pulled out her kimmunicator.

"Sorry about this." She said, hitting the answer button. "Go, Wade."

"Hey, Kim. I just got an email from the FBI." Wade said. "It's about Shego."

"And?" Kim said, nervously.

"She's been cleared of charges and the bounty has been removed from her head." He said. "The field agent who sent this also included a personal note for you."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Apparently they figured out that you were hiding Shego and so wanted it known that you will not be facing charges of harboring a known fugitive." He said.

"Oh." Kim said. "That's good news… I guess."

"It's disquieting that they knew, though." Shego commented. "I had thought I had done a fairly good job at covering my tracks but apparently I didn't do enough."

"Breaking and entering and theft are one thing, capital murder is another." Ann said. "So it could be argued that they didn't care enough to really hunt you down before."

"Good point." Shego said. "Still though… that is disturbing to know that they knew who was protecting me and where I was and that they did nothing about it."

"Or it could be because they knew who was with you that they didn't move." Ann said. "Whatever it is, it isn't important right now. What's important is that you're safe and you're home."

"Yeah. Home." Shego said, a smile blossoming on her lips with the sound of the word.

ELSEWHERE…

"What do you have for me?" A young woman said as she walked into a large laboratory teeming with lab-coat wearing technicians.

"Colonel!" A young woman called and jogged over. "I have the results. We've retrieved one hundred percent retrieval of the first stage of the process – creating the zygote – but only thirty percent of the second stage – the age acceleration process. Some of the server racks were damaged when The Child attacked."

"That's a shame." She said without a hint of emotion.

"There have been speculations that were we able to dissect the body that we would be able to discern a bit more about the process."

"No. Absolutely not." She said.

"But…"

"No autopsy is to be performed on The Child." She said. "These are the orders from Management."

"Understood." He said with a nod. "What will be done with the remains?"

"They will be taken care of." She answered calmly. "Now, as to the first stage…"

"We've recovered all the data concerning the process including samples both of the progenitors as well as several zygotes which have been preserved in liquid nitrogen."

"Are they viable?"

"From what we can tell, yes."

"Excellent." She said. "And so long as they are frozen, they will remain viable?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Good. I want them to be housed in a secure refrigeration unit. Nobody is to touch the samples without my express permission. Is that clear?" She said.

"Crystal clear." He said.

"And I trust that all of this stays in-house and goes no higher." She said and he nodded. "Good. Now, what other information have you recovered from the computers?"

"Aside from the DNA coding for about a dozen of her mutant creatures and untold thousand pictures of Cuddle Buddies…" He said with a shiver. "There have been some interesting files concerning her dealings with Doctor Drakken."

"Is that so…" She said with a smile. "Tell me about them."

AT THE POSSIBLE HOME…

"If I remember correctly, they're back in here in a box…" Ann said as she walked into the back of the garage.

"So Kimmie, do you think I could get a job working as a teacher back at Middleton High?" Shego asked as Ann moved boxes.

"I don't know… You'd be dating a senior." Kim said.

"I'm sure that I could get over that fact easily enough." Shego said.

"But would Mister Barkin be able to get over the fact you and I are together?"

"I think that it would probably fry his brain." Shego answered and the young women laughed out loud while Ann smiled, her back still turned to the pair.

"Just like the old days." She said softly.

THREE DAYS LATER…

"Yeah, really." Kim said after a moment and then looked down as she heard her kimmunicator trill. "Go, Wade."

"Hey, Kim. I've got a call for you from the Colonel. She to tell you something about the lab incident." He said and then the screen went blank for a moment before the beautiful middle-eastern woman reappeared.

"Hello, Kimberly. Is Shego with you?"

"I am." She said, stepping closer to Kim to look over her shoulder.

"I wanted to tell you that the case has been officially closed with The Child being a synthdrone who was subsequently killed and the body was irrecoverable." She said. "DNAmy was the last on the list. The unidentified remains found at the lab have been taken to a private location where they have been interred with all due respect."

"Thank you." Shego said softly.

"A small plaque is the only monument. It reads, 'Born a Weapon, Lived a Villain, Died a Hero.'"

"Perfect." Shego said.

"We were able to recover some of the data from the lab and our techs are working to reassemble everything and get it all decoded but we are making good progress. And the part which I think you will find most interesting… 'The Child' was not the only embryo created by DNAmy. She created seven more and froze them to preserve them."

"So you mean if Shego and I decide we want a child…" Kim said and Shego looked at her with a shocked expression.

"Then all you need to do is say the word." She said.

"Oh… thank you, Colonel." Kim said. "Anything else?"

"Nothing right now. I'll send you the address for where 'The Child' was laid to rest so if you want to pay your respects…" She said and trailed off.

"Thank you, Colonel." She said. "We really appreciate this."

"After all the two of you have done for me? This is the least I could do." The olive skinned woman said and then the screen went blank.

"So this is what it feels like…" Shego said.

"How what feels like?"

"Being you." Shego said. "Always getting thanked for doing favors for people."

"Pretty much." Kim answered. "The thanks is always reward enough but I'm not going to turn down favors that people are willing to do if it means I can help someone else in the same process."

"True that." She said with a nod. "So do you want kids? I mean after graduation and everything…"

"Well, I've always wanted to take a few years after graduation to just go and travel the world, just to see the sights, I mean. Not just to do missions and all that." Kim said. "But then I think that the biggest adventure I want to try is motherhood."

"Well… you will need someone to travel with you on your adventures so I guess I've got to come with." Shego said, smiling at Kim with a twinkle in her eye.

IN THE OTHER ROOM…

"Like mother like daughter." James said as he sipped his coffee, casting a glance at his wife who had a Cheshire smile.

"Why James, I don't know what you mean." She said innocently.

"You lure us in making us feel like we're the predators and then you pounce."

"And you're complaining?" She asked.

"Not in the slightest." He said with a shake of his head and she smiled once more.

"Good. I thought not." She said.

IN THE LIVING ROOM…

"I've got the address." Kim said as her kimmunicator beeped once, signaling a received message. "Do you want to go now?"

"Only if we can stop at a florist first," Shego said.

"Of course." Kim said. "But we're taking my car since the hovercraft is a little too high-profile."

"Yeah, just a little bit." Shego countered with a smile.

"Mom, we're going to the cemetery." Kim said as they were walking toward the front door.

"Do you mind if we join you?" Ann asked, walking out of the kitchen.

"If you want," Kim said and her mother nodded.

"Thank you." She said and walked upstairs.

"I didn't think she would want to go." Kim said quietly to Shego.

"Neither did I." Shego answered. "I wonder why?"

"She was as much a part of you as she was a part of us." James said, also walking into the living room. "We want to show our respects to the young woman who gave her life to save yours."

"I understand." Kim said and glanced over to see her mother walk back downstairs having traded her usual white lab coat for a black trench coat.

"We'll follow you, honey." Ann said and Kim nodded before walking out the front door.

TEN YEARS LATER…

"Ten years already." Shego said, combing her fingers though her jet-black mane that was starting to show slights signs of silvering.

"Tempus fugit." Kim said.

"Yeah, time flies." Shego said and smiled sadly. "But she accomplished more with the three months she had than a lot of people do with eighty years."

"Proof again she's our daughter." Kim said softly. "Ten roses for ten years… Rest in peace, Medea."

Kim laid the flowers on the grave and then stepped back to embrace her lover.

"Thanks, Medea." A small voice said and both women looked over at the little girl with vibrant red hair and a very faint hint of green in her complexion.

"Alexa… We thought you were going to stay in the car." Kim said.

"I know… I was gonna but then I thought about what you said… how she saved you two and I felt like I should come say thanks as well." She said.

"I'm sure she's glad you did." Kim said with a smile as a single tear made its way down her cheek and even Shego swallowed hard at the seven-year-old's gesture. "C'mon, Alexa, Ron and Avi invited us for dinner and I'm sure that Bristol will be happy to see you as well."

She nodded and walked they made their way back to the car.

"Saying Bristol will be happy to see her is like saying the sun will rise." Shego said with a smile. "If we let them, they'd move in together."

"We'll save that for later." Kim said. "At least a few years, if you please."

"Definitely." Shego said. "At least until after she's out of elementary school."

"I was thinking after college if not longer."

"You realize that if there's chemistry that you won't be able to keep them apart." Shego said. "Just like you and me, Kimmie."

"I suppose, but we'll just have to see if the girls want to take it from being friends to being something more." Kim said.

"Then the fun begins."

"Fun?"

"You know how Steve was when you were still a senior and I was a teacher… can you imagine how he would react to two girls in his class being involved?"

"He's gonna flip." Kim said dryly. "That's all there is to it. He's gonna flip."

"I know, and I can't wait for the first parent-teacher conference after he finds out." Shego said with an evil smile.

"I'm sure you can't." Kim said, knowing that whatever her wife had planned would most definitely give the ex-Marine more than a few gray hairs.

THE END.

Author's Notes: I know this seems like an odd place to end the story but it seemed to be best to just nip it here. I hope that you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it and hope to read reviews – positive and negative – to improve and to hear what you, my readers, feel about my story. Please send all C&C to tenchi(dot)knight(dot)2000(at)gmail(dot)com or leave a review on my profile if you so choose.

Thanks for reading!

The Tenchi Knight