This took slightly longer than I thought it would, but I needed to figure out just where I was going with this. I would suggest reading "Enemy of my Enemy" or this story is going to be rather difficult to understand, being that it's the sequel. It shouldn't be nearly as long, however.

Enough talk; I hope you enjoy the beginning of my angst-ridden tale.

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"He's certain to be arriving soon." Kim laughed. There was no way that he wouldn't; she knew her father far too well for that.

Sure enough, here he came, dragged in chains in front of her. "Kimmie-cub, please don't do this!" He asked her, knowing it was futile to struggle against his bonds. "He's turned you against everyone who cares about you!"

"He's the only one who cares about me!" Kim snarled. "All of you lied to me! Especially you; I never should have trusted you!" She lifted him up with a single hand. "Now, Father... you will die."

Kim awoke in horror, sweat covering her bed. She'd been having those kind of dreams almost every night. It was the second time tonight that she had woken up in a cold night. Even taking sleeping pills didn't seem to be sufficient. "Damn, what am I going to do about this?" She complained. "I can't keep this up forever." She turned on her light, even though she knew by heart precisely where everything in her room was.

To her right was a desk, which carried a photo of her and her best friend, Ron Stoppable, with their arms wrapped around one another. Today, it seemed almost unnatural to see that kind of smile on her face. Not so long ago, nothing dragged her down for long. She was a naturally perky and optimistic person, and nothing got in her way. She was a straight A-student, cheerleader, one of the most popular people around, even took down supervillains in her spare time.

That all changed a month ago, and ever since, her life was in shambles.

It seemed like a typical date with Ron, until they got a call that her most frequently encountered enemies Drakken and Shego were on the move to steal some new technology that could be harnassed as a weapon. At the time, Kim figured it would go as it always did, with Drakken being defeated, promising to win the next time they encountered each other, with time left over to go out on their date.

Then he came.

The man who called himself Shadow. He came close to killing Drakken, and she decided to make a temporary truce with her enemy to face the more dangerous threat. However, he was more than a match for all three of them, and kidnapped Kim, taking her to his lair. and that was only the beginning, Kim mused. She soon discovered that her father had been keeping things from her, chief among them the fact that he had modified her DNA before she was born, allowing her to do superhuman feats.

But that wasn't the biggest shock. He intended to make her his apprentice, and after close to two weeks, when her mind was wavering, he revealed his greatest secret. It was something she had never known, never even guessed, but at the same time, the truth could not be denied. It was the reason for everything: why he chose her, why he wanted revenge against her dad, why he had fallen to the dark; everything.

Her kidnapper was in fact Damien Possible, her own half-brother.

Even though she was ultimately rescued, Kim had never been the same after that. She was haunted by nightmares, plagued with anger and rage, traits that her brother was attempting to ignite inside her. Being that she spent most of her time in a foul mood, it appeared as if he had succeeded. And a part of me still wants to see him again. Kim sighed. As much as she hated her brother for the mind games he had played with her, she loved him just as much.

Realizing that she likely was not going to get anymore sleep, she went down the stairs to the living room in order to get something to eat. Being careful not to wake any member of her family was simple; being on missions constantly had acquainted her with the art of stealth, so there wasn't so much as a murmur throughout the house.

Evidently, Kim was hungrier than she previously suspected, for she gulped down her meal so quickly that she felt a flash of heartburn. "Okay, now I'm feeling a bit better." Kim admitted. Her depression refused to go away even so. She had a few sessions with a therapist, at her mom's insistence, but she wasn't making any progress there. As far as she was concerned, she merely wanted to forget her kidnapping ever happened, much less what she came close to doing as a result.

She was eighteen years old and a high school graduate, certainly far too old to come crying to her parents whenever she was upset. Kim had a difficult time being civil with them anyway, especially her dad, James Possible. Even if he did modify her to save her life, rather than for gain, as Shadow asserted, the fact that he had never told her still rankled. It was difficult to trust him now. Part of her wanted to rush right back to him, tell him that he was forgiven, so they would be what they were before. Every time she tried, though, she simply couldn't say the words, for they would be a lie.

But Ron... he didn't deserve what I did to him. A couple of days after her ordeal was over, she ended up breaking up with him. Kim had hardly talked to him since, even though she saw literally dozens of missed calls and hundreds of text messages pleading with her not to throw him aside. "He doesn't understand; he can't." Kim muttered sadly.

She knew that as painful as it was for both of them, it was necessary. Kim had a growing darkness within her, and flew to anger very easily. Not quite as easily as before, but with whatever her new power was, negative emotion seemed to come with it. When she used it, she was able to completely overpower Shego and was on the verge on killing her during the final battle when she was stopped. A couple times in her nightmares, Ron was in her place, begging for mercy.

Ron meant everything to her. Kim refused to do that, and knew that she tried hanging around him, acting as they did before, something would trigger her anger and he'd be the unfortunate target. Not that he was a helpless victim; far from it. Now that he was gaining control of his Mystical Monkey Powers, she wasn't even sure she could beat him. But he would never attack her, even to defend himself, and in her current state, she could end up causing permanent damage, perhaps even killing him.

Ron hated her, Kim was sure of it. How could he not after what she had done? Everything within her screamed to talk to him, beg for forgiveness, but her fear of putting him in danger superseded even that. However painful it might be, she could live with him hating her if it meant that he was safe.

"Not that he was ever that safe during our adventures," Kim was forced to admit, at least to herself. He constantly came back with cuts and bruises, and she was sometimes amazed that he never suffered more serious injuries. He didn't even like it, didn't live for it the way she had, but he went along in spite of that in order to support her. In return for that, she threw him aside like he meant nothing to her.

It's what has to happen. Kim thought. When I can get control of myself, I'll come back to him... if he'll let me. She closed her eyes, but it was a long time before she fell back to sleep.

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Director looked over the reports on the artifacts that were located in Shadow's lair. "Interesting; actual monkey idols." Director muttered, still unable to understand why it was significant, but she was experienced enough to observe when something was more important than it first appeared. According to the examiners, they were hazardous to the touch. One of their more careless examiners had her hand burned almost to the bone.

It was obvious that the idols had some kind of mysterious power. Had it been anyone else but the people she trusted the most to give an honest report, Director would have dismissed it as hyperbole. It was the kind of thing that people saw in movie plots, not something that was actually real.

However, the one thing that they did not know was just what their function was. Currently, everyone was forbidden to go within twenty feet of it, just to err of the side of caution, and while the instruments on it detected something inside, none of them had been able to find out what.

And if we start tampering with them, who knows what would happen? Director thought. Ambrose doubtless had all kinds of dirty tricks to keep from being detected. Upon examining his lair after the battle was over, there were countless traps for the unwary. No agents had been killed, but the agents in charge of the operation observed that they were designed to be non-lethal. Just another piece in this more and more hazardous puzzle.

Even though the mystery was difficult, Director would much rather work on it than dwell on the deaths of just about every agent she sent to rescue Kim Possible. Twenty dead, and the few that survived were still in serious condition. She knew Shadow was powerful and prepared accordingly for the mission to rescue Miss Possible, but she would never in her life have imagined that a single soul could do what she had seen that night. Sometimes, she saw it in her dreams, a deadly storm heading right for her.

And when she thought it was finally over, that she could finally put an end to him, Kim had intervened, fought her to defend her kidnapper. Director admitted to herself that it was something she should have taken into consideration. Stockholm Syndrome could show up within a couple of days, and Miss Possible was in isolation for over two weeks, more than enough time for him to bring her to his side.

What was more astonishing was that she actually managed to win. Even before, not many could beat Kim in hand to hand, but Director was one of that small circle. Being so completely overwhelmed, even when wearing a battle suit, was a major surprise.

"I wish I didn't have to expel her; she would have been an excellent agent." Director sighed, slightly depressed. If anything, she was grooming her to take her place once she retired. No other agent she knew had the kind of potential she had, but after what she saw, many of her agents saw Miss Possible as too much of a liability, and she was forced to reluctantly concur.

I hope she can get the help she needs. Director thought with concern. The poor girl was a wreck, as anyone would be after an ordeal like that. And I dearly wish that Du was still alive. Her number one agent, Will Du, had perished in the confrontation, the last of Ambrose's victims. While capable, he wasn't skilled at field work, and Director discouraged him from coming along, but he insisted. While his dislike of Kim was well known among Global Justice, he would still lay down his life to protect her. And he had.

At times, she still half expected him to walk through the door, giving her his latest intelligence report. A couple days after all the funerals, she had mistaken one of their new agents for Du and greeted him by that name, completely embarrassing herself. Nobody had said anything, but she could feel their eyes on her.

Pushing herself to her feet, she decided to check out the facility that they had put the idols inside. At the very least, it would give something to distract her. Director knew the way; she knew the facility backwords and forwards. She could walk through it blindfolded should it ever prove necessary. There security was rarely breached, but it was still best not to take chances.

However, her route took her through the cells where individuals considered too dangerous for a normal prison were held. All of them looked upon her with hate, and Director knew that if they were given half a chance, each and every last person in here would kill her without a second thought. On the far right lay Monkey Fist. He was bound to the floor, because if he saw anyone approaching, he would attack on sight, no matter who it was. Monkey Fist had spent a few days in Ambrose's captivity and he had been tortured into insanity.

` But Director walked alone even though it was against her own regulations, with only a slight amount of fear. One reality of her job was that anything could happen, no matter how good you were.

"Ah, Director, we weren't expecting to see you here." One of the agents greeted her nervously.

"I gathered as much; what's your progress with the idols?" Director wondered sternly. She hoped that they had at least a clue, but so far, they didn't

"In all honesty, we don't know." The agent informed, pointing to the four idols that were held side by side in the middle of the room behind ten inches of bulletproof glass, backed up by another three inches of titanium. "Half the people here are too scared to even go inside."

"Then I'll do it myself," Director snapped. All the losses she had taken recently had soured her mood. All but pushing past the guards, she opened the door. Even though she had seen them before, the sight of them never failed to awe her. Part of her wanted to move close and examine them more intently, even though she knew it was a foolhardy thing to do.

Perhaps he put some of his power into them, maybe even a part of his essence. Director mused. While brutal, Ambrose was far from stupid, and for all she knew, he had the power to do just that. It was unlikely, but they could dismiss no possibility. Whatever they did, it was a mystery they had to crack.

What she didn't realize was that there was someone watching them.

XXXXXXXXXX

"Nope, no response." Ron moaned, sitting down in the family chair in the living room. He had been staring at his cell phone for over an hour, praying for some kind of response from Kim. He had not managed so much as a wink this night and it was eating him up. More than once, he had thought Kim had finally responded, only for him to discover that he was merely hearing things.

Why is she doing this to me? He sighed. Ron knew he had messed up not saving her sooner, but he never thought that Kim would hold a grudge for this long. It'd been a month and they still had not spoken two words to one another. They had fought before, but the anger phase rarely lasted more than a few hours, if that long. But a couple days after it was over, she broke up with him and refused to have anything more to do with him. While painful, Ron could have lived with losing a romantic relationship if they stayed friends. Now, though, that didn't look like it was going to happen.

His phone got a text and Ron dropped it under the chair in his haste to open his phone. Ron cursed in fury as he felt around for it. He raised his hand, using his powers to summon it. He had done little else but practice his abilities since he graduated. Ron didn't have the heart to do much else; it wasn't the same without Kim. "Work, damn it!" Ron cursed. A cell phone was about the limit to what he could lift now.

It seemed like forever to his mind, but in fact it was only a few seconds before the phone came flying back to him. "Please let it be KP..." Ron begged to himself. While he hoped it would be, he wasn't surprised when it wasn't. It was a simple message: "How u holding up? Princess talk to u yet?" The text was from Shego of all people.

Maybe I shouldn't be so surprised. Ron admitted. When KP was kidnapped, he had Shego, who was normally their enemy, had made a temporary truce to rescue her and defeat their common enemy. As the partnership went on, however, they began to bond. They became friends... perhaps something more. Shego liked him, this he knew, and he couldn't help but feel at least an attraction to her as well. At the moment, though, he wasn't that interested in a relationship.

"What are you doing down here, Son?" his father interrupted him, walking down the stairs.

"Haven't been able to sleep." Ron was forced to admit. He was tired, he could barely move, but every time he closed his eyes, his mind refused to shut down. The possibility of a response from KP kept him too excited to go to sleep, even if he knew how unlikely it was. "I... I wish KP were here."

"She's going through a hard time, Ronald." His father explained. He decided not to mention what his wife's response was to his friend's aloofness. Best not to make things worse. "Kidnapping isn't something you get over like it never happened."

"I know, but I could help her." Ron protested. "She's always leaned on me when she was upset in the past; why not now? I know how badly I messed up, but... is there any way to convince her? What should I do?"

"All I can advise you to do is wait for her to come back to you." His father sighed. "It may time some time, but the two of you have been friends almost as long as you've been alive."

"Yeah, came as a shock to a lot of people." Ron chuckled. Back when they were young, having friends of the opposite gender was unusual, and most thought that it would die out in time. They were amazed as the two grew inseparable, even in grade school. "But what if she doesn't come back?"

"You have to have faith in her; you know her far better than I do." His father explained. "Tell me: if this was you, would she simply abandon you and give up?" He didn't want to add his private concerns that this may indeed be the end of their friendship. He had talked to Kim's parents once about that very subject, and he had gotten the inkling that all of them were in bad shape.

"I... I guess she wouldn't." Ron admitted. "It's just hard not having her around. I don't have much of a life outside her, as cliché as that might sound."

"What about that other woman?" His father pushed.

"You mean Shego?" Ron wondered. "Yeah, we've talked sometimes, but haven't met face to face. This is still pretty awkward. Remember, we're on opposite sides of the law, even if she was given a pardon by Global Justice."

"I don't want you to stay in this house moping around all the time." His father responded with a mixture of concern and sternness. "Go out, have some fun, enjoy life. Kim wouldn't want you to be like this, any more than I do."

"I... I suppose you're right." Ron sighed, mostly in an attempt to end this conversation. He had little motivation to do the things he once enjoyed. Even going to Bueno Nacho wasn't fun anymore, something that astonished both of his parents. "I'll see if I can meet up with her." Felix called sometimes, but he was building his own life halfway across the country. Ron had the unpleasant feeling that they were going to end up growing apart.

"If you want... I could get you something at Bueno Nacho; their drive-thru is open 24 hours a day now." His father offered, trying to think of something to bring his son out of his depression. He knew a dismissal when he heard one. If that didn't cheer him up at least a little...

"Sure, if you want; no need to trouble yourself if you don't want to." Ron shrugged, mostly indifferent. Rufus popped out of his pocket excitedly, licking his lips in anticipation , but Ron just couldn't bring himself to get excited about it.

"I'm just trying to cheer you up, son." His father replied, at a loss. "You won't talk to me, you won't talk to your mother, and I hear you screaming in your sleep almost every other night. It's not healthy to keep holding everything in."

"Since when do you give a damn?" Ron glared. "Just leave me alone, all right?"

"If that's what you want," His father walked back up the stairs, leaving Ron with nothing but Rufus and his depressing thoughts.

Should I even bother trying to contact her anymore? Ron wondered and Rufus gave him a gentle pat on the arm. "Tomorrow, I'll try visiting her personally again." Ron promised to himself, beginning to fall asleep in the easy chair. His last thoughts were. Find out for sure... one way or the other.

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Admittedly, not my best start, but hopefully, this at least sets things up for future updates. Please let me know what you think.