Okay! Well, so much for my Norkie poll. I think only 3 people sent me an answer… Though thank you to those of you that did. I was beginning to wonder if anybody read what I wrote laughs Oh, and no, I wasn't planning on taking Norkie out of the story at all. I just wanted to know how you felt about him to get a feel for how to write him in. grins And thank you for the guilt trip Shi Rurouni and the mob & pasta threats from WannaBeRogue. bows I get the feeling Norkie will be stuck to my side for quite a while now ;)
Rin: Yay! I finally got to see So The Drama! Actually, it wasn’t THAT good…. And really corny, but hey! I got to Shego in a dress! That’s all I care about! ;)
Rysha: I hate the stupid people from Disney. Sulks
Rin: But SHEGO! In a dress! …. Okay, so I hate them too. It’s not worth it….
Rysha: breaks into tears because of pepperonis and Rin
Rin: ew. Pepperoni juices. … Salami juice…. Juicies…whatever.
Rysha: sweatdrops Anyway… Rin and I will be writing a one shot and hopefully posting it within… 2 weeks! There, that should give us enough time.
Rin: … And Shego was straddling Kim! … and- er… I’m gonna shut up now for you nice people that haven’t watched it yet…
“Great-mph-food, Mrs. P!” Ron said enthusiastically between bites. Felix sat next to him, rolling his eyes every now and again because of something Ron had said and eating his pancakes, though admittedly slower than the blond boy next to him. Norkie sat across the table from the boys and was happily doing his best to render the table empty. He seemed oblivious to everything except the food in front of him. Mrs. Possible sat next to Norkie watching him eat intently. Her husband kept remarking on what a breakthrough for modern science Norkie was.
Finishing his last pancake off, Norkie never had to look up because Mrs. Possible was at his elbow filling his plate again. Mr. Possible raised an eyebrow at her.
“Honey, why don’t you come sit down?” he asked her.
She shook her head, eyes never leaving Norkie. Mr. Possible frowned.
“We need to talk,” he gritted out between clenched teeth and started to walk out. When he realized she wasn’t behind him, he turned back to find his wife still sitting next to Norkie.
“Come on, honey…” he grabbed her arm and dragged her out the door.
Ron sat there with his mouth hanging open in a small ‘o’. Felix shook his head and continued eating. Ron got over his surprise soon enough and resumed consuming everything in sight.
Suddenly Norkie’s head shot up. His silverware made a loud clash as it struck the plate. Ron gasped but still had food in his mouth causing him to start choking. Felix hit his back, his expression concerned. Norkie sprang up from his seat. He literally sprang. He moved like he had muscles in places he shouldn’t. He shook his head once as if to be rid of something, and then ran out the door.
“Norkie!” Felix yelled after him. “Ron, we have to do something!”
Ron was already running for Kim’s room. She had a spare communicator somewhere, he knew. He scrambled through her drawers as fast as he could. He paused when he came across something different and pulled out the strange item. Stretching between his fingers lay a little blank thong with a green dragon design on them. Ron blinked.
“Ah! Ew! Gross!” he yelled and threw them back into the drawer. Tentatively, he pursued looking for the communicator. There was clearly something wrong with the usually likable A.I., he…acted as if he were possessed by something. Ron knew what kind of power Norkie possessed. He though back to when the beam had hit Felix. His heart had stopped as he watched Felix collapse. He feared what the A.I. might do this time…
“Yes!” he yelled as his fingers closed around the cool surface of the communicator. Ron knew that if anyone could find Norkie and calm him down, it was Kim. He hit the button that connected him to Kim.
A loud, insistent beeping crashed through her dreams throwing Kim back into the arms of reality. She lifted her head up, poking it out of the blanket that was wrapped around her. Upon locating the source of the sound, her communicator, she burrowed back under the covers and pulled it out of her pocket. She glanced at her watch, well squinted was probably more like it. She had only been sleeping for two hours. Jesus.
“Wade, this had better be good…” Kim snarled, flicking the little device on.
“KP!” Ron nearly screamed at her. From his disheveled hair and wild eyes, Kim knew something was up immediately.
“What’s the sitch, Ron?” she asked, suddenly alert and fearing the worst.
“Norkie’s gone! He just ran off like a crazed…” Ron paused. “Monkey!” he yelled.
“Ron, calm down. You said Norkie ran off? Did he say anything?” Kim’s brow furrowed.
“Nothing. We were eating breakfast and suddenly he just jumped up and ran out.” Ron started calming down. Well, at least he’d stopped yelling anyway.
“Did you see which way he went?” Kim asked him hopefully.
“No…” Ron’s shoulders slumped.
“All right. I’m coming home. I should be there soon.” Kim pocketed the communicator and as much as she hated to do it, flung the warm covers off and got out of bed. She frowned when she saw that Shego was gone. Kim rested her hand on the side of the bed she usually slept on. It was cold to the touch, so she must have left a while ago. Kim started to worry immediately. It wasn’t like Shego to just take off without telling her. Maybe she just went to take a walk, yeah, that fitted. Come to think of it…Kim’s green gaze fell on the open bathroom door. Upon inspection, she saw that Shego had taken a shower, so she most likely went out for a short time and would be coming back soon. Kim smiled and scrawled out a note telling her what happened and pinned it to her pillow.
Kim’s communicator beeped at her again. Kim rolled her eyes and got it out again.
“Ron-Oh, hey Wade,” she smiled.
“Ron told me what happened. I’ve started scanning the area for any strange readings. Anything you’d like to add?” he inquired, occasionally tapping at his keyboard.
“I’m not sure…whatever the reason was, I’m betting it isn’t good. Why would Norkie just leave like that?” Wade shrugged at her question. “Anyway, I need a ride.”
“What happened to Shego?”
“I’m not sure yet. I think she went out for air…” Kim murmured. Something in her voice made Wade question further.
“Do you want me to run a scan for her too?” he asked, hands hovering over his keyboard.
“No. She’ll be fine. I just worry too much,” she shrugged.
“…All right. I’ll send my car out for you.”
“Thanks, Wade.” She tucked her communicator away and glanced around the room. Upon seeing nothing of interest, she turned to leave the house. Kim exited Shego’s bedroom and shook her head at the dust still around her. Since Shego was hardly ever home and only really used the kitchen and her bedroom, she didn’t understand why she should have to clean the rest of the house. That would all end when she managed to get an apartment that the two of them would share. Kim blinked. She was getting way ahead of herself. Before she moved in with Shego, she had to tell her parents. A shudder ran through her body. That was not going to be fun. But she had to tell them and soon. Her thoughts drifted off to what everyone else would think, particularly at school. Kim’s eyes widened when she realized that tomorrow would be the first day of her senior year. She could feel a headache coming on from all the pressure. Outside at last, Kim sighed and sat down to wait for her ride.
“We have to DO something!” Ron yelled, stomping his feet as he paced. Felix still sat calmly in his chair at the breakfast table, his eyes following the blond boy. He hadn’t said much, mostly just letting Ron rant and rave. He did, however, prevent Ron from running off to search.
“Ron,” he said, attempting to break through his current rant.
“-I don’t see why!”
“RON!” Felix yelled, finally gaining Ron’s attention. “Come here.”
Ron did as he was asked and found himself pulled into Felix’s lap. Strong arms wrapped around him and Ron relaxed immediately.
“Norkie is a big boy who can take care of himself. If you would calm down long enough to realize that waiting for Kim is probably our best plan of action. She usually has a good plan.” Felix murmured in Ron’s ear. Ron slumped.
“Yeah, I know…” Ron mumbled, his voice barely above a whisper. He leaned back into Felix more, found the brown haired boy’s hand and intertwined their fingers together. Felix smiled at the gesture and laid a chaste kiss on the nape of Ron’s neck, then rested his chin on the other boy’s shoulder.
Which was how Kim found them when she walked into the kitchen. She blinked her green eyes, confused. She opened her mouth to say something then decided otherwise and shut it with an audible click. Kim shook her head and made her way over to the boys.
The moment Ron saw Kim, he floundered about practically leaping from Felix’s lap. A pink tinge crept its way over his face. Ron’s eyes flicked over to where Felix sat. He seemed completely at ease and calm as if nothing had happened. Ron briefly wished that he could do that.
Kim didn’t ask so Ron gritted his teeth and didn’t say a word. She and Felix began talking about what they were going to do while Ron’s brown eyes again rested on Felix. Did Felix care if someone found out about them? Even if it was just Kim? Ron frowned. He didn’t like thinking about keeping secrets from Kim. She was his best friend after all. They’d been friend since…since…preschool for crying out loud! Kim’s voice floated to his ears, snapping him out of his thoughts.
“Earth to Ron!” Kim waved a hand in front of his face.
“Wha-?” he blinked.
“We’re going to go look for him.”
Ron flopped bonelessly into a chair with a sigh. Their efforts had all been a waste. There wasn't one sign of Norkie in Middleton. Felix sprawled himself out on the couch with a sigh.
“Okay, so that got us nowhere,” he stated out loud.
Kim merely grunted a response as she closed the door behind her. It was dark by now; they had searched for hours to no avail. Unsure of what to do next, she pulled out the communicator and Wade's face appeared on the screen.
“Anything?” she asked.
“Well, I'm getting some kind of high pitched frequency. Something so high that not even dogs can hear it. I'm sure that's what caused your A.I. to go running off. The only problem is that I'm having trouble locating it.” Something beeped on his computer. “Uh…I'll talk to you later Kim,” he said hurriedly, but Kim saw his mom come in the room before he disconnected. She couldn't help but chuckle. Twelve year old super genius, but he was still stuck under his parent's thumb.
Kim heard a low murmur and noticed Ron and Felix talking to each other. She watched them closely, a suspicion in the back of her mind. Were they-? No, Ron would have told her by now if something was going on. Besides, this was Ron! He loved women! All his years of boasting and attempting to get dates. She shook her head and though of Shego. Deciding to call her, she went to the phone in the kitchen, leaving Ron and Felix alone.
She dialed Shego's cell number and waited. The phone rang and rang but Shego never picked up. Worry clouded Kim's mind as she left a message for Shego to call her. Kim bit her lip. She pulled out her communicator and Wade appeared again.
“Nothing's up yet, Kim,” Wade said immediately.
“No, no. It's not that. I'm worried about Shego. She isn't answering her phone and…” Kim hesitated.
“Do you want me to trace her?”
Kim let out a breath she didn't even know she was holding and nodded. “Please and thank you, Wade.”
His fingers flew over his keyboard then he leaned back. “She's… in an alley in Lowerton.”
Shego walked softly in the darkness, her slow footsteps not even making any noise as thoughts ran rampant inside her head. She had left Kim some time around noon to take a walk, thinking that would help clear her head. Shego continued to walk, refusing to stop until she worked out what was going on. What was she going to do with Kim? Shego had become as dependent on her as Kim was on Shego.
Growling in frustration, she kicked an empty can into an alley. Shego though about leaving Kim, moving to a different continent and attempt to pick up the shattered pieces of her life. As soon as that crossed her mind, she shook her head. She couldn't do it. Her heart squeezed painfully at the idea of never seeing Kim again.
Her eyes followed the empty can as it rolled into the shadows. She sighed, but her breath caught in her throat when she saw an oddly familiar shape in the dark alley in front of her. Shego's emerald gaze narrowed dangerously as she slipped into the shadows after the figure.
Shego's eyes strained in the darkness. She had wonderful night vision, but there wasn't even the slightest trace of light. Sending a silent curse up at the cloudy night sky, she pressed on.
Hearing a small noise up ahead, Shego froze. Her ears picked up a low curse as the person stumbled over a box and struggled to regain his feet. Shego knew that voice all too well. But what the hell was he doing here? She crept up behind the figure.
He seemed to be hunched over from falling, so she moved closer. Shego's finely manicured hand descended on his shoulder, digging her nails into his shoulder eliciting a sharp yelp.
“Drakken…” she gritted out between clenched teeth and spun him around to face her.
Light flooded the alley, blinding. Sharp pains from the bright light made Shego freeze instantly like a deer in head lights. In the small amount of time it took her to regain her senses, Drakken's hands shot out and touched her temples. Shego felt her muscles relax and her face become expressionless as she slowly lost control of her body. Shit, she thought as Drakken began laughing evilly. Not again…
An insistent beeping made Kim look down at her pocket, breaking her out of her internal struggle.
“What's up, Wade?” she asked automatically. “Find anything on Norkie?”
“No, actually it was about Shego. I lost the signal,” Wade answered apologetically.
“You WHAT!”
“Something's jamming the signal,” he said defensively.
Kim paused to calm her breathing. “Okay, where was she when the signal cut?”
“In the alley I showed you.”
“Good. I'm on my way.” Kim flicked the communicator off and slipped it back into her cargo pants.
“Wait.” Felix stood up and made his way over to Kim. “You're just going to leave? What about Norkie?”
“Norkie's a big boy. He can take care of himself for a little while,” she said, turning to leave. Felix grabbed her arm forcefully.
“He needs our help!” Felix's blue eyes shined insistently. Kim bit her lip. She knew that, but Shego…
“We can handle it,” Ron announced, standing up and took his place next to Felix. “We can find Norkie. Between the two of us, we'll be able to do it. You go find Shego and hurry back. Besides, until Wade deciphers the clues, we have nothing to do but sit and wait.”
“That's true…” Felix admitted.
Kim flashed them a grateful smile and dashed out the door. Wade's car was waiting for her on the road. By now Kim had grown accustomed to being driven by Wade, but it still frustrated her. She was eighteen, she could drive herself! (1) Kim just sighed and accepted the inevitable. To do anything else would be to break the law and go against her own morals. The other problem with not driving herself was that she had nothing to keep her mind off her missing lover. It was her nature to worry. She was accustomed to being in control and knowing what was going on. Kim bit her lip and clasped her hands in her lap, trying her hardest to not fidget in her seat.
It only took them about a half an hour to reach Lowerton. Kim's green gaze surveyed the surrounding buildings, hoping beyond hope that she would catch a glimpse of Shego. Much to her dismay, the car slowed next to the alley with no trace of the black haired villainess.
Kim thanked Wade and stepped out of the car. Wade grinned and said he'd leave the car there until she was ready to go. A chill ran down Kim's spine as the cool air hit her skin. The only light in the area was directly above her, forming a yellow circle around her. The darkness lay outside the edge of the light ominously lurking, waiting for her to leave her sanctuary. The symbolism wasn't lost on her. Kim shrugged it off and strode confidently into the dark alley.
She pulled out a flashlight from her belt and inspected the ground looking for any clues of a scuffle. Foiled, Kim pressed on, half crawling so she wouldn't miss any signs of life.
Farther up the path Kim got her break. It appeared that a few storage boxes had been stacked next to the back door of a store and were now scattered. They looked as if someone had fallen or ran into the stack. Had it been Shego? Or was it someone else? Kim pulled out her specrometer sunglasses and pushed the button to activate them. Red filled her vision and she scanned the area. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest with glee when she found a small piece of fabric stuck on a splinter of one of the boxes.
“Wade,” she said, flicking the communicator on. “I found something. See if you can tell who it's from.”
“Sure thing,” Wade replied as Kim placed the fabric on the small tray on the communicator. The tray slid back into the communicator and scanned the item. Wade began typing furiously at this keyboard. He nodded once and looked at Kim seriously.
“Drakken.”
Kim's mouth dropped open. “But Drakken went missing almost a year ago! Why would he show up now! It makes no sense,” she said, rubbing her temples and closing her eyes. Her eyes flew open suddenly. “Wait! Does that mean…” Kim stared at Wade on the small screen. Wade sighed.
“…I don't know Kim. Turning back to villainy was always a possibility for Shego. We both knew it,” he told her.
But he was wrong. Kim didn't now. She had never really thought of Shego going back to her old life. Kim had thought she was as happy as she was. Stupid and naive of Kim, but it was true. Why would Shego leave her? Kim felt a ball of ice growing in her stomach. She had been right. They had been growing apart. And Shego had told her everything was all right. She lied to her.
Kim thanked Wade and flicked the communicator off hurriedly, knowing the inevitable was approaching. Kim felt the wet trail as the tears began to fall. She squeezed her eyes shut, feebly attempting to get herself under control.
“Why?” she whispered softly into the darkness, half hoping she would get an answer. Upon hearing nothing, she took a deep, steadying breath and headed back to the car.
1. Rin: Um… I just wanna say that I wrote this back during one of my driver’s ed. Classes…. Frustration… argh…. But it’s all good now :)