A jet-plane cut across the sky away from Drakken’s lair and towards Middleton.
“Thanks for the ride,” Chibi-Kim told the pilot.
“Thank Team Possible, they’re the ones who are paying for it.”
Kim opened her mouth to respond to this, but couldn’t think of anything to say.
After a moment, the pilot asked, “By the way, if you don’t mind my asking, what was a little girl like you doing on a secluded and supposedly haunted island?”
“It’s… a long story…”
Sitch Two:
Best Friends Forever…!
The Past:
Four-year-old Kim and Ron stood by a large tree in the preschool playground. Ron picked up the ball Kim had been playing with earlier, and handed it to her.
“Did that one kid have opposable toes?” he asked Kim.
Kim replied, “You’re weird. But I like you.”
“I like you too. You want to be friends?”
“Sure. I’m Kim Possible.”
“I’m Ron Stoppable.”
As they turned to head to another part of the playground, they noticed movement in the parking-lot. There was a pale black-haired girl in a green and black leotard tied up and struggling on the pavement.
Kim and Ron ran over to the fence.
“Are you alright?” Ron called out.
Chibi-Shego turned and stared at the two of them. “Kim? And that must be the Buffoon! Great, just great! Now what do I do?”Hoping to get them to leave her alone, she said with only a slight trace of sarcasm, “Yeah, I’m just practicing escaping from ropes.”
“Oh,” Ron said, and turned to go.
Kim put her hand on his arm to stop him. “Ron, I think she’s making that up. If she was really practicing like she said, why do it in the parking lot? Anyway, even if she is, she should have an adult to watch over her. Let’s go get the teacher.”
Soon, the teacher came out and untied Shego. She then started looking Shego over. “My goodness, you’re all scraped up. What happened to you?”
“I… got in a fight with an older kid,” Shego answered, deciding an edited truth would be easier to come up with than an outright lie.
“Oh, dear. Fighting really isn’t a good way to solve problems, you know.”
“No, but it’s fun.”
The teacher sighed. “I think I’m going to have to have a talk with your parents…”
This comment stung Shego – her parents knew nothing about her being here in the past, and wouldn’t recognize her. Worse yet, in her own time, her parents were dead, killed by the same comet impact that gave her and her brothers their powers.
In a voice that didn’t really say what she felt about it, she announced, “Don’t have any.”
“Oh… I’m sorry to hear that. What about your guardian, then?”
“Don’t need one. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have things to do.” She started to walk away, but the teacher stopped her.
“Hold on. At least let me treat your injuries.”
Shego sighed. “Fine, whatever.”
The teacher led Shego inside, both of them ignoring the eyes of much of the class following them.
A few minutes later, the teacher had convinced Shego to take off her tattered and dirty jumpsuit so the teacher could get at the injuries underneath it.
As she worked, the teacher asked, “So, if you have no parents or guardian, where do you live?”
“I—“ It was only at this point that Shego realized she had no place to stay. She couldn’t go to her family in Go City, and Drakken wouldn’t be building his first lair, or recruiting henchmen, for several years yet. She couldn’t even rent an apartment, as she little money on her and couldn’t rely on her thieving skills until she’d adjusted to her new body…
“You don’t have a home, do you?” the teacher said in a sad yet kind tone.
“…No…”
“Don’t worry, I’ll help you find a place to stay and someone to take care of you.”
“What? You don’t need to do that! I can take care of myself!”
The teacher raised an eyebrow. “Maybe, but you shouldn’t have to. That’s a job for grownups.”
“But…” Shego trailed off, realizing there was nothing she could say to convince the teacher that she wasn’t really a four-year-old.
Shego sighed to herself. “Oh well. If someone wants to pay for my food and housing while I get on my feet, who am I to argue?”
The Present:
In Middleton, a black-haired teenaged girl was lying on her bed in only her black lace lingerie, reading a fashion magazine by the light of one glowing green hand.
When her cell-phone played a tune similar to the Kimmunicator’s tune, but slightly darker, she dropped the magazine and put the phone to her ear.
“Yo,” the teen greeted.
On the other end, teen-Kim’s voice said, “Shego, Ron, I just heard from Wade. Seems he just had to send out a jet to pick up – get this – another me!”
“Another you?” both Shego and Ron (who's phone was also linked in to Kim's Kimmunicator) said.
“That’s what he said. Apparently she’s a time-traveler from an alternate time-line, and she just got back from the past.”
Shego’s eyes widened. “Are you saying she’s the Kim from my history!”
“Got me. Sounds like it could be, though.”
“Cool,” Ron commented.
“Well, shoot,” Shego said with a smile. “Bout time. Maybe we’ll finally find out why she abandoned me in the past, eh?”
“Wade said her ‘Chronal Manipulator’ – her time machine, I guess – was broken in the fight with her Monkey Fist and Killagain.”
Shego whistled. “That’d do it.”
“Anyway, she needs a place to crash, so she’ll be dropping by my place in an hour or two.”
Ron asked, “Aww, why isn't she crashing at my place?”
Kim answered, “Because my house is her house too?”
“Oh, right.”
Shego commented, “It's going to be strange – two Kims under the same roof? You’ll be giving the Tweebs a run for their money!”
“Maybe not…” Kim argued. “You remember your Drakken’s Juvenator?”
“How can I not? I’m still recovering from its’ affects, after all.”
“Well, you’re not alone – Wade said the other Kim was hit by it too!”
“You’re kidding!”
“Shego, I’m hurt! Me, kidding?” Kim said in a teasing voice.
Ron intoned in a dramatically low voice, “KP does not kid.”
Shego said with a smile, “Suuure she doesn’t.”
Kim spoke up. “Anyway, this is the real deal. Wade sent me a picture – she doesn’t look a day over five, if that!”
“No shit! This I’ve gotta see. I’ll be over there in ten.” Shego got up and pulled out a green blouse and black pants.
“Wish I could,” Ron said, “but my parents don't allow me out after ten unless it's a mission.”
Shego suggested, “You could tell them it was – I mean, it is, after a fashion.”
“Nah, too much like lying. And unlike you two, I do not lie to my parents.”
“We know, we know,” Shego assured him.
Kim said, “Shego, you don’t have to come tonight. I know it’s past your curfew, too, and she’ll still be here in the morning.”
“Gesundheit.”
“Shego,” Kim scolded.
“Anyway, did it occur to you this might be a trap?” Shego said as she pulled on her clothes one-handed. “Just because she says she’s you--”
“Wade said she has my DNA,” Kim interrupted.
“A clone then.”
“I can handle myself. And Ron and Rufus are right next door if I need backup.”
Ron chimed in, “That's right, KP, we got 'cho back.” In the background, Rufus added, “Boo-ya!”
Shego argued, “Look, if this is the Kim I knew in my history, it’s been years since I’ve seen her. I’m not waiting for morning.” Shego pulled on her boots and headed out of her room by way of the window.
Kim sighed. “Fine. Just don’t go picking any fights with her – the last thing I need is my parents being woken up at one in the morning by the house falling down around them.”
Shego unlocked the door to her green sports-car and got in. “Hey, tell her that – she was the one who usually started our fights.”
“Just like the trouble we get in is always my fault?”
“I just tell it like it is.” Shego started her car.
“Suuure you do. Anyway, I’ll see you in a bit.”
“Right. Later,” Shego said, closing her phone and slipping it into her pocket.
She had just put the car in gear when her foster-mother came out of the house, shouting, “Where do you think you’re going!”
Ignoring her, Shego pulled out and headed for the Possible household.
The Past:
“An orphanage?” Shego wondered.
“Only until a family chooses to take you home,” the Childcare Worker who'd taken on her case said.
“Right. Like anybody would want a green freak like me,” Shego said sourly, remembering when she and her siblings had been in the orphanage after the comet struck.
“You can't give up hope. Surely there's someone out there who'd like a nice girl like you,” the worker said, her adult-to-child voice masking whatever the worker might really think.
“If you think I'm nice…” Shego said with an sarcastic tone of voice and a mildly amused half-smile.
The Present:
The Jet-Plane took Chibi-Kim to the Middleton Airport, where a taxi was waiting for her.
A few minutes later, the taxi pulled up in front of the Possible house, and Kim got out. “Thanks for the ride,” she said politely.
“You're welcome,” the driver simply said, and drove off as soon as Kim had closed the car door.
“Well, time to see what we're dealing with…” Kim thought as she walked toward the front door. Before she reached it, it opened, and a red-headed teenage girl stepped out.
Chibi-Kim stared. It was like looking in a mirror, or would have been if Chibi-Kim hadn't been juvenated.
Teen-Kim stepped aside, and a black-haired teenage girl followed her out. “Shego?” Chibi-Kim asked in shock. She looked much younger than the Shego Chibi-Kim was used to fighting, and was wearing relatively ordinary clothes, rather than her trademark jumpsuit.
“Hello, Kimmie. Long time no see,” Shego said in a quite voice with only a trace of teasing and humor. “You're looking young these days, aren't you?”
“You're the Shego I left in the past,” Chibi-Kim realized.
“Bingo.”
“Then you're responsible for corrupting this time-line's me,” Chibi-Kim accused, scowling.
“Corrupting?” Teen-Kim asked, while Shego quietly closed the door behind them.
Kim said accusingly, “Wade told me you're a thief.”
“What! What game's he playing? We're not thieves! Team Possible saves the world!” Teen-Kim said indignantly.
“Yeah, for a price. But that's not what I'm talking about. He said you, personally, had stolen things!”
“Well… yeah. Who hasn't stolen at least a few thing in their life?” Teen-Kim asked philosophically.
“I haven't!” Chibi-Kim said.
Shego smirked as she said to Teen-Kim. “Your mother was right when she said I was a bad influence on you. …I told you your other-self was a goody-two-shoes.”
Teen-Kim scowled at Shego. “No, you didn't!”
“I didn't? Must have slipped my mind.”
Teen-Kim shook her head. “…How did Wade find out, anyway, I wonder?”
Shego shrugged. “He's Wade.”
Chibi-Kim put her hand to her head. “This is so wrong.”
Shego turned to Chibi-Kim. “Hey, you brought it on yourself by leaving me in the past.”
“I was going to come back for you, but I couldn't let Drakken and the others get away with the Time Monkey, could I?”
“But you did let them get away, didn't you? And neither you nor them chose to come get me. So I had every right to make a new history for myself,” Shego said with a bit of resentment.
“Look,” Chibi-Kim said, “I don't know if Wade told you, but my Chronal-Manipulator got broken. So the only way I can get back in time to get you is to get my hands on the Time Monkey. Oh, wait,” she added, getting angry, “that's right – you tossed its' head into the ocean!”
Shego got a bit angry as well. “I just told Kim that it was too dangerous to leave lying around where villains could go after it again, and I wasn't sure if it would be safe to destroy it. She's the one who threw it in the ocean.”
Teen-Kim added, “And I don't regret it, either. Time-travel is too dangerous a thing for people to be messing around with.”
Chibi-Kim protested, “But, I can't set history right, or stop Drakken, if I can't travel through time.”
Shego held up her hand. “Well, I can get one thing off your mind, then. The time-traveling versions of Drakken, Monkey Fist, and Killagain attacked us when we were on our first mission. Fist brought a giant stone gorilla with them, which made things a little tough, but between my powers and Ron's activating the laser defense system, we were able to beat it. After that, it didn't take long to force the three stooges to surrender.”
Teen-Kim added, “Of course, they talked about how Shego was 'betraying' them, but really, what did they expect after leaving her to rot in the past for seven or eight years? Anyway, that was when Shego had to explain to me about the Tempus Simia and the Juvenator. I admit I felt a little betrayed myself to find out she'd been lying to me all those years, but she did choose to stick with me and Ron in the end, and that counts for a lot.”
Chibi-Kim scowled. “It didn't occur to you she might be using you? And if you really beat those three, what happened to their version of the Tempus Simia?”
Shego said. “I took it back apart, and hid the pieces. They're not as inaccessible as the head Kim sent to the bottom of the sea, but I don't think anyone but me can find them – and I have no intention of using them.”
Chibi-Kim was confused. “You don't? I would have expected you to go back in time and rescue yourself. Either that or set things up to make yourself rich…”
“That occurred to me… So did conquering the world, for that matter. But the fact of the matter is, I like this time-line better than the last, and if I want to be rich or rule the world, I don't need time-travel to do it.”
“I just bet you like this time-line better – no Team Possible to get in your way!”
Teen-Kim spoke up. “Hey, just because she's part of the team doesn't mean the rest of us wouldn't try to stop her if she started hurting people or tried to take over the world.”
Shego smiled and said, “As if any of you could,” even as Chibi-Kim shot back at Teen-Kim, “Yeah, that means a lot coming from you!”
Teen-Kim protested. “Hey, I just did a little shoplifting, and a few thefts from rich criminals. Nothing that does anyone any harm!”
“That's not the point! If you think one crime is okay, then why not another? How do you draw the line?”
Shego pointed out, “Hey, vigilantism is on the murky side of the law, too. Technically the ones hunting down and capturing criminals are supposed to be the police and other law-enforcement agencies. I bet if you weren't a kid and so good at making yourself the media's darling, the feds would have forced you to stop or join GJ long ago.”
Chibi-Kim was taken aback by this. “I-I just do the right thing…”
“That don't make it legal. How many private buildings have you broken into because someone you called a 'villain' lived there? Even if they were a convicted criminal, that's breaking and entering, and any evidence found in the process inadmissible at court because you had no warrant. And, hell, don't tell me you didn't ever get sued for unnecessary roughness when taking down some villain.”
“Not that I'm aware of,” Chibi-Kim said uncertainly.
“Then you were being kept in the dark, 'cause I know Dr. D sued you at least once or twice.”
Quite disturbed by this, Chibi-Kim shook her head and waved it aside. “Anyway, all I was trying to say is I don't trust you. Either of you,” she added, glancing over at her other self.
Shego nodded. “Fair enough,” she said, then crossed her arms. “Look, I'm still a little pissed at you for not coming back for me, but seeing as how it's not your fault, you got zapped by the Juvenator too, and I don't want you to go back and change history by grabbing my past self, I'm willing to call it even.”
“So I take it you're not going to hand over your version of the Tempus Simia so I can go return your past self to the present?”
Shego clapped her hands. “Hey, you're pretty smart, for a toddler!”
Chibi-Kim scowled, then said, “Speaking of which, what ever happened to Drakken's Juvenator?”
Shego shrugged. “Confiscated by the police? Got me.”
Chibi-Kim sighed. “Well… maybe Wade can find some sign of it.”
“Why not just grow up again, like I did? You'd be surprised how fun it can be to be a kid again.”
Teen-Kim raised an eyebrow. “You didn't seem to think so back when we first met in pre-school.”
Shego shrugged. “What can I say? Making a few friends helped.”
The Past:
“Class, today we have a new student,” the teacher at Kim and Ron's preschool said a few days later. Standing next to her in a plain green blouse and skirt was a black-haired girl.
“Hey, it's that same girl from the other day!” Ron said to Kim.
The teacher told Shego, “Please introduce yourself.”
Shego looked a little embarrassed. Holding up her hand for a slight wave, she said, “Uh, hi. I'm Shego.” Feeling she needed to add to this, she held her fingers in a claw-like position and examined them. “I don't like people much, so don't bug me, and I won't bother you.”
The teacher scolded quietly, “Shego, that wasn't very nice.”
“Neither am I.”
The Present:
“Well, I'd better get home before Gail bursts a blood-vessel,” Shego said, walking toward her car. “I'll see you tomorrow morning, KP!” She hopped in the car and closed the door behind her.
As Shego started the car, Chibi-Kim asked, “KP?”
Teen-Kim explained, “It's something she and Ron started calling me not long after we met.”
“Ron's always called me that, but I never expected to hear that from Shego's lips.”
Teen-Kim shrugged.
“And who's 'Gail'?”
“Abigail Anderson – Shego's foster mom. A bit rough around the edges, and I get the feeling doesn't love Shego so much as she tolerates her, but she's been able to handle living with Shego for several years now, which is a lot more than any of her previous foster parents.”
“Why does she even need foster-parents? She's an adult!”
“Not to anybody who looks at her.” She glanced at Chibi-Kim. “Or do you expect to jump right back into your old life looking like that?”
“Er… well I hadn't really thought about it yet. I suppose a four-foot-tall cheerleader wouldn't work very well…”
“Cheerleader? You're a cheerleader!”
“Of course! Aren't you?”
“No way! Why would I want to stand on the sidelines rooting for the guys? If I'm going to be involved in a sport, I'm going to play it!”
“Well, cheerleading is sort-of a sport in-and-of itself…” Chibi-Kim said, defending her chief non-heroic pastime.
“Right. Keep telling yourself that, if it helps you keep your self respect,” Teen-Kim said in a sarcastic tone that reminded Chibi-Kim of Shego, as she walked to the door. “Well, come on in. Lets get a look at those injuries of yours, then find a place for you to sleep for the night.”
“What about Mom and Dad?” Chibi-Kim asked, as they stepped inside.
“What about them?”
“Shouldn't we tell them about all this?”
“In the middle of the night? It can wait for morning.”
“I suppose…”
The two Kims headed for the bathroom, where they had the proper supplies to patch Chibi-Kim up.
The Past:
Shego was sitting in a corner, bored out of her skull. “I should have skipped class. It's not like I'm going to learn anything new in preschool. But that dang social worker stuck to me like glue – it looks like if I'm going to get free room and board, I'll need to play along with the whole 'little kid' thing for a while…” She took out a nail-file and started filing her nails.
“Maybe I should start thinking about how a toddler could get by on her own. I'm sure I could steal things just fine – if anything, this body will deflect suspicion and give me greater forgiveness if I am caught. But no one would rent an apartment to a kid… A lot of stores probably wouldn't sell to me, either…
“Damn – unless I can think of something creative, I might have to stick with the government-sponsored child-care bumbling until my body's a bit older…”
“So, can you teach me to be an escape artist, too?”
Shego looked up, startled, to see Ron there. “What?”
“You said you were learning how to escape from ropes the other day. I want to learn too!”
“Uh, in case you didn't notice, I didn't exactly succeed in escaping on my own.”
“So, we can learn together.”
“Why would I want to learn with you?”
“I… I don't know. I just thought it might be fun…”
“Well, it doesn't sound fun to me,” Shego said grumpily.
“Is there anything else you want to do? I mean, you looked kind of lonely sitting all alone over here…”
“I like being alone. It keeps people from annoying me.”
“Oh. Well, if you decide you want to do something, me and Kim would be happy to play with you.” He started to walk away.
“Whatever yousay… buffoon,” Shego said, returning her attention to her nails.
Ron stopped. “Huh? My name's not 'Buffoon,' it's Ron.”
Shego sighed. “Whatever you say, Ron.”
The Present:
“There, all done,” Teen-Kim announced, securing the last bandage.
“I could have done that myself,” Chibi-Kim pointed out.
“Sorry… it's hard to think of you as being as old as me, especially now that we have good lighting…”
Chibi-Kim sighed. “It's okay. Let's just head to bed. It's been a long day.”
“Yeah, I suppose it was, for you.”
As they walked into Kim's room, Chibi-Kim added, “To top it all off, I think I'm suffering from temporal jet-lag.”
“Ooh, nasty,” Teen-Kim agreed.
Teen-Kim closed the door behind them, turned on a light, and started digging through her closet. Chibi-Kim looked around the room. It was the same room within the house as her room had been, and there were many similarities, such as the placement of the bed, the coloring of the walls,and even her pandaroo. However, there was an absence of boy-band posters, and instead of pictures of her and Ron, there were pictures of her, Ron, and Shego.
“It's like returning to a place after being away for years. It's still the same place, but at the same time, it's so different…” Chibi-Kim noted.
“Hmm…” Teen-Kim tossed a sleeping bag on the floor. “You want the bed or the floor?” she asked.
“Well… it is your room,” Chibi-Kim said hesitantly.
“Which makes you a guest, so I have to offer you the bed,” Teen-Kim said with an overly cheerful smile, just before she pulled off her shirt and tossed it in the general direction of the hamper.
Trying to ignore how her “older”-self's attitude was grating on her nerves, Chibi-Kim said, “No, you take the bed. Waking up in this room is going to be strange enough. Let's not confuse me by having me wake up in the right bed in the wrong time-line…”
“Suit yourself,” Teen-Kim said, taking off her shoes and socks, followed by her pants. She tossed the pants and socks toward the hamper, then climbed into bed.
“Aren't you going to put on some pajamas?” Chibi-Kim asked, as she took off her own shoes and socks.
“Why? I'll only have to take them off again in the morning, and it's not like anyone's going to see me like this besides you. Besides, it's more comfortable sleeping in the nude or near-nude.”
Chibi-Kim stared up at Teen-Kim. Deciding not to dwell on who Teen-Kim had probably got the idea from, Chibi-Kim said, “What about the Tweebs?”
“Jim and Tim? Ah, don't worry about them. They know better than to sneak into my room.”
Chibi-Kim also decided not to ask what it took to convince them of that, and straightened out the sleeping bag. As she climbed into it, she had to wonder if she would ever get used to this new time-line. She could only hope she didn't have to. Rufus 3000 could still appear any time, and if not, maybe she could find Shego's Time Monkey. Somehow or other, she had to return things to normal!
The Past:
“Hey!” Shego said loudly and angrily, turning to shake her fist at the kid who had spilled his water all over Shego.
The boy backed away, eyes wide. “I'm sorry, I didn't mean to!” the boy said fearfully and apologetically.
“Yeah, whatever, go away,” Shego said, shewing him away.
Another boy laughed. “Maybe she should be watered from time-to-time! She's green, so she's gotta be part plant.” Several other student laughed.
Shego clenched her teeth and her fists, but forced herself not to light up her hands.
Just as she was contemplating how to best get back at the other kids, without permanently harming them, Kim spoke up. “It's not nice to make fun of someone because of the color of their skin!”
More out of fear than remorse, the kid stammered, “I'm sorry. I won't do it again!” He then moved away to try hiding amongst the other kids.
Shego stood there, stunned. She'd never expected to have Kim Possible stand up for her!
Kim asked, “Are you all right?”
Shego blinked, then looked at her. “Of course I am. He never even touched me.”
Ron, who had came over as well, said sagely, “Words can hurt, too.”
Pushing away the memories of Drakken saying things to the same effect, she said, “Well, people have called me worse before. Done worse things than spill water on me, too.”
Kim said, “That's too bad. Maybe you should stand up to them?”
Ron nodded, and said, “Those kids that were picking on me and Kim haven't been back since Kim stood up to them. You know, the blue guy, the guy with the monkey feet, and the boy in the skirt.”
Shego smiled wryly. “Blue-boy, Skirt-boy, and Monkey Feet! I like that!” She chuckled. “I'll have to call them that the next time I see them. Yeah, I saw them run off the playground the first day. I always knew Blue-boy was a wimp, but I never suspected they were all such big wimps.”
Ron asked, “They gave you trouble before, too?”
“Er… A little bit.” Not quite sure why she was telling them this, she none-the-less continued, “I thought they were my friends… Or Blue-boy, at least… But when we got in trouble this last time, they abandoned me! And even before that they weren't treating me as nice as they used to…”
Kim and Ron looked at each-other. Kim asked her, “What did you get in trouble for doing?”
“Er…” Shego paused, realizing it wouldn't be easy to come up with a version of the truth that would explain this one. “It's kind of hard to explain.”
Ron asked, “Why's it hard to explain?”
“Well, Doctor D – that is, Blue-boy – he comes up with these really complicated plans, and a lot of it is really strange – I don't think you'd believe me if I did tell you.”
“Plans for what?” Kim asked.
“Oh, you know, Global Domination, that sort of thing,” Shego said without thinking. Then her eyes widened, as she realized what she'd said.
Ron said, “Oh! I get it! You were playing, and you got so enthused you broke the rules. …You really should be more careful.”
“Uh… yeah,” Shego said, relieved that they'd came up with an explanation for her.
Kim said, “So anyway, about those bullies, you won't let them tease you any more, will you?”
“I never do! It's just that whenever I try to teach someone a lesson, I'm the one who gets in trouble for it!” she said, letting loose resentment she still held from her days in school and on Team Go.
“Maybe you need to explain that they started it?” Kim offered.
“It never matters. I'm not supposed to fight at all, unless I'm defending someone – and then I can't really hurt them, no matter how much they hurt me or anybody else! It makes me so frustrated. That's why I joined up with Blue-boy. I figured, if I was going to get in trouble anyway, I might as well have fun getting in trouble.”
Ron said, “Uh, huh. I think I see the problem here. Fighting to defend yourself or someone else is good. But fighting to hurt someone is bad. So is doing things to get in trouble on purpose.”
Shego crossed her arms. “Well, maybe I like being bad.”
“Do you?” Kim asked.
Ron said, “It certainly didn't win her any friends. Let's go, Kim. If she likes to hurt people, I don't want to be around her.”
Kim looked uncertain, but when Shego said nothing and looked away, Kim nodded, and the two started walking off.
Feeling like she was letting something important go, Shego called out, “Wait!” But when they turned to her, she didn't know what to say. “Never mind.” Silently, she walked off to a corner of the room.
Kim and Ron looked at each other for a few moments, then Kim said, “Maybe she just needs some real friends.”
Ron scratched his head and said, “I don't know about this,” but he followed Kim over.
Shego scowled at them as they came closer. “What do you want?”
Despite the tone Shego had used, Kim gave her best smile. “If you promise not to try to hurt people anymore, we could be friends. I'm Kim Possible.”
Ron said, nervously, “I'm Ron Stoppable.”
Shego sat there, looking at them expressionlessly for a little while. Finally, she said, “I actually never really liked hurting people, I just didn't know what to do with my anger…”
Kim burst into a grin.
Ron said, trying to be helpful, “Maybe you should get an adult to take you to Anger Management classes?”
Kim shot him a puzzled look.
“What?” he asked.
Turning back to Shego, Kim said, “We'll help you find other things to do when you're angry. Maybe you could build a block tower or a sand castle, then knock it down?”
Ron said, “Hey, I think I saw that on an episode of 'Mr. Rogers'!”
Kim giggled nervously. “I guess I can't take credit for the idea, then, huh?”
Shego found herself smiling, though she didn't know why. The idea was childish, of course – but Kim was well meaning, and, well… Who knows…?
“Okay, I'll try it. Having someone to hang out with will make things less boring, if nothing else. But before we can be friends, I have to show you something.”
“What?”
“Can you keep a secret? I don't want anyone else to know about this right now.”
Kim nodded, but Ron said, “I'm not allowed to keep secrets from my parents. I can keep it a secret from the other kids, though – whatever it is.”
Shego asked, “But if you don't tell your parents about it, how will they know you're breaking the rules?”
Ron said mysteriously, “Parents have their ways…”
Shego shook her head. “Actually, you can tell anyone you like – but if you do, I'll just say we were pretending, and you'll look silly.”
While Ron thought about that, Kim said, “So, what is it?”
“Come over here.” Shego had them huddle in the corner with her, the backs of the three blocking the view of anyone looking in their direction. Then, she lit up her hands.
“Wow! You have super powers!” Ron said, a little louder than keeping it a secret would suggest.
Kim and Shego scowled at him, and blushing, he looked over his shoulder and told the class, “Heh, heh, just pretending, of course.” Everyone rolled their eyes, smiled, or scowled at the interruption, then went back to what they were doing.
Kim asked Shego, “How do you do that?”
Shego shrugged. “I don't know. It's just something I've been able to do… Ever since that comet hit me and my brothers' tree house…”
Ron wondered, “Was it a magic comet?”
“I guess. It turned me green and gave me the ability to make plasma.” She let the glow die out.
Ron said, “Maybe it was sent by God or some powerful alien so you could use your powers to fight against evil!”
Shego scowled at him and said darkly, “If it was sent by someone with good intentions, they did a lousy job.”
“Why do you say that?”
“That same comet killed my parents.”
Kim and Ron's eyes widened, and Ron said, “I didn't know. I'm sorry.”
Kim put her hand on Shego's shoulder comfortingly, “That must have been horrible.”
“I-I've gotten over it,” Shego said, though to her surprise she felt tears threatening. “Damn child-body,”she thought, “Didn't know it would be more emotional!”
“You don't sound like it,” Ron said, putting his hand on her other shoulder.
Quietly, Kim asked, “You said you had brothers. Were they killed too?”
“No, but we argued, and I ran away.” Shego wiped her eyes, trying to get a hold of herself. “I'm a nearly unbeatable mercenary, and an international criminal - not a toddler! I put all this behind me years ago! So, why is talking about it now hurting so much? …But then, this is the first time I've ever really talked about it, if you don't count my arguments with Hego…”
Kim suggested, “Maybe you should go back to them? Being with the rest of your family would probably help.”
“I… Even if I wanted to, I couldn't.”
“Why not?”
“It… It's hard to explain. I… I just don't know how to get back there anymore…”
“Maybe if you told an adult, they could help?”
“No… they wouldn't understand, wouldn't know how to get me home. The only ones that do are Blue-boy and his friends, and they abandoned me…” And as she said that, Shego realized that no matter what happened, she would never work for Drakken (or Monkey Fist or Killagain) again. And anyone who could have came back to get her and didn't better have a good excuse, or there was going to be a reckoning…
Kim moved in and gave Shego a half hug, and Ron imitated her a moment later. Kim said, “That's terrible. No wonder you were so angry! Don't worry, though, we're your friends, now, and we won't let anything else happen to you!”
Shego looked up at Kim and started to smile a little. Even though it was the promise of a four-year-old, it somehow made her feel better. “And you can do anything, right?” Shego asked half-jokingly, not realizing that it would have taken years for Kim to come up with that slogan on her own.
Kim blushed, and said, “Well, my dad does always say, 'Anything's possible for a Possible!'”
Shego and Ron smiled, and Shego pulled out of the little huddle they'd formed.
“Come on,” Shego said, “let's get out of this corner and go do something. You mentioned something about building a tower and knocking it down again?”
Kim, remembering her earlier suggestion, said, “Oh, right! This way!” And she ran off towards the blocks, followed by Ron and Shego.
Next: Parents