Shego looked over the titles in her impressive music collection, trying to decide what to take on her trip to see her parents. How in the world had she ever fallen in love with Kim? She was both excited and frightened at the prospect of seeing her parents again. What would she say to them? How would they react to the news about her and Kim? Only for Kim would be she put herself through something like this. And she had turned herself in, that scared her more than anything else, could she live with the decision of the court or would she go back on the run if she didn't like the verdict? She had no idea how she might be feeling on the drive, so she chose a wide selection of music for any possible moods. After putting the bag of CDs in the backseat of Kim's Bug she drove to the home of Alice Armstrong.
The judge answered the door herself, looking very un-judgelike in old blue jeans and a sweatshirt. “C'mon in, kid,” she invited. “ROBERTA! We got company!”
While the judge was short and wide, with a face that would not have been out of place on a troll in The Lord of the Rings, her partner was taller and bore a certain air of elegance in white slacks, a pink blouse, and pearls.
“Alice is poor at making introductions,” Roberta apologized, extending a warm hand to Shego. “What is your name?”
“Which one?”
“Whichever one you want to give me will be fine.”
“Well, I guess I'm going to keep wearing Shego, at least through the trial.”
“That's fine, dear. Would you like a cup of tea or hot chocolate? I try to keep her,” Roberta nodded towards Alice, “sober as a judge here at home.”
“I keep telling her 'sober as a judge' is a euphemism for 'three sheets to the wind' but she won't believe me,” Alice remarked.
“Tea would be fine, thank you.”
Alice and Shego sat in the living room. Roberta brought in tea, and then left as the two talked business.
“Okay, Shego, what's going on?”
“Well, I really don't know what to expect. I've been pretty good at breaking out of jail before trial. I was convicted in Canada this summer and spent some time in prison. I don't want to be on the run anymore. But the only way that looks possible is to turn myself in and try and start over.”
“You just don't want to be on the run, or is there another reason? One with red hair?”
“Okay, she's a big part of this.”
“You really want to know what I think about your chances?”
“Please?”
“Okay, Shego, but I'll be upfront and warn you this is a commercial for my law firm. I've seen men I felt sure were guilty of murder walk out of my courtroom as free men. I've heard of people with a handful of bad checks getting fifty year sentences. We've got a good system in some ways, but the truth is that you get the level of justice you pay for. The more you can spend the lighter your sentence, as a general rule.
“The DA's office wants to put you away for as long as possible. You're a high profile criminal and it makes them look good to obtain a lengthy sentence. I'm not sure exactly what crimes you're going to be charged with. It sounded like most of the crimes they were planning to charge you with were non-violent. That’s a good start. You turned yourself in, and the head of Global Justice seems to be on your side. Those are in your favor too. You may have some more factors in your favor also, but you will need a really good lawyer to present your case as strongly as possible.”
“And this is where you tell me to hire someone from your firm?”
“Exactly. We're expensive, but we're worth it. I'd rank Adam Zinski in the top ten litigators in the state. And we're a large firm, with enough support staff to make sure everything possible is done. You're welcome to shop around, but ask people about our reputation and you'll use us.”
“I'll probably do that. I'm going on a trip with Kim to see family. I'll think about it and call your office when I get back. That's the number on the front of your card, right?”
“Let me check which card I gave you. I've got judge cards, lawyer cards, faculty cards, and all the above cards.” Alice glanced at the card, “Yeah, that's the right one.”
“I had a couple more general questions also, Your Honor, if that would be okay.”
“That'll be fine. Are they business related?”
“No.”
“Then can I call Roberta in for the conversation?”
“That would be fine.”
Roberta refilled teacups and the three chatted for about twenty minutes before the topic on Shego's mind came up in response to a question by the judge's partner.
“What are you planning to do with your life?” Roberta asked.
“Well, I want to finish my BA. Kim is in school now--”
Alice interrupted to explain to Roberta, “That's Kim Possible.”
Roberta raised her eyebrows in surprise at the news.
Shego continued, “and it would be nice if I could take some classes with her.”
“Then what?” Alice asked.
“I'm really not sure. Actually, I had this really odd idea after talking with you the other day. Do you think it would be possible for me to get into law school?”
“Are you serious?”
“I don't know if I'm serious. There is no point in being serious if it isn't possible. Should I be taking classes in pre-law or something?”
“There is no pre-law program,” the judge told her. “The law school will look at your grades, it will consider other aspects of your life, and it will look at how you do on the LSAT -- that's a standard test almost all law schools in the country will require. How are your grades?”
“Pretty good actually.”
“That's in your favor. Your life is a bit unusual, it's hard to tell how that will effect your admission, but I know one member of the faculty board that evaluates applicants will be pulling for you.”
“Really? Who?”
“Me. I work hard on getting more diversity in the student body than just the sons of white lawyers. Stilson will object to your application, but no one pays much attention to him anymore. Good lawyer, but a walking argument against tenure. I can't guarantee you acceptance, you have to have good grades and a high LSAT score. But if you have those I can guarantee you receive real consideration. Even if you don't get into Middleton there are other schools you could apply to.”
“Yeah, but I'd like to stay here in Middleton while Kim works on her degree.”
“Get into a program to finish your Bachelors, take the LSAT -- it will be offered again in February--”
“February! How am I supposed to learn enough law to take it in a month?”
“It doesn't test your legal knowledge. It's more on reading skills and logic. We'll teach you the law in law school. I think they have a practice test on line. Check it out.”
Shego had hoped to check out Middleton U that afternoon also, but by the time she left the judge's house realized she would not have time. She was feeling a sense of vague panic at the idea of seeing her parents again. Maybe she could talk Kim into postponing the trip until after she had gotten enrolled.