“MOMMY! DADDY! GRANDMAMA!”
CRASH!
“HEGO! MEGO! TWINNIES!”
BOOM!
“NO!”
Shego blinked, not recognizing where she was. Then her vision came back completely, and she knew where she was: Go City Hall. She almost forgot why she was there – until she saw that everyone but she and Drakken was moving really, really slow. She looked over at Drakken. He was clutching his head. “Ow…I didn’t realise the transfer to everybody’s memory was going to be that intense.”
“So, we good to go, Dr. D.?”
“Almost, Shego. We just have to properly file the documents, then go pick up McCorkle and Schooley from the assignment that I gave them, and we’ll be on our way.”
Five minutes later, everyone in Go City went about their lives, oblivious that a pale-skinned 18-year old girl with black hair & glasses and a blue-skinned man had ever set foot inside their beloved metropolis.
“Aw, great! Just great! MORE homework!” Kim whined as she met up with Ron after the final class got out for the day. “This is lovely. I’ve got 4 hours of homework in 2 of my classes, 5 hours of homework in my other one – then I’ve got two major projects due by next week in that class and my other one! Ugh, why did I have to sign up for all those Honors and AP classes?”
“Ouch, KP, sounds like you got a heavy load,” said Ron.
“Ya think?” Kim asked as she continued to trying to pick up her backpack, which was stuffed to the brim with books. Three-hundred pound men she could lift and throw like they were paper tops, but put all of one’s textbooks in their backpack… Eventually, she overcame the mass and drug the backpack onto her shoulders – but the weight was so heavy, she had to lean forward to balance herself as she followed Ron. “Oh, I am so buying a rolling backpack this weekend…” she muttered to herself.
“So, we headin’ to Bueno Nacho?” Ron asked.
“Sorry, Ron – I can’t. Got too much on my back. Let’s just get back to my house to study, why don’t we?”
“Ah, s’okay. I’ll just call my man Loter for another special “To Go” order, then.”
“Thanks, Ron,” Kim smiled. That was one benefit of saving the world: The reinstated CEO of Bueno Nacho, so grateful for what Kim and Ron had done, had decided to start having his franchises deliver, starting with a test run in Middleton. At first, only Ron’s orders had been the ones coming in, but that quickly changed, and soon the chain had expanded, delivery offered at every single location worldwide.
“Hey-ey, Steve! It’s Ron! Huh? Yup – Chimereto and a naco for me! What? Uh, yeah, always grande-size it, my man! Why not? I’m buyin… Alright, hold on a sec.” He covered up his cell phone’s mouthpiece with his hand. “Kim, what do you want?”
“The usual, Ron.”
“The usual, Steve. Yep. Yep. Okay, gotcha! See ya’ later, man – huh?” Ron listened carefully to whatever Steve was saying on the other line. “Okay, yyyeah – uh, tell him we know he’s grateful we saved his company, but he can really stop groveling at our feet already… Anyway, Ron out!” Ron hung up. “You know,” he sighed as they came around the corner to Kim’s house, “I’ll never understand CEOs.”
They reached Kim’s house, and she unlocked the door. She turned to Ron as they entered the house. “All this homework, I’ve also got to start organizing the tryouts for Bonnie's replacement…I just don’t think I can take any more distractions this week, R-” Kim froze as she saw her parents carrying a mattress up the stairs. “What's this?”
“Oh, hi there, Kimmie-cub! How was school?” Mr. Possible asked.
“My social life just got so totally obliterated by homework for the week – so, fine,” Kim replied. “May I ask what's with the mattress?”
“Oh, go on with your studying, you two - don't mind us,” Mrs. Possible waved her hand. “We're just tidying up the guest room!”
“O-kay…Why?” asked Kim.
“Hold on there, Kimmie - one more step on your side, Hon - ah, there we go.” Mr. Possible set the mattress down at the top of the stairs, then walked back down to Kim with Mrs. Possible. “Kim, remember when you begged us to sign up as a host family after Ronald went on that exchange program deal?”
“Oh! That - right…” Kim blushed. “Eh-heh, look, that was just-”
“You guys have a guest room? How come I had to sleep on the couch when Cousin Shawn visited?”
“Because we reserve the guest room for only the most special of occasions?” Kim asked, shutting Ron up.
“Well, we got a call from Mr. Barkin today,” Mrs. Possible cut in. “He said that while it's not exactly the exchange program, he had a situation he thought you'd be best equipped to handle.”
Kim blinked. “Come again?”
“Some senior girl at Go City High School is bring transferred to Middelton-”
“-and Barkin wants me to show her around. No big. But why didn’t he just ask me about that at school?” Kim asked.
“Kimmie, let your mother finish explaining this, please.”
“Oh, sorry, Dad. Go on, Mom.”
“Thanks, Kimmie. Ronald? We’re going to have to ask you to wait outside. We promised Barkin we would keep this a private matter between us and Kim.”
“Oh – uh, okay, Mrs. Possible,” Ron said, stepping outside. “I’ll keep watch for the Bueno Nacho guy!”
After he’d shut the door, Mr. Possible turned to Kim. “Kim, this girl – well, she isn’t exactly coming here under joyous circumstances, to put it mildly.”
Kim’s ears perked up. “What do you mean, Dad?”
Mrs. Possible answered that one. “Her parents died when she was very little, and what killed them gave her a rare condition she’ll have to live with for the rest of her life. She was staying in a Foster home in Go City - up until the recent events got her kicked out of it.”
Kim’s ears perked even further up. What in the world? “…Recent events?” she asked.
“Well, she got in a fight – and…” Both Mr. and Mrs. Possible looked down.
“…and what?” Kim queried. “What? What’d she do?”
“It’d probably be best if she told you herself, when she finally feels comfortable doing so.”
What in the hell? “Just what is going on here, Mom?”
“Basically, we agreed to let her stay here temporarily until they find her a more permanent place of housing.”
“Wait – she went to jail for what happened in the fight, didn’t she?” asked Kim.
“Well –” Mr. Possible stuttered.
“Yes, Kimmie – she did,” Mrs. Possible sighed.
“And so they’re shoving her off on us as if I’m the Witness Protection Program, aren’t they? Ugh, why can’t the police just do their job?” Kim
“Actually, they were going to transfer her to another Foster Home – but then Barkin intervened and suggested you would be better off helping her out here. Said you’d dealt with someone else who had her condition many times before.”
“Oh, you mean she’s like one of the kids at that camp for kids with special needs I’ve been a counselor at for the last few summers?”
“Well, we don’t know – Barkin wouldn’t tell us exactly what her condition was. But whatever it is, we’re sure you can handle it.”
Kim shrugged. “As long as it’s not Tourette's. Tim and Jim will be in for it if it’s that. So, what’s her name? Did Barkin at least tell you that much?”
Mrs. Possible looked at Mr. Possible. “Do you remember, honey?”
Mr. Possible racked his brain. “I believe it was…Shannon?”
The doorbell rang. “KP, chow’s here!” Ron’s muffled voice outside came through the walls.
“We’ll talk about this more later tonight, hon, okay?” Mrs. Possible asked.
“Right, mom,” Kim said, as she opened the door for Ron. “By the way - Dad? You don’t happen to still have any of those special rolling backpacks, do you?”
“Goodbye, Shennon – and do remember to actually check in on the times we agreed upon?”
“Ugh, alright – jeezus, Dad…” Shego groaned as she got in the cab headed for the airport. “Okay, yeah – driver? Floor it already.” The driver complied, and soon Shego was off to catch the plane to Middleton.
She adjusted her glasses. She’d never told anyone, but she really only worked for Drakken because – he’d fixed her eyes with one of his inventions. First and only time something he’d made had worked – at least, worked and hadn’t been destroyed by Kim Possible… She looked down and forced herself to stop her nervous knee. Why the hell am I shaking so badly?
After the taxicab disappeared in the distance, Drakken immediately went back inside, picked up the phone, and dialed.
A few seconds later, the person on the other line picked up.
“Hello? Is anyone there? I can't hear over that ruckus in the background. What? It’s Drew. No, seriously.”
END CHAPTER THREE