Kim Possible Fan Fiction ❯ Contested Intentions ❯ Closing ( Chapter 5 )

[ T - Teen: Not suitable for readers under 13 ]

More than a month after the incident at the Andes Research Compound, Kimberly Anne Possible was walking the streets of Middleton late at night, fresh from a party she hadn't had the heart to stay at any longer. It was a chilly night, only made more so by her typical attire of a midriff-less tee, a pair of jeans and no coat, but that was a minor inconvenience for the “girl who could do anything.” The cold was nothing compared to the lifeless feeling that had consumed her ever since that day. As she walked, she pulled her arms tight around herself, trying to ward off a measure of the night's icy bite, as well as the empty feeling inside, imagining that the arms were not her own, but rather . . . the sound of a glass bottle falling and breaking on the pavement shattered Kim's forlorn reverie, putting her instantly on full alert, body falling into combat stance and eyes glancing about warily for any sign of a foe. As the silence of the Middleton night set in once again, though, Kim eventually concluded that it must have been the wind that caused the startling sound, and continued on.

And, hidden in the shadows of a nearby alley, Shego let a small sigh of relief slip from between her lips. Before that moment, she had been silently berating herself for the foolishness of staring at Kimmie's backside for a little bit too long, causing her to miss the trash can she had almost walked right into. Even noticing it at the last moment, she couldn't avoid knocking the bottle from the top of its garbage pile, thus necessitating her concealment of herself. Now, though, it was more important for Shego to get back on her trail. So, with just a little trepidation, she took to the roof tops of the houses crowding the small residential district, fearing that Kim might see her if she was out in the open like that. But the likelihood of that occurring was slim, it was a cloudy, moonless night and she'd also taken the precaution of wearing a heavy, dark trench coat over her suit, its bright colors far too conspicuous to be worn openly.

Obviously, she didn't want to be seen by Kim, but that was for a very specific reason. Watching her as she continued along the sidewalk, having moved to the other side of the street as a precaution, Shego wanted to know, to be sure of her feelings. She wanted to believe, so very desperately, that the words Kim had been about to say back at that facility were,

“Shego, I love you.” Her heart, her soul, if that was what it should be called, told her it was so, with great, almost scathing conviction.

But even as Shego was one to often go with her “gut” feelings on a situation, she was also a very logical, realistic person. And, as all logic, probability, realism stood arrayed against the possibility of Kim Possible being gay and actually loving her arch-nemesis, much less allowing herself to, Shego was left between a very large rock, and a very hard place. Hence the tailing of the younger woman, seeking to ascertain whether or not Kim appeared similarly torn and heartbroken. Or; as Shego's more pessimistic side taunted; Kimmie even remembered her at all, after being rid of her for a month.

Kim certainly did remember Shego, since she was the only thing that the heroine had been able to think on for any length of time ever since that mission. It troubled her deeply, as she fought with her own doubts, though they were of a different sort. She knew, even in her own foolish mind, that Shego loved her, that much had become plainly apparent at that facility. She instead feared that she would never see the older woman again, would never actually get the chance to confess her own feelings for a myriad of reasons, including the possibility that Shego had taken her life after what happened. The young women with the mane of fiery-orange hair smiled bitterly as that thought crossed her mind, knowing how utterly absurd it was to think that she actually mattered that much to the criminal. But the possibility was still there, and that was the problem with the brain: when left to its own devices, all it can do is calculate probability of events and examine situational scenarios, making even the most improbable and disturbing crisis seem completely likely, even inevitable. The pain of this knowledge showed through in Kim's viridian orbs, as their lids slipped closed just slightly to try and stop the tears that always came at the macabre images brought to mind by the thought of Shego committing suicide.

And that fact was not lost on Shego, crouching catlike at the edge of the nearest rooftop. For the briefest time, her own mind tried to rationalize away Kim's behavior, suggesting that she could have been hurt at the party by some poseur who turned out to be far less than she had previously thought. It was at that point that the three aspects of Shego's being met in a purely metaphysical setting, wherein her soul and body promptly bitch-slapped her mind into submission, telling it to go consider what kind of sandwich they'd like to have later, while they took care of Shego and Kim's relationship. Thus, as her normal self-assuredness returned to her in a wave of warmth, Shego smirked mischievously and continued to keep pace with the young woman as she walked on.

Meanwhile, Kim had decided that she was going to walk on a little farther, into the actual “urban” area of the town, and use a pay phone to call a cab to take her home. So, in not too long, she found herself near an out of the way parking lot, using the pay phone located conveniently nearby, right up until she caught the dial tone that followed her insertion of exact change. At that point, she was forced to drop the receiver, in favor of having both of her arms up and ready to block the kick that flew in straight for her from the darkness behind the only dimly lit pay phone. The attack landed solidly against both of her forearms, but did little more than a bit of cosmetic damage, as both would be bruised the next day. Kim leapt back following it into the full illumination of the overhanging street lamps, precluding any further assaults from the shadows. Nothing came after her, for a few tense moments, before a dark, vaguely-human shape burst into the light moving straight for her. She struck out at it ineffectually, realizing only after she tangled her hands in its form that it was nothing more than a trench coat, and for that mistake, caught Shego's next kick solidly on the jaw. The strike knocked the heroine flat onto her back and brought the trench with her, draping it over her body as she hit the asphalt hard.

Looking up at her attacker, even with the noise the nerves in her back were making over their mistreatment, Kim couldn't help but want to cry out Shego's name with a distinctly happy tone to it, though it wasn't actually vocalized as the younger woman was forced to roll to the side to avoid the villainess' blazing punch. An instant later she was on her feet, trench draped over one arm as she stood otherwise ready to fight, not bothering with any words at that point. They both wanted to see exactly what they still had.

The claws on her gloves made their presence known as Shego clenched her hands, and already burning with the plasma flames that were her trademark, they struck out at Kim with a swipe that she sidestepped, and were followed by a fast, straight kick. Unexpectedly, her foe put the trench coat she borrowed to use then, first blocking the kick with it's heavy cloth and then trapping her leg in its folds with a twirl and a twist. Kim smiled at Shego, and ducked just under her answering second kick, which dumped the criminal on the ground due to her lack of a leg to stand on, but at least forced the heroine to let go of the coat that held her leg.

Obviously, they were nowhere near as in synch as they had been a month ago, nor were their emotions as pure and unclouded as they had been during that fight, making the current one considerably more painful for both. Still, they understood each other, as both knew after Shego regained her feet and stopped to look deeply into Kim's eyes, and she into the villainess'.

“Kimmie.” The green and black clad criminal said, addressing the younger woman with a smirk.

“Shego.” Kim responded in kind, curious as to what Shego had planned, and naturally ecstatic inside at the sight of the older woman.

“Still as much of a fashion disaster as ever, I see.” The villainess sniped lightly, her eyes taking in Kim's form with a once-over glance.

“So not. Besides, haven't you heard that green and black are out this year?”

“No on me, princess, I make it look good no matter the year.”

“I'm sure, and what took you so long, too scared without Drakken to help you?”

“No, I just felt like getting a little sun and relaxation after freezing my ass off in the Andes. You look like you could use a little sun yourself, Kimmie.” Shego noted, as the younger woman shivered in the stiff, chill wind that had picked up while they conversed.

“So not the dr- . . .” Before Kim could say any more, she was forced to catch the item that Shego had thrown at her, which was the trench coat she had only moments ago used in their brief combat. “What . . . ?” She asked, not quite understanding the gesture, and the criminal smiled easily.

“It's a gift, pumpkin.”

“Thanks.” Kim murmured with a hint of color in her cheeks, slipping the garment on gratefully.

After tying it closed with the attached belt, she nodded and looked back up to Shego.

“So, did you come off of your vacation just to see me, or did you have something else planned?” The corners of Shego's smile curled up into her usual smirk at the question, and she fluttered her eyelashes seductively as she spoke in response with a slight drawl to her words.

“Oh, a little from column a, and a little from column b . . .” As Kim stared at the villainess incredulously, she chuckled lightly and tossed her hair. “See, I am here on `business,' but it involves you, so it's technically a bit of both, and . . .” She looked away, letting the curtain of her hair hide her face as she finished. “I did just want to see you.”

“So . . .” Kim began almost immediately, though she paused a moment to try and suppress the blush that was creeping into her cheeks. “What's the sitch, then?”

“Oh, it's simple, I'm going to steal eight of the world's rarest and most valuable artifacts, relics, and technological advances, the greatest crime spree in history.” Shego smiled wickedly as she continued, obviously enjoying the almost surprised look that came to her arch-nemesis' face at the declaration. “And it'll only be made more so, because you'll be on my heels every step of the way, Kimmie.”

“You're going to announce a series of robberies?” Kim asked, utterly disbelieving what Shego was saying.

It just sounded so . . . disgustingly cliche'.

“Not to everyone, just to you, Princess.” As the heroine favored her with a level look, Shego returned the stare, an almost feral glint in her eyes. “It's only half about stealing the stuff, and the other half is that it's going to be a competition between the two of us, to really find out who's the best, once and for all.” Somehow, as she continued to watch Shego with a deliberately neutral expression on her face, Kim just knew that wasn't all.

The older woman grinned from ear to ear, like the cat that ate the canary, as she lay under that gaze, knowing exactly what Kim wanted to know.

“And what's a competition without something at stake?” She continued blithely, letting her eyes roll from the heroine, gesturing easily.

“What are you getting at, Shego?” Kim finally asked outright, caution and curiosity vying for dominance in her being.

At the direct question, and the undertone of interest in Kim's words, Shego smiled almost viciously, and snapped her trap closed.

“We bet, right here and now, that if I win, if I manage to steal all eight of the items, then you drop the goody goody act and join up with me as a thief, partners in crime.” Before the heroine's quite vehement protests could even get free of her throat, Shego had a gloved hand up, one finger raised, giving her pause. “And if you win, protecting or recovering all of the items, I'll go completely legit, even consider,” her emphasis on the word was undeniable, “joining your little hero team.” After the villainess spoke, there was only silence.

Which meant something all by itself, because it indicated that Kim was actually considering the proposition.

“And why do you only have to `consider' joining Team Possible?” She asked at length, the more rational parts of Kim's being trying to some reason, any reason, to refuse the bet outright, without further consideration.

A look of disinterest crossed the villainess' face and she produced a nail file to work at the claws of her gloves as she answered.

“You've got Stoppable's help, whereas I've only got myself, so you get less reward for having a slight advantage in the contest.” Kim almost couldn't believe her ears.

She was proposing a contest, where the consequence of her loss was that she would have to leave villainy and theft behind to live a normal life, expecting to lose. Even then, though, Shego was similarly surprised that she was still there, that Kimmie hadn't already sent her packing with an automatic refusal of her terms. It was a calculated risk on both their parts. For Shego, failure meant that she would have to give up her life of thrilling theft and easy money, whereas success would mean virtual domination of the crime world as she and Kim would undoubtedly form an unstoppable team. For Kim, victory would bring Shego onto the right side of the law and maybe even make her a part of the team, but defeat meant that she would have to leave her whole life behind and become a criminal.

The consoling fact of either outcome for both women, though, was that they would be together, no matter which way it went.

`Besides,' both thought at almost the same time, `I'm going to win.'

“Alright, Shego, you've got yourself a bet.” Kim responded finally, her fierce and anticipatory smirk a virtual mirror of the villainess'.

“Glad to hear it.” Nimbly, Shego sprang from where she stood, across from Kim within the parking lot itself, coming to perch atop a nearby light pole. “You've got one week from tonight to get ready, and then you'll hear from me.” She stood as if to leap into the pitch black night outside the lot, but stopped right before doing so, as if unsure.

Kim said nothing, simply stood and watched the criminal, even as Shego glanced back at her over her shoulder.

“Good luck, Kimmie.” She said, before hesitantly blowing the younger woman a kiss.

“Good luck, Shego!” The green and black clad thief was gone before Kim got the chance to return the kiss, but she still couldn't help her faint flush.

Either way, it really wouldn't be so terrible, because afterwards, they'd be together.

Author's Notes: Alright, there you go, hope you guys enjoyed reading it. Like I said at the beginning, that is the end right there, as this is a one-shot, but if there's a great enough response, then I'll consider making it into a series. For now, though, I have the second half of a duo series fic to finish, so I'll maybe see you all again after that's done.