Kimmie's diamond, a kim possible fanfic

Kimmie's diamond

Disclaimer: Kim Possible and all the characters of the show are owned by ABC and the Disney Corporation. Original lyrics to the songs referenced in this story and the music are the property of the respective authors, artists and labels. All other characters appearing in this story can be blamed on the author (he, however, is not responsible for all of their actions at all times, being barely responsible for himself most of the time).

This is a strictly not-for-profit, just-for-fun work.

Enjoy! Please read and review.

A/N Forward:

This began as an entry in Zaratan's Villains contest, and it grew it legs and walked away….

Why was he here? He needed her help to keep a promise to two people he loved more than life and freedom itself.

Warning: minor character death inside.

Kimmie's diamond

"Enjoy yourself, Pamela."

"I will, sir, and thank you," his pilot saluted him, and he smiled and saluted her as he and his traveling companion deplaned and walked the 7 steps over the royal purple carpet to his limousine. The driver was standing at the rear door, the luggage already in the rear compartment.

"How are you today, sir, ma'am?" the driver asked, nodding at the pair as they stepped into the vehicle.

"We are fine, Warren: are your plans set?" he asked, and the driver smiled back in response.

"In concrete, Sir: thank you for the assist," Warren replied as he closed the door and went around the entire vehicle before landing inside, strapping himself in. He touched the query button, and the light turned green, signaling him to head for the hotel.

He really wasn't certain why he had come. After all, he could have contacted his target somewhere else than at this little gathering. He was here, though, and he decided that he would enjoy himself, one way or another.

He'd brought her along, of course: she didn't go on his 'special' business trips, but on the regular ones, like this, she always came along. As his limousine drew near to its destination the sun was setting, staining the crystal blue sky with swaths of deep amethyst, gold, and coral. But the slender, well built man was blind to the glory to the west of him; he was facing east, watching the moon rise at full phase. This only happened at rare occasions and, right now, the moon in its fullness was looming perpetually against the low, unending plains. Only at this time of day, during sunset, did the brilliant sphere fully reveal her glory to those who would look in her direction.

He sighed as he got out of the limo with his companion, nodded at Warren, and headed for the ornate hotel doors. Smiling at the Doorman who grimaced at his companion as they approached, the $100 bill turned that same grimacing look into a huge grin with a hardy vocal welcome.

The desk attendant, of course, had given him a hard time for arriving a day early until he showed his Jack Hench personally-signed invitation. That, and the National Express Diamond-Titanium member card accompanied with another $100, got the attendant's attention, and the two of them and their luggage were escorted to the suite that he had requested: the top floor of the hotel, with single elevator access.

He had done his homework, of course, and he had confirmed that his target would be attending this conference. He wanted to meet her, face-to-face, and see and confirm that she was 'all that' he had heard and read, and he needed to see if she was even interested or, for that matter, even 'still in the business.'

That's why he had arrived a whole day early. Always be prepared for any eventuality and exit. That's what gave him an edge over the competition and he saw no reason to deviate from his embedded signature trait now. Of course a full night and day of rest and relaxation didn't hurt either.

As the meeting time approached, the wind began to cool and plucked at his light colored shirt and trousers. His lean, long-fingered hands tightened on the balustrade of the terrace overlooking the outside rooftop garden. He smiled while attempting to make a decision.

Logic versus ethics… Should the needs of the one outweigh the conscious and honor of the many? Could he compromise what he knew to be right, in order to accomplish what was necessary?

He drew a deep breath of the approaching evening air, then let it out slowly as he regarded his decision and moved to the easy chair where his companion awaited. Sitting silently in their suite with her, her head in his lap, him gently stroking her hair, they listened together to Bach's Brandenburg Concerto #3. It had been her favorite, and she especially liked the harpsichord transitional movement. "It brings you from the stately to the energetic," she whispered to him that night as they attended a live performance in Go City's Chamber Performance Hall.

He glanced up at the clock next to the mantle: 5:49 PM.

It was time.

He and his companion went to the hotel bar. He ordered six different drinks and, in a very short order, downed five of them. He picked up the last drink and placed two US 100 Dollar bills on the bar.

"Please, place the drinks on my tab, if you would, dear lady, and keep this for your trouble," he said to the attractive woman that had been his bartender. The patrons in the bar watched him and his companion leave, amazed at his constitution.

"Carlton!" He stopped and turned slowly, and she turned with him to look at the voice now approaching him.

"Jack," Carlton smiled and extended his hand.

Jack Hench, the President of HenchCo, smiled and shook the hand of the world's most famous thief, famous because he was never caught with the goods in hand, and famous because he was already so wealthy that he didn't need to steal in the first place. He had scored a coup, he felt, in getting Carlton to agree to come. The others were regulars, but this was the first time that Carlton had agreed to come to any event such as this.

"I trust you and your guest are comfortable?" Jack smiled and stole a glance at Carlton's companion.

"Indeed, we are, Jack: thank you for allowing us the privacy we desire," Carlton replied, and she smiled and nodded her approval, as well.

"Were you able to arrange some time for me to meet with her, privately, this evening?"

"Indeed I have, but she rejected the retainer until after your conversation was complete: then, she said, she'd decide what value to set," Jack replied and smiled. 'At least, this time, she didn't threaten to slow roast my rear end: she's so much more relaxed, now that he's 'gone green,' Jack laughed inside.

"Where, and when?" he asked.

"As you requested: at the 'Evil Happy Hour,' at 6:16 PM. I'm sure you'll recognize her," Jack laughed, "and she'll be alone, as well."

"Thanks, Jack," Carlton stuck out his hand and shook Jack's, as he turned and headed for the gift shop to pick up a 'little something' for his meeting…just in case.

Jack felt the paper placed in his hand, and he looked down. A piece of paper, with a number written on it preceded by a plus sign and the words "bill it":

"Ten thousand dollars," Jack grinned. "Easiest five minutes' worth of work I've ever done, and the most lucrative, to boot." He refolded the paper and placed it in his shirt pocket for the hotel accountant to add to Carlton's bill as 'consultation expenses.'

"What's good, Sandy?" Shego quizzed the bartender at the front of the hotel restaurant.

"Besides me?" Sandy replied with a laugh. "Not much; but, for you, ma'am, everything," the bartender grinned. "Your meals and drinks have all been covered by Mr. Jones for the duration of your stay with us," she winked at Shego, and Shego smiled back at her.

"Purely business," Shego smirked, and Sandy smiled back: she knew Shego too well from the past two nights here to know that this guy wasn't getting lucky tonight, if ever.

"Sharon, bring me two bottles: chilled properly, of course, of Dom Perignon 1998, a plate of medium minced, free-range, calf liver, cooked only enough to take the odor off, bottled plain water, and a separate saucer. I'll be at the back table, when he arrives with his guest," Shego pointed, and Sharon nodded as Shego headed to her table. "Oh," Shego said over her shoulder, "make sure you leave yourself a really, really good tip," she grinned as she headed for the table.

The chief wine steward had already come out, accompanied by his assistants, to deliver the wine and get approval from his customer. He opened the first bottle and poured a small sample for Shego. She swirled it, sniffed the aroma, sipped, and nodded her approval. He filled her glass and then placed the bottle, capped, back into the holder for chilling.

She sat and sipped for only a few moments before she caught them from the corner of her eye as they entered the bar from the gift shop visit. They headed directly for her. Shego started to stand, but he waved her down as he approached to avoid undue attention. The waiter deposited the covered dish and left just before the pair reached the table.

"Please, don't get up on my account," Carlton wryly smiled.

"I wasn't: it was for her," Shego retorted. She knelt down and petted the beautiful animal. "This is Mandy, right? I've never seen a Lithuanian wolfhound before," she added.

Carlton nodded and replied "You're right, Sheila; this is, indeed, Mandy," as he took her pro-offered hand as she stood and kissed it. "A woman of intelligence, discernment, and beauty: Drew is a very lucky man, indeed," he said as he lifted his head and looked into her eyes.

'If I was Princess right now, I'd be blushing,' Shego thought as she took her seat, and Carlton took his seat across from her.

"You're not too bad, yourself: I'm really liking the wine-colored double-breasted blazer," Shego replied, and Carlton nodded his reply to her compliment.

"This is for Mandy: I took the liberty of ordering for her," Shego then pointed at the covered dish. "A plate of free-range minced calf liver, cooked only enough to take the odor off, a bottled water, and a separate saucer for her water: I assume that she doesn't drink from the bottle since she's a lady and she is refined, unlike some people we know," Shego smiled, and Carlton laughed as he lifted the cover, beamed, and placed the dish on the floor for Mandy. He then placed the saucer on the floor, uncapped the water, and poured some of the bottled water into it.

"Thank you, my dear," Carlton said as he capped the water bottle. "This just makes me even more certain that I'm talking to the right person," Carlton said as he reached for the wine bottle and poured a glass for himself and poured another for Shego, recapping it as he laced it back in the holder. Mandy sniffed the water as if it was a fine wine and then lapped at it delicately. Occasionally, as the conversation progressed, she nibbled at her minced treat.

"To Mandy, or more specifically, to Amanda," he clicked Shego's glass, breathed in the aroma from his own glass, and sipped. "A '1998,' if I'm correct, no?" he smiled.

"It had better be: you're paying for it," Shego smirked.

She took a sip, and then she put her glass on the table and leaned forward, propping her head on her hands with both elbows on the table. "So, tell me, Carlton Jeremiah Michael Jones, a.k.a 'Falsetto' Jones, by reputation the world's richest and most successful thief, what do you want with 'li'l ol' me?'" She fluttered her eyelashes and spoke with her best Southern drawl at the end, but neither of them could hold back, and they both laughed once and then snickered for a few moments.

"And, what does any of this have to do with Kimberly Amanda Flanagan?" Shego shot her bolt, and Carlton winced as her burst struck the target dead-on.

Shego watched him close his eyes, silently mouth something, and then he opened them. She would have sworn that she saw a glint of a tear behind his grin.

"I'll tell you, Miss Go," he replied, and Shego winced: she remembered that period of her life, "but only because I believe that you will help me.

"And, by the way," he smiled, "it was on a Friday night for me, not a Tuesday," he grinned, and Shego chuckled silently as Carlton began to speak...

"We were young and stupid," he began, and Shego snorted.

"We thought that we, the six of us, could break into a high-security facility, steal the diamond, and recover the dogs. The fact that we'd never done anything like this before didn't seem to concern us," he mused out loud.

"You have to understand: we believed that technology could solve all of our problems, so I bought the best jamming equipment money could buy, the best outfits that could provide us the most concealment and protection, and the best equipment of all kinds: communications, weapons, you name it, that we thought we'd need to carry this off. Money was no object: after all, I was rich, and the others weren't exactly poor pikers, either," he laughed.

He poured a full glass. "To my friends," he said as he took a drink for each name:

"James Augustus Clement;

"Reggie Stephen Nation;

"Regina Stephanie Nation;

"Dr. Marilyn Michelle Meadows (or, Doc3M, as she went by); and

"Kimberly Amanda Flanagan," he finished off the glass.

"Why were you going there, in the first place?" Shego asked.

"It was her father's diamond," he began, and he stopped when Shego looked perplexed. "I did leave out a few minor details, didn't I?" he grinned.

"Ya think?" Shego shot back with a laugh, and she picked up the bottle and poured both him and herself each another glass, almost finishing off the bottle. He took a sip before he continued.

"Professor Jefferson Karlos Flanagan, the gentleman who found the Kimber Diamond almost by accident on a wild boar tracking session in, of all places, northern Arkansas, named the diamond after his just-born daughter, Kimberly Amanda Flanagan. I think that's the reason Amanda hated the name Kimberly." he explained. "He later told me that the darned thing was lying on the ground, just waiting for someone to pick it up: what are the odds?" He laughed.

"And, you probably aren't the biggest fan of the name, either, I imagine?" Shego smiled a thin smile, and Carlton nodded.

"Ah, yes, Miss Possible," he stared forward. "She was a bit of a surprise in her escape when she carried the diamond back to the museum and the Townsends. That's why I called you, as a matter of fact; but, I'm getting ahead of myself.

"Professor Flanagan and the Townsends were partners in the beginning, but Suzanne Townsend," and the venom almost dripped from his lips when he mentioned her name, "managed somehow to swindle the diamond from Jefferson when Kimberly was five years old. He would never tell me or her just what happened, but they were no longer the friends that they had been before the find.

"Jefferson would tell his daughter, and she would tell me, stories about the diamond and how she even played with it when she was two and three. After she received her Master's degree, she promised her dad that she would, somehow, recover the diamond and return it to him for his birthday.

"It was purely coincidental that we learned that the Townsends were also planning to perform experiments on these beautiful animals for cryogenics research; Regina got word of it from one of her college professors that was working on other research projects and had been contacted by the Townsends. She told her twin brother, Reggie, and we suddenly found ourselves with two missions at the same location: one, to reclaim the diamond, and the other to save the Lithuanian wolfhounds."

"Uh-huh," Shego thought for a moment, and then she grinned and took on a totally faux British accent: "So, Carlton, old sod, just what was Amanda to you: was she just another 'pickle on a pike', or was she the perfect 'bangers and mash?'"

"You nailed it, Shego," he laughed at her references, smiled and petted Mandy's head; Mandy rewarded him with a lick of his hand. "I was in love with Amanda, but I couldn't ever tell her: she was so stunningly beautiful to me, so glamorous, so perfect, and I was just a klutz on the bottom of the food chain who had money."

"Sounds like another sidekick I know," Shego observed wryly. Carlton thought for a moment, and then he broke into laughter.

"You're right," he laughed. "I never realized the connection, Shego; that could be why I was so annoyed with young Stoppable: he was a younger version of me, in a frighteningly similar role.

"The difference, Shego, was that Miss Possible was ready for me: we weren't ready for professionals, for security who didn't care that we were idealistic kids.

"James, Mandy, and I went after the dogs: we found them exactly where we suspected they would be, and we managed to get them to follow us out of the holding area without any major problems.

"That's when the 'fun' began.

"I heard gunfire over our communications link, and I heard Regina scream 'We surrender! We surrender! We're unarmed!" and I heard Mandy scream. I later learned that a single shot had struck Reggie in the chest, just above the vest.

"How many more?" A rough voice screamed, and Regina screamed over the system. James hurried us to the dock where the vehicles were, and he ran out, calling "I'll be all right: Mandy, Carlton, get the dogs into that van, and I'll be back with everyone and the diamond.

"That was the last I saw of James, but not the last I heard from him," Carlton said sadly, and he paused for a moment. Shego watched him quietly as he took a deep breath before he continued.

"They shot Reggie," and she watched Carlton stop again; this time, she could see him visibly gathering himself back together. He then took another deep breath and continued: "They killed him, in front of his twin sister, and then they laughed about it."

"Even I'm not that low," Shego commented under her breath, and Carlton nodded his agreement.

"An explosion, I later learned, was set off by James, and it distracted them for a few moments, enough time for Doc3M to get away. She headed straight for us, but she didn't know she was being followed: again, the stupidity of youth," he smiled sadly.

"She got to the loading dock just as we arrived with the dogs.

"Unfortunately, her 'help' arrived just as we began to load the dogs onto the van, and shots rang around my ears. I felt something hit my leg, and I went down on top of one of the dogs in agony.

"'Carlton!' I heard Doc3M yell, and I think I heard another shot strike something with a thud, but I passed out when my head bounced off of the concrete floor.

"The next time I woke, I was in the back of a van with six strangely quiet Lithuanian wolfhounds, all staring at me, and my leg hurt to the high heavens. I realized that there was a tourniquet on my leg, and it hurt, but not as much as I would have expected.

"Then, I remembered: I was shot, and I passed out on the dock.

"How did I get into the van, and where was Mandy?

"I managed to get the side door open and stumbled out, realized that this was one of Townsend's vans that he used for transporting his scuba tank and recharging equipment, grabbed the sides of the van to help me walk, and I stumbled to the front of the fan.

"Mandy.

"She was there."

"She was slumped over the steering wheel, holding her Blueberry in her hand, holding it out toward the passenger side of the van.

"I managed to open the door and throw myself into the passenger seat, but she didn't respond.

"'Mandy,' I reached over and touched her, and I knew, right then and there, that I'd never get the chance to tell her to her breathing face that I loved her.

"Mandy was dead," Carlton said, and Shego could feel the love radiate from the man as if it were the heat of a blazing sun.

"I took her Blueberry from her cooling hand and, tears streaming down my face, also took the note she had written.

"I read the note, first:

"'Before you play my last message, C, I want you to know something:

"'I wish I'd had both the guts and cajoles,' I stopped and smiled, then continued, 'to tell you how much I was in love with you, but I never did: you were so much more than I ever dreamed I could be, and I always felt small in your shadow.'

"She loved me, and I didn't even suspect it," Carlton said sadly to the air, and he continued.

"'I wish I had, but I wouldn't trade it for any of the time we spent together: we laughed, we sang, we played, and we danced. I wouldn't give up one thing for any of those dances, C.

"'I'll always be with you, just know that.

"'I love you, and I'll love you, forever.

"'m.'"

By the time that he finished recounted that last message, Shego wasn't trying to hide her tears any longer.

"What was on her Blueberry?" Shego asked after she managed to stop her tears.

"Lots of personal stuff: she told her dad that she really didn't hate the name Kimberly, but she was jealous of the diamond until she realized just how much it meant to him, and that was why we went after it and the dogs.

"Her message also told me what happened after I passed out: how Doc3M had put the tourniquet on my leg, got me and the dogs into the van, slammed the door shut, and gave Mandy orders to take off." Carlton paused for a moment and took a small sip of the Dom. "In the message Mandy left she said that Doc3M said, 'I'll be behind you, I just have to get the guys,' Mandy said she could see her limp back into the open, what turned out to be the clean line of fire."

He paused before he continued, and Shego knew what was coming:

"She lied to Mandy: the gunman cut her down in an instant.

"Mandy got into the van, fired up the engine, and floored it.

"Gunfire came through the back of the van, and one lucky bullet found Mandy's right lung," Carlton said matter-of-factly, and Shego winced. "She realized that her only chance was to get to a hospital, but she didn't think she could do it and not bounce the dogs and me all over the back of the van.

"So, she saved us, and lost her own battle," he smiled, and Shego felt sorry for the man.

"What neither of us counted on was the number of hits that the helium tanks took that were strapped in the back of the van. Helium began escaping and started to fill the rear cabin, and it headed forward to Mandy as it filled the van. You could hear it in her voice: it went up in pitch as she talked, until her last words were almost a caricature of her own voice.

"It wasn't until after I heard her speak her last words that I spoke, and," Carlton smiled, "imagine my surprise," he sat silent, and Shego thought about the abuse he had taken from the villain community for all these years. 'None of them knew the story' she realized.

"The dogs completely lost their ability to bark," Carlton added. "The extreme amount of helium that they were exposed to affected their vocal chords differently; but, at least, they survived."

"What happened to the rest of your friends?" Shego had to ask, even though she knew the answer.

"Jason had a surprise for security: he had decided that, if he died, he would take as much of the factory with him, so he had rigged 20 pounds of C4 compound inside his shirt and had left some bricks along the way to the safe, and he had them all connected to a dead-man switch. He told the security guards not to kill him, and he even showed them the switch, but they didn't believe him: the resultant explosion took out half the plant."

"We never got the diamond, and the price for its ransom went up, so I had to use 'other means' to expand my fortune. I couldn't resist the one chance when it was out of the vault, though: I had to try, one more time, for Mandy.

"That's why I need you, Shego: I have the money that the Townsends want, and I need someone to deliver it that won't be coerced or intimidated by them and can return with the diamond…alive.

"Why now?"

"He's dying, and I want him to have it before he sees his daughter," was his reply.

"Will you, Shego?"

Shego looked into the hopeful and sad eyes, and she made her decision.

She started humming a tune, and Carlton's eyes snapped wide open. Then, she leaned forward and began to sing to him in a soft voice, so soft that he was the only person in the bar that heard it:

Looking back, on the memories of
All the fights we shared
and the lairs blown up
For a long time
All the world was night
How could I have known
that a plant would make it right?

And I...I wish that I had known
The way it all would end
The way it all would go
Our lives weren't better left to chance
Boy, I could've missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance…with you

Holding you, I held everything
All this time with you, I wished I were your queen
If I'd only known how the world would change
Then who's to say
You know, I might have skipped it all

And I...I wish that I had known
The way it all would end
The way it all would go
Our lives weren't better left to chance
Boy, I could've missed the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance…with you

Yes my life
is better now with you
I could'a skipped the pain
But I'd have had to miss
The dance…with you.

She stopped, tears streaming down her face, and she looked into his tear-soaked face.

"When do you want it done?" she asked.

"As soon as you're available, Shego," Carlton managed to get out with a smile. "I have the money in my suite: I hired Hank Perkins," and Shego chuckled inside, "to work for me a couple of months before the Lowardians hit, and he's been a godsend with his mad organizational skills. He's got the money upstairs in a briefcase."

Shego wiped her face with the napkin and smiled. "This will be so worth it: helping you, and scaring the pants off of Perkins, to boot: a two-fer," She said as she stood. "I'll be back in a few hours, then," she turned and started to take a step.

"WAIT!" she stopped when she heard him call out.

"How did you know that was 'our song?'" he asked, and she grinned with a devilish look and headed for the elevators.

Carlton ordered dinner (an antipasto appetizer, to start, that he shared a bit of with Mandy), and then ordered a paella that he thought would challenge the kitchen.

When it arrived, still steaming and smelling wonderfully of saffron, onion, garlic, peppers, seafood, and spicy sausages, he forgot for a moment and dived into the wonderful creation, smiling broadly as he began to devour the contents of the platter and laughed as Mandy, after unsuccessfully begging, lay down and finished her liver.

He had a very leisurely dinner, and he topped it off with another challenge to the kitchen: a chocolate-and-cream-cheese soufflé. Again, the kitchen didn't disappoint, the soufflé arriving in less than 30 minutes, hot and still puffed to its full extension.

He was one-third of the way through dessert when Shego sat down with a briefcase at her side.

"Well?" Carlton asked.

"They deserve anything that I can come up with," Shego smiled as she flamed her right hand.

"They didn't know who I was, and they tried to tell me that the diamond wasn't for sale. I explained that I had just come from you and placed the briefcase on the table, informing them of the contents. They tried to convince me that there had been a price increase during the time that I came over.

"I stared at them in shock, and Suzanne said, and I quote, 'tell the loser to go steal another 10 million, and he still won't have enough,' unquote," Shego smiled, and Carlton was immediately worried.

"Shego! What did you do?"

"I 'explained' to her that you weren't a loser, and that she was going to honor the contract.

"She laughed and told me that would never happen unless I got a super villain to convince her, so I flamed one hand and asked her if helping to save the world got me any bonus points. Then, I introduced myself," Shego smiled.

"They took the money out of the briefcase and placed the diamond inside, and then they asked me if they could do anything else for me."

"Shego," Carlton laughed, "you didn't?"

"I may have suggested a small donation of a few million or so to animal research; coincidentally, the same amount that they got from you, and I told her I'd be very happy if she could 'make it so,'" Shego smirked, then laughed.

"You actually got it," Carlton marveled, but Shego held onto the handle of the briefcase.

"Not until I get mine," she said.

"Certainly: how much?"

"You have a picture of Mandy?"

"To quote someone near to me: 'well, D'OI!'" Carlton laughed. "Why?"

"I want to see what the woman who has your heart, even after all these years, looked like," she said.

Carlton reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his MePod, clicked it to his favs, and selected an image. "Here she is: I caught this picture of her when she was babysitting in Go City."

Shego took one look at the picture and reached for the full bottle of Dom Perignon, uncorked it, and proceeded to down a full third of it in one gulp. When she put the bottle on the table, tears were streaming down her face.

"Kimmie," was all she said before she picked up the bottle again and took another huge swig, then slammed it back on the table, waking Mandy from her nap.

"Sorry, Mandy," Shego explained, "but I'm not in a very 'lady-like' mood, right now," and Mandy wagged her tail, accepting Shego's apology.

"Shego?"

"She was babysitting in Go City?" Shego asked as he watched the montage of emotions play across her face.

"Did you ever take a good look at the little girl in the picture with her, Carlton? A really, really good look?"

"No, why?"

"Long, full black hair? Slim, boyish figure, complete with a smirk on her face?"

Carlton looked at the picture and, suddenly, the pieces fell into place.

"Kimmie was my hero: she had her B. S. Ed., she was a Graduate Student in Education and Childhood Development, and she was everything that I wanted to be: smart, pretty, and she had a really cute BF, to boot," Shego smiled through her tear-covered face. "Then, one day, after she got her Master's degree, she disappeared, and I never heard from her again.

"I was so mad, at her, at everything," Shego continued, "I couldn't even say her name again without hate in my voice. Then, imagine my surprise to then be battling a cheerleader named Kimberly: I stuck her with the name 'Kimmie' because I hated it and her, and it got under her skin, so….

"I never knew what happened to her…" Shego's voice trailed off, and Carlton watched a smile form through her tears.

"Do you think the kitchen is still open?" Shego asked.

"Yes; why?"

"I just had a hankerin' for Kimmie's favorite dish: paella," and Carlton laughed as he signaled for the waiter.

"You certainly woke Hank Perkins up, Shego," Carlton said after the meal was ordered. "He called me about two minutes after you left, ranting about having ordered room service and finding you at the door instead of his pizza. I think you made the poor boy wet himself," Carlton laughed.

"'Why didn't you tell me she was coming?'" he asked me, and Shego grinned: she knew what the response would be.

"I told him," Carlton sat up, and he and Shego said it together:

"'This was my way of telling you, Hank,'" and the two of them laughed.

"Kimmie's up there busting a gut, herself, I imagine," Shego said, and Carlton nodded.

"I'd like to propose a toast, Shego," Carlton poured the last of both bottles into their glasses, and he held his up and waited for Shego to lift hers.

"To the 'Kimmies' in our lives," he began, and Shego snorted. "They drive us insane, and we are both the better for them: without Kimberly Ann Possible, I would never have approached you, my muffin-top-pincher," he grinned, and Shego burst into laughter, "and, you would have never found the answer to your mystery."

"Jinkies, Carlton," Shego laughed, "I'd forgotten about the muffins."

"Hey, they were my favorites, the giant blueberry ones, and you always would rip the tops off of them and eat the tops, right in front of me."

"And, then, to 'top' it all," Carlton laughed, "you laughed at me when I tried to get mad at you!" he complained.

"Well, the top is the best part of the muffin, you know," Shego retorted.

"That closed 'the case of the topless muffins,'" Carlton grinned, and they laughed and talked until the second giant pan of paella arrived.

"I still think you look silly in that mustache," Shego added as she scooped a large portion of the paella onto her plate, and Carlton chuckled.

"She always wanted the goatee, but she hated the mustache, too; perhaps it's time," he grinned as he stroked it, contemplating the final action.

Carlton ordered two more bottles, chilled, and the waiters and the bartender were all very, very happy.

"Professor?" The man looked up from his hospital bed and smiled, recognizing the voice.

"Come in, James," he replied. The door pushed the rest of the way open, and a man and a younger woman entered. She closed the door behind her as she entered the room.

"Professor, how are you doing?" Dr. James T. Possible asked, trying to keep a positive face.

"Oh, fine, other than the fact that I'm dying, Dr. Possible," he laughed. "James, you never could keep your emotions hidden, could you?"

"Not from you, Professor," James replied, fighting back his tears as he watched him struggle to move, at the shell of a man lying in the hospital bed, and remembering the young, excited professor he had met at MIST.

Dr. Jefferson Karlos Flanagan snorted. "Cut the smoozing, James: you got your A+ already in Geophysics."

"Professor," James ignored the comment, "I wanted you to meet my daughter, Kim-"

"Kimberly Ann Possible," Jefferson finished, and Kim looked surprised. D. Flanagan smiled. "Yes, Kimberly, I know who you are. My wife and I followed your career quite closely and with a great deal of interest in the news stories, up until the day she died, shortly after you defeated the Diablos.

"And, now, you've defeated aliens, Miss Possible, so I guess it's my turn to go, but not before I tell you one thing:

"I watched your father 'dance' around your mother for three months," he grinned, "before he got up the nerve to ask her out, and he was smart enough to marry her. I'm certainly glad you didn't get his looks," Jefferson smiled, and Kim blushed. "You remind me of my daughter, whom I hope to be seeing again, very soon," he smiled a smile of one certain in his destiny.

Kim opened her mouth to speak, but she was interrupted by a knock on the door and a very familiar and unique voice:

"Professor Flanagan?"

"Come in, Carlton," Jefferson smiled, and the door opened.

Carlton, carrying a case, took three steps into the room and stopped dead in his tracks when he realized who was inside with the Professor. Kim tensed up when she saw Carlton.

"Hey, can't you walk?" Shego ran into his back and then looked over his shoulder and grinned as the reason for his walk stoppage. "Why, 'ello, 'Princess,'" she smirked a Cockney accent, causing Kim to smile just a bit. "You just keep popping up everywhere, don't you? Much like Lyme disease in the mountains," she added the last zinger.

"I could say the same about you, Shego," Kim responded, relaxing a bit.

"Kimberly Ann Possible," Carlton smiled and extended his hand, and Kim shook it tentatively.

"Why are you here?" she asked.

"I came to see an old friend," he explained and then turned to face the man in the bed. "How are you doing, Dr. Flanagan?"

"I'm as well as can be expected, Carlton," he replied. "By what I've just witnessed, I assume that introductions are not necessary between the four of you. However, I only know this lady by reputation. Miss Go, I believe?"

"Correct, Doctor Flanagan," she replied, trying very, very hard not to cry at the sight of a man she's met several years past and remembered as a strong, handsome man now lying in a bed, his entire body seemingly shrunken to a shadow of its former self. "I remember you, though: your daughter used to baby-sit me when I was younger."

"Kimberly baby-sat you," and a wave of surprise turned his face into one giant smile. "You're little Shirley?" he asked with a note of surprise in his voice, and she nodded. "Come over here," he held out his arms, and Shego walked over to the bed. He gave her a big hug, and that started Shego's tears.

He released her and handed her a tissue for her tears. "I remember you: Kimberly was so proud of you and your grades, and she never stopped talking about you and how smart you were: brains and a mouth, both" he said, the smile remaining on his face. "I must admit, I thought you were a pretty and special young lady back then, but now: just being in the same room as you could take years off my life from the extra work my heart has had to expend," he laughed. "Drew Lipsky is a very, very lucky man."

"Kimmie talked about me?" Shego whispered, and Kim realized, in an instant, where all of the anger and passion had come from in Shego's bouts with her.

"Carlton, what brings you here besides my dying?" Jefferson laughed as he turned his attention to Carlton.

"I have it, Professor," Carlton placed the briefcase flat on the chair next to the bed and opened it.

"And, before you ask, Miss Possible: no, I didn't steal it this time: I bought it from the people who stole it from the Professor, years ago," he pulled out the Kimber diamond and stepped up to the bed, holding it out to the astonished Professor. "It's yours, Professor, just as I promised you all those years ago," Carlton smiled, but Kim could see the tears beginning to form in Carlton's eyes.

Jefferson took the diamond and held it in his hands for a few moments, the only sounds remaining in the room were the hospital monitoring equipment. "It's as beautiful as I remember, Carlton: thank you," he said with a catch in his voice. "You see, Miss Possible," he said as he turned his gaze to Kim, " I named the diamond after my daughter when I found it in Arkansas, years ago," he explained. "I wanted to hold it, just once, before I died, and now I have," he grinned and motioned to Carlton. "And, now, my son-in-law I almost had," and Carlton's eyes grew huge, "I give it to you, freely," and he handed the diamond back to a shocked Carlton.

Jefferson reached into the bag hung on the left side of his bed and pulled out a portfolio. Opening it, he produced a pen and began to write with the speed that James Possible remembered from his days in Graduate School.

"I need you to sign this, James and Miss Possible," he said when he finished writing and handed James the pad. "It says that I am of sound mind and dying, but I am not being coerced or threatened in any way possible. I am bequeathing the Kimber Diamond to Carlton Jeremiah Michael Jones, and I need witnesses that would be considered objective."

James took the pad and pen and quickly signed it. He handed it to Kim with a look that said 'please.' She took the paper, looked at it, looked at Carlton and Shego, and placed the pad on the counter and signed the document. She walked over to Jefferson in the hospital bed and handed it to him, leaning over and placing a chaste kiss on his cheek.

Jefferson reached up, took her hand, and squeezed it gently. "Thank you, my dear," and he motioned for Carlton to hand him the diamond as he released Kim's hand.

Carlton handed him the diamond, and Jefferson motioned for Kim to place her hands on the diamond.

Kim reached out to place both of her hands on the diamond. Jefferson saw her engagement ring and smiled. "Ron Stoppable, correct?" he asked, and she nodded. "He's a lucky young man," he added.

"I'm the lucky one, sir," Kim corrected him, trying not to cry as she felt the end coming very soon for someone she had only met a few minutes before.

"Very well," he smiled, lifting the diamond heavenward. "Kimmie, I have it back. I'll be there, real soon," he added, lowered his hands and the diamond. He motioned, and Carlton took the diamond from him. He closed his eyes, took a calm, relaxed breath, exhaled ever so gently.

A complete calm overtook the entire room.

BEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEP

A nurse walked in calmly, followed by a doctor, shaking his head sadly

"Can't you help him?" Kim pleaded, and they shook their heads 'no.'

"He signed a DNR," the nurse explained, and she turned off the monitoring equipment.

"Time of death: 1:30 PM MDT," the doctor announced, and the only sounds from the room were soft sobs.

Shego drove quietly back to the hotel, and Carlton sat, mourning his loss.

'Our loss,' he corrected himself, remembering that she had been touched, as well.

"Are you going to be all right?" he finally spoke, blocks before the hotel.

"I'll be fine," she replied, "You?"

"I'll be fine," he patted the case. "I think I'll donate the diamond and a new state-of-the-art security system to the Middleton Museum," he mused.

"I won't steal it," Shego laughed, pulling up at the hotel front door. "But, if I hear that someone is even thinking about it, I'll 'go green' on them when, not if, I find them," she added with a grim that Carlton recognized from her earlier days.

"I know you would," Carlton laughed as the car pulled to a stop. They were quiet for a moment, and Carlton turned his face toward her. "Thank you," he said, and she held up her hand.

"No, thank you," Shego corrected him, and Carlton saw tears behind her green eyes. "You told me what happened to Kimmie, I got the diamond back and didn't have to hurt anyone, and I got to make Hank Perkins squirm, one more time," she grinned, but then she put on her own serious face. "Now, I have to go home and tell Drew that his favorite professor from undergraduate school is dead."

Carlton leaned over and kissed her cheek, "Thank you, anyway," he smiled. "The carpet that Hank soiled can be cleaned, and I think he's planning on burning the suit," he grinned. "And, no, you can't help, muffin-top girl," he added before she could offer.

Shego laughed. "But, Hanky-Panky is so much fun to torment," she whined. Carlton's eyes bulged, and she and Carlton both burst out laughed.

"Why do you think I hired him?" Carlton winked, and he stepped out of the car, carrying the case with him. "I want a wedding invitation, you hear me, 'Jinkies'?" he leaned over the car door.

"And, give Mandy a big kiss for me, you hear?" She smiled, and Carlton nodded. She put the car into gear, and Shego drove away, waving as she drove.

"Goodbye, 'Jinkies', and thank you," he whispered, and he turned and walked into the hotel to plan a funeral for a friend.

'You are leaving Middleton, Colorado', the sign read on the highway that also led to the Middleton International Airport.

The morning sun was just cresting the buildings

"Warren, were you able to see your sister and her family?" Carlton asked his driver as he rubbed Mandy's tummy, and she stretched out on the seat next to him and rumbled her approval.

"I did, sir, thank you. My sister is doing fine, and her family made it through the invasion without any problems," Warren replied. "They're quite happy about that, and quite lucky, as well."

"You said that you were originally concerned about her husband, weren't you?"

"I was, but I was so wrong it wasn't funny," Warren laughed. Her husband is a Little Person and African-American, and I was concerned for both of them and how they'd be treated, and their kids. I shouldn't have been, though: Dr. Best is an amazing man, and he's an absolute hoot to be around. He is truly the best thing that could have happened to Carlene and Sarah, and they've expanded the family over and above the kids they had."

"How so?" Carlton chuckled because Mandy was pouting: she was not the center of attention.

"I met a young lady that's living with them after her parents were killed in the invasion, and Carlene says that they're seriously considering adopting her if she's willing."

"That sounds like quite a family," Carlton smiled.

"And, that doesn't even take into account the pods that Sarah and her team single-handedly took out," his voice betrayed the pride of an uncle. "She's starting MIST in a few weeks, but I suspect that her mind will be split between school, her new younger sister, and that amazing boyfriend of hers, Chip," he was so happy that Carlton thought that his happiness would overflow the limo.

'I'm glad I infused that start-up music company with US 1.75 Billion dollars when they came to me with their business plan and their dreams,' Carlton thought as he reached over and sealed the rear compartment. He then turned on his sound system and loaded the latest Motherboards CD he'd received from the record producer. They were able to add to their stable of agents, and one of their new ones was the person who found Chip and his band.

Unfortunately, not even the music could take his mind off the events of the previous week, and they assaulted his memories like the Pods had the planet:

Sitting, in the funeral parlor: confirming the funeral, burial, and maintenance arrangements for the Flanagan family, in perpetuity.

Walking into the viewing room and finding, to his surprise, Ronald Stoppable and Kimberly Ann Possible both inside; they were both quietly sitting and reading as he entered. Neither looked up when Carlton took a seat and pulled it up next to the casket, placing his hands on it and weeping almost silently. After a few moments, he felt a gentle hand touch his shoulder, and he closed his eyes as he felt a piece come over him that he had not felt in days.

Finding that the Professor had no shortage of friends, but very few who were physically and emotionally capable of being pallbearers. James, of course, and Doctors Chen and Ramesh immediately accepted, as did Drew, but he was surprised to find two women willing, as well: Vivian Porter, an a Dr. Wong. When he mentioned her name to James, he smiled and nodded.

Finding why Drew took the Professor's death the hardest: Carlton learned that the Professor was the only one instructor that Drew really had bonded with in undergraduate school. 'That would explain why he never came after the Professor for leads on the diamond,' Carlton realized when Shego led a weeping Drew from the podium after giving a most moving eulogy.

Seeing the entire Possible family, both James' and Slim's, all dressed in black, and seeing Dr. Wade Load in person for the first time with his parents and a young woman that he referred to as 'his intended,' looking a great deal like a younger, feistier Kimberly Anne. Anne, James' wife, even gave a short eulogy, thanking the Professor for 'waking James up to the obvious,' she laughed, joined by the entire room as James blushed.

Standing at attention at the gravesite as the rifles fired a salute, and a large man in a plain suit joined with a uniformed bugler and the two played 'Taps' expertly on the bugle, totally unknown or unplanned by Carlton.

Almost losing it, when the MIST President walked up to him and handed him a single calla lilly: "On behalf of a grateful school, sir," was all that was said, but he felt Mandy lean heavily against his leg, as if steadying him.

Dropping a large bill in front of a shocked Sandy, the hotel bartender, when he found James, Chen, Ramesh, Drew, Dr. Wong, Vivian, Anne, Shego, and several others, all sitting in the lounge area. "Tonight is on me, for Jefferson Flanagan, his lovely wife Joan, ad his daughter Kimberly Amanda," he announced. He reached over and grabbed a pro-offered drink from Sandy. "For friends and loved ones who will always be with us," he held his glass high, and it was echoed:

"For friends," echoed throughout the lobby as glasses clinked.

He and Shego drained two magnums of champagne that night and laughed the entire time. She got her biggest laugh when Sandy came out with a platter of blueberry muffin tops.

"We're here," Warren's announcement broke him from his thoughts as the vehicle pulled to a stop at the royal purple carpet. He and Mandy stepped out into the crisp morning air, and he took a deep breath and smiled. The sun was peeking over the land as it rose, and the moon was running away at full tilt. The sky held only a few clouds hostage, and it looked like it would be a beautiful day. He looked up, and Pamela stood in the doorway of his jet, smiling.

'She must have had a good time,' he thought as they walked the few steps to the steps and headed up to the escape capsule.

"I trust all went well, considering, Sir," Pamela started. "I am sorry for your loss: Jefferson was a brilliant and very funny man," she added as he turned to the cabin. He stopped, turned back, and smiled at her, and she returned a knowing smile and turned for the cockpit.

He let Mandy have an early morning shack on the plane before takeoff, so he had no time to talk to Pamela. Warren came onboard to tell him he would be driving the car back to Go City after they took off, and Carlton nodded absentmindedly as he fed Mandy. Warren smiled and deplaned.

After he'd fed Mandy and gotten comfortable, he touched the control panel, opening the circuit to the cockpit and Pamela's circuit.

"When do we depart, Pamela?"

"We're in the air after the Escape flight leaves, Sir," she replied.

"Did you have a good time, Pamela?"

"Oh, my, yes," she gushed, and Carlton could see the grin on her face in his mind. "My cousin and I had a lot of time to talk, for the first time in a long time. I was surprised to find that she used to envy me for my job," she continued.

"Why should you be surprised about that, Pam? You're good at what you do, and all of the airlines and private agencies would kill to get you. Trust me, I know," he laughed as they moved forward.

"Thank you, suh," her Southern accent from college and commuter airlines came out when she was even the tiniest bit flustered, and Carlton knew how to get under her skin at any time, after 10 years of her being his chief pilot.

"She did want to see the jet, so I brought her and her family out here to see it. I hope that they didn't leave any messes anywhere that I didn't find," she apologized, but he mentally waved it off as they moved into the first position.

"By the way, Pamela, you never told me your cousin's name. Perhaps I know her."

"I didn't?" she sounded surprised as she revved the engines for takeoff. "It's an easy name to remember, at least the first name is. And her married name is different, too, or at least not common," she added as the tower gave final clearance.

"What's her first name?" Carlton asked.

Pamela started the takeoff, pushing Carlton back in his seat as she replied, "Anne."

Story now complete

Author's afterward:

This is another cpneb roller-coaster of emotions, I'm afraid (insert evil grin here). I've brought the background characters out and, hopefully, answered some questions about them and events in the show and my JadeKimVerse.

For the original opening of this story (which began as an entry to one of Zaratan's contests): thanks to my betas JAKT, Star_Eva01, and Ran Hakubi, and one of my favorite inspirations, my other AG, Akinyi.

For the addition to the opening and the mid-section: my thanks to betas JAKT and Star_Eva01. kt, you rock in descriptions, and I can only dream of reaching your level one day.

I take full blame for the ending.

For those who have loved and lost....

2009.08.01