A/N (Announcement):

Next Update will be

12/01/2020

Thank You!


Flower Friendly


Shego could feel the warm sun against her skin despite the brisk morning breeze. She sighed contently and fondly absorbed the height of the Grecian summer morning, sipping the iced coffee drink that she'd eagerly awaited since the arrival of their new coffee bar the day prior. She stretched out on her tanning chair and hummed in contentment.

"Isn't this the life?" she asked, tilting her head to watch for a reply.

Her eyes fell to the glass of water on the small outdoor end table. The little blue flower jumped out of the glass as if in agreement with her. She smirked and closed her eyes. She was glad she'd chosen to sunbathe on the top half of the lair near her window. While all the flowers were generally connected and similar, the ones outside her window had become more familiar to her, particularly the small blue one. Logically she knew there was no difference, but since she was living with semi-sentient flowers...logic could be ignored.

She heard the patio door below open and felt her expression become devious. She could hear the shifting and rustling of vines as they anticipated Drakken's approach. Something else she had found useful was they often let her know when he was awake or when he had fallen asleep in the lab. They were like floral monitors that also perfumed the lair. The sound of footsteps coming up the side of the stone deck came before his voice.

"Shego!?" He sounded agitated. "Where are you—what are you doing?"

Shego didn't bother to open her eyes.

"What does it look like I'm doing?" she shrugged.

"Shego. It's the middle of the week and I need your help in the lab," he whined. She continued to smirk calmly. "Shego?"

"I heard you... But if you remember...Sunday you needed my help rearranging the lab because you felt it was stagnating your ideas. I think I'm entitled to a morning of tanning." Shego took another sip of her drink. "You can join me if you like."

There was a pause save for the sound of the flowers dragging over another lawn chair.

"I'm not in the mood," grumbled Drakken. Shego tilted her head and finally opened her eyes to look at him.

He'd walked to her left to stand on the other side of the seat that had been crudely dragged over. His brow was furrowed and he held an expression of annoyance...but not toward her. His eyes were alternating between the chair, her drink, the gallon of water she had under the small table, and towards the waters. The fact that the flowers had dragged over the seat countered his statement.

"Did something happen in the lab?" sighed Shego. "Did you set something on fire again—"

"That Bunsen burner was faulty," he snapped. He grumbled under his breath before walking around the lawn chair to sit on the side next to her. "I got offered a new project—"

"I told you to say no," scoffed Shego. "Or give it to me so I can say no. You have like...twenty."

"I wanted this one." He stomped his foot and flopped back on the chair. "They offered it to me even over Dr. Bortel!"

Shego raised her brow.

"So...this is...happy whining?" she gestured. "Explain."

She sat up and watched him shift his jaw and grumble, his brow knitting further as he looked for words she was sure.

"It's for a highly advanced mood ring—"

"Like that Mood-U-Lator thing...? Are you kidding me—" He cut her off.

"No." His eyes shot wide and he shook his head. "I'm mad, not deranged. Apparently it affects moods around you to mirror your own. There's a few bugs in it they wanted worked out and need a fresh pair of eyes."

"So...you can't figure it out?" Shego was getting more confused, but Drakken sat back up.

"No. They can't find it," Drakken sighed. "The fool of a scientist with it let it get swiped by his now ex-fiancée."

Shego nodded understanding but couldn't help but smirk.

"Huh...swiped? Interesting. How long were they together?" asked Shego.

Drakken shrugged.

"I don't know...why?"

"Well," Shego mused, "strange that a high-tech piece of jewelry got stolen from a scientist... Unless she was a rival scientist..."

"Didn't sound like it." Drakken seemed to be trying to follow her. "Think he got duped by a villain?"

"Maybe. Have a name?" asked Shego.

"Shea Valentine...or Christmas... No, Valentine," Drakken shrugged. Shego thought for a moment, the name ringing a few bells.

There were several things springing to life in her head before they fell on the most recent one—the very thing she'd been reading that morning.

"The ball," stated Shego. "That's a name on the guest list... You should tell the people who are offering... Then you can get your new toy."

She heard him make a 'tsk' sound as she relaxed back again.

"It's not a toy Shego. It's a highly advanced piece of technology— Uhg, what's in this?" she heard him gag.

Shego looked over to see Drakken had drunk the glass of water and smirked at the small blue flower standing up as if annoyed. She snorted and took the nearly empty glass from Drakken and slid it back to the small flower.

"Hope you had a headache," she sighed. "That had aspirin in it."

There was a pause.

"Why?" he sputtered. "Since when does that taste sweet?"

"That was probably sugar or pollen." Shego reached under her chair and pulled up her discarded book. "It's good for flowers... Lucky I didn't make the acidic cocktail."

He took the heavy book from her and stood up to flip through it.

"A guide to tropical plant care?" Drakken's expression was unreadable as he glanced at her. "You're reading about...taking care of the vines?"

Shego shrugged and waved a hand around her.

"Since it's been decided we have a garden now, one of us should know how to take care of them. As resilient as you claim them to be...they still need proper nutrition," she scoffed, and grabbed the jug below to add more water to the cup. "Here you go, Peri."

"Shego, I— Did you call that flower 'Peri'?" Shego saw what had been becoming a relaxed smile turn into a scowl. "You're naming them?"

"Pfft, no," declared Shego. "Just Peri."

"...Just...the one?" Drakken blinked. "Or all the blue ones?"

"Just this one," she shrugged. Peri wove around her hand in appreciation of the water. "He's my little buddy."

She smirked at Drakken and nearly snorted as he narrowed his eyes at the tiny blue flower entangling her hand.

"Why?" asked Drakken. She fought a laugh.

"Are you jealous of a flower?" she scoffed. "Wow."

"I am not." Drakken's expression shifted to one of forced calm. "Just curious why it's favored over the others."

"Eh, he's more social and he's a different color," Shego mused. Drakken looked confused.

"He's the same shade of blue as all the other blue ones," Drakken gestured around them as he resumed his seat. He glared at the flower. "Go away."

Shego watched it and the others shift away and she scoffed again.

"Rude, much," she shook her head. "Wow, jealous of a flower... This is new."

"I am not jealous of a flower," he grumbled. "Besides, they are extensions of me in a way, so there would be no need to be jealous. I control them."

Shego rolled her eyes and suppressed a laugh as she felt the tickle of petals against her arm as the small blue flower crept to hide against her on the opposite side. She smiled and nodded at Drakken, well aware the flower was slowly creeping into view. Drakken's smug expression fell as he saw the flower weaving to her other hand.

"I have hedge clippers," he hissed at it and Shego burst into laughter as the flower flew back to its normal resting place on her sill.

"Leave it alone," she chuckled. "Besides, as you said... They're an extension of you. I mean...you could hold my hand, instead of thinking about it so much."

She watched Drakken's complexion darken around his cheeks. Before she could reach for his hand, he was up again. She sighed as he headed towards the stairs until she heard him stumble and raised her brow before looking to see Flower had taken over his seat to bask in the sun. Drakken stood behind the chair with his arms crossed and glaring at his appendage with disdain. Shego bit her lips to stop the words coming from her mouth, but it didn't last long as Drakken's glare turned to her.

"So...are you going to pretend not to want to relax with me...or are you going to join me and not have your own flowers fight you?" asked Shego as she put her sunglasses back up and stretched out. "It's a nice, relaxing view."

There was a pause.

"I don't know about relaxing, but it's a very nice view," he muttered. Shego looked at the water through her shades before she swung around to look at him.

Drakken's eyes shot from her to the water as he cleared his throat.

"Eh, I have a phone call to make," Drakken hastened as he yanked Flower from its spot.

Shego grinned as she watched Drakken practically stumble down the steps before relaxing back into her spot. She couldn't shake the smile from her face, nor the extra heat to her cheeks. She considered actually going to the lab for a few minutes until she felt the flowers shifting back towards her at Drakken's departure. The little blue one returned to its water and the others wove back under her chair, the other seat quickly being filled with them as well.

"Well, at least someone wants to join me," she sighed. In a sudden movement they all recoiled and she heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

"Shego!" Drakken slid behind her chair, grinning. "An idea occurred to me."

"Why am I concerned," Shego sighed. She turned in her seat to look at him. "What?"

"What if...we cut out the middle man," he hastened and began pacing. "I'm sure if I suggested it, there would be no kerfuffle. Since we're going to the ball anyway..."

Shego inhaled a hiss before making an over-dramatic apologetic expression.

"I was actually going to ask Dean," she teased. Drakken gave her an eye-roll before continuing.

"Moving on," he grumbled. "Well if this Valentine woman is there...I doubt it'd be hard to...bump...into her."

Shego looked at the devious expression ticking on Drakken's face before feeling a swell of excitement rushing through her as it registered.

"Are you suggesting another heist?" she nearly whispered as her chest pumped.

Drakken gave a casual nod.

"Perhaps... I mean I will have to clear—" Shego cut him off.

"We're doing it," she stated firmly, small fractured images of the first heist speeding behind her eyes.

"I have to—"

"If they say no?" she asked. Drakken swayed in his spot for a second before his expression became practically villainous.

"We're still doing it," he stated.

Shego felt the wave of excitement crash over her as she mirrored his expression, the images of music, deviousness, and thrill swimming through her as she sat up on the chair to lean over the back. Drakken had begun ranting about making calls and methodical planning, but Shego didn't hear a word. Her excitement was too high at the thrilling idea. Her hand found Drakken's coat collar and she yanked him towards her. His last statement about decoys was cut off as her lips silenced his.


NOW! Onto some scheming!