Disney owns all, I am insignificant!
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Redemption – Epilogue
Ron rolled into Shego's room, to see her looking out the window.
"Hey, you're up!"
Shego looked over at him, a smirk on her face. "Six years as a villain, and one good deed makes me a hero. Looks like I even have a fan club!"
Shego indicated out the window, and Ron rolled over to take a look. He looked out on the crowd and saw a number of signs with Shego's name on it. Ron just smiled. Shego looked down at the brace on his leg, wincing slightly.
"How bad is it?"
"Oh, just a cracked fibula. I think that's the smaller bone anyways. I should be fine in a couple weeks, Doc just said to stay off it for a few days. How are you?"
"Few cracked ribs, minor concussion. I'm healing quick though. The cheerleader?"
"Broken left arm, and she's not happy. Says it will take her out of a good chunk of competition this year, not to mention missions. She'll be fine though. At least till we get to the mountain of homework Barkin is gonna lay on us. In his words, saving the world is no excuse to miss schoolwork. We also have detention for missing so much school."
Shego just laughed. "Sounds like someone I would like! What about our two ninjas? They seemed to be getting pretty comfortable when we loaded into the helicopters."
"A few minor sprains. They're pretty eager to get out of here though. They don't really like the publicity. They're gonna head back to Yamanouchi, help get things going again. I told them I'd drop by during the summer, bring Bonnie with me. You know, try to help out, get a little extra training in. What about Mego, he took off before I could talk to him?"
"He's going to try the solo hero thing for a bit, at least till Henry is back on his feet. I'll probably stop in some time, see how he's doing. He's surprised me the last few days."
The two sat there for a few minutes, just staring out the window.
"Shego… what are you going to do now?"
Shego just looked out the window, looking out over the crowd. "Not sure. Saw the morning news, they broke the story how I used to be a hero with my brothers, so there's not many in the villain community who are going to want to hire me. Guess it depends on what Drakken plans to do. Or I could go solo, that's been fun on occasion."
"That's what I wanted to talk to you about. Because of what you and Drakken did, I was able to talk to a few people and get you two full pardons on everything. It was actually easier than I thought. As for Drakken…"
Shego turned to look at him, a curious look etched across her face. "What?"
Ron just laughed. "Well, when word got out about how he helped, a dozen places came to him for interviews and… well, let's just say, he has several offers from scientific firms, as well as a few book deals, and last I heard, a TV deal was in the works!"
"Oh God, there will be no living with the man!"
"Yeah, but when I talked to him, I think he was planning on going straight. Something about finally getting the recognition he deserves."
Shego just smiled. "Yeah, that's pretty much what he always wanted, with the exception of dominating a country. I guess with his injuries, he's decided to settle for the recognition and money. Leaves me with the solo route I guess."
"Not necessarily. Drakken wanted me to talk to you about staying on, running missions like me and Bonnie and Kim do. He'd be your Wade."
Shego just looked over at him incredulously. "Are you serious? He wants me to be a goody-two-shoes? Are you sure they checked for brain damage?"
Ron just raised his hands defensively. "Not exactly like us! Drakken's talking contract work for pay. Bounty hunting, and that sort of thing!"
Shego's face lightened at that. "Yeah, I guess that could be good. At least it would keep me busy, keep me in the game."
Ron just smiled. "And maybe you could help out the odd time on a goody-two-shoes mission when we need the help? You know, so we could work together on occasion!"
Shego just smiled back at him. "Don't push your luck!" Shego paused, seeing the bags heavy under his eyes. "You didn't get much sleep, did you?"
Ron just frowned. "Couldn't. I kept thinking how if we had stopped him earlier, none of this would have happened."
Shego just placed a hand on his shoulder, looking down at him. "You can't do that to yourself! You did what you could, and you won. We beat the bad guy! Now, if I have to give you this bloody speech for a third time, I'm just going to kick your ass to make sure you listen! Got me?"
Ron looked up, a faint smile on his lips. "Yeah, I got it!"
"Good, now get out of here and get some sleep!"
"Yes ma'am!"
Ron rolled the chair out the door, pausing briefly to watch Shego look out over the crowd. When he got out to the hallway, he saw Bonnie standing there, cast on her arm.
"So, what did she say?"
Ron smiled. "I think she'll do it. What about you? How are you dealing with everything?"
Bonnie looked down briefly at her arm. "All right I guess. I'm really missing the telepathy though!"
"Haven't been able to get it to work again?"
Bonnie just shrugged. "Got a couple of brief flashes from you when I really tried, but I think it had more to do with Monkey Fist and what he was doing, plus all the time you've spent in my head. It's too bad, it really would have come in handy!"
Ron just laughed. "I bet! Then you could have figured out Upperton's cheer routine in advance!"
Bonnie just smacked him on the shoulder with her good arm. "You know I wouldn't do that… much!" She smiled down at him. "And now that we've got the whole group thing over with, you are going to get some sleep, even if I have to get the nurse to medicate you! And I hear the needles they use don't exactly go in the arm!"
Ron's eyes just widened at that. "Yes ma'am!"
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It was many months since she had begun lying there. Winter had come and gone, and spring was just lighting upon the mountains. The nights were still quite cool though, and the cloudless night sky shined down on her bed. She had had many visitors in that time, as evidenced by the number and cards and gifts and the fresh flowers by her bed.
Her hair did not have the same luster or bounce it once had, but it still cascaded down past her shoulders, carefully laid so she still looked beautiful to the eye. Her wounds had long since healed, even the scars had started to fade quite well. The beeping of the machines had been constant in all that time, never changing never ceasing. A sudden beep disturbed the months long rhythm, and then another.
Green eyes opened under that night sky!
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Author's Notes – Well folks, it's been a great run with this story. And yes, I promised "Recovery" would be next, but I have a couple things I want to do first. I've had a bundle of story ideas going through my head, and I have to work on them. I have been hankering for a prequel (don't know why, I usually hate them) that highlights Kim and Ron's relationship in the early going. As well, I'm planning a little "Dead Zone" crime piece starring Bonnie and Tara. I have a couple of one-shots planned as well. One highlights Shego, while another is a piece that will take place before Redemption called "The Bonds of Family" (Only one with a name right now, give me a day) highlighting Bonnie's relationship with her sisters.
I'd like to thank the following for their reviews;
demon-sword – Yeah, I enjoyed that. Remember, Monkey Fist just got the powers, he doesn't have experience. Bonnie has been working in her mind for a few months, she has a bit more experience with what she can do.
Mike9 – You're right, I'm not evil. Oh how can I live without myself? What do I have left? Oh yeah, everything else. OK, I'm good. And I like Buffy, I thought that was a very poignant scene!
Campy – She probably would have, but she didn't want to leave evidence. Not what everyone else thinks, but she does care what Ron thinks. She trusts him, and in some small way, doesn't want to disappoint him. But she had to do it.
mattb3671 – Rondo-killer… Rufus-killer… I just can't please some people! Glad you enjoyed!
Worker72 – As you see, I didn't forget.
