I don't own these characters. Disney owns them all, except for Trin, Shin, and Tatsu. But, other than them, Disney has the character game sown up.
3: Fight or flight
"Hey, chow's here!" Slim called through out the house.
The announcement was actually code to alert everyone that Nana Possible was back and they should come and greet her. Trin stood in her room doorway as she watched Shego tugged out by Kim to go meet Nana. Trin thought she was off the hook and she was even about to make fun of Shego, when the green-skinned witch suddenly grabbed her.
"You wicked bitch," Trin grumbled as she tried to break the former thief's grip.
"You know I don't believe in suffering alone, especially when someone I hate is so close by," Shego remarked while making sure to have a good grasp on the farsighted young lady.
"I will get you back for this," the blonde promised with a fierce glare as she was dragged to go greet Nana Possible.
Shego only scoffed. She actually had no idea what she might be pulling Trin into. She did not think anything of it because it was Trin's family. How bad could it actually be for the blonde?
Everyone went out to the front of the house. Trin stood behind everyone with her mother, making sure to look as insulted as possible to have to be present. The matriarch of the Possible family entered the house with her daughter and son-in-law. Trin scowled at the sight; more thorns in her and her mother's sides had arrived.
Shego remembered Nana Possible from when Drakken had the loopy plan of using senior citizens to take over the world after he mucked up his original plan. Honestly, that should have given her a clue that it was close to the time where she needed to get away from him. The elderly woman luckily did not seem to recollect Shego and greeted her politely when Kim introduced them. Nana also made a comment that it was about time that little Kimberly Anne stopped gallivanting around the world with some boy since it was so unladylike. Shego checked her watch; she needed to know what century they were in. She also noted that Nana Possible did not so much as look at Trin.
"Nana, you know that I'm not going to stop," Kim replied with a smile. Clearly, this was a little thing they did often.
"You really should. There are far better things you could do with your time," Nana seemed to reprimand Kim.
The petite hero rolled her eyes and decided to let her grandmother move on. She could almost enjoy her grandmother's presence somewhat as long as they did not talk at length. At least she introduced her grandmother to Shego without incident.
Kim then introduced Shego to her cousin Larry's parents; her aunt Liz and uncle Rocky. Her Aunt Liz, Eliza Possible-Rhodes, was a slightly tall woman with hazel brown eyes and short chocolate hair that was wavy and fell just to her shoulders. She had a slender figure and wore a powder blue sundress. Her husband was a muscular fellow of average height with ebony hair that was in a crew cut. He was dressed in a white t-shirt and tan shorts to show off his muscles. He had pure onyx eyes, which were as hard as stones.
Eliza and Rocky were both astrophysicists. Although they lived in Middleton, they worked outside of town at a large university. Rocky was also an astronaut in his spare time, having been to the International Space station on a number of occasions. Their resume did not impress Trin and it would not have impressed Shego if they got into it.
"Hey, my favorite little troublemakers," Rocky said to Jim and Tim and they all exchanged high-fives.
"Hey, Uncle Rocky. You've gotta meet Tatsu," Jim declared.
"She builds rockets," Tim added to let their uncle know why he needed to meet Tatsu.
"Tatsu?" Rocky echoed in a puzzled tone.
The twins' swiftly grabbed Tatsu, who tried to resist the pair. She hated meeting people, especially through force like the boys tried. She was going to grab for her lover, but she was not sure if it was an appropriate thing to do. She looked at the blond Possible as if pleading with her to intervene and Trin did what she could for her irked baby. She could not very well prevent Tatsu from meeting people since they were all going to be in the same house, but she would get her brothers to stop tugging on her baby like that.
"Guys, you shouldn't pull someone like that," Trin admonished her brothers, even though they always pulled on Tatsu when they wanted her to do something. It was just how they were because Tatsu was so cool in their opinions and they tended to get overexcited.
"Why not?" the pair asked in confusion as the blonde gently pried her brothers away from her girlfriend.
"Because it's rude," the eldest sister stated.
"Shrew," the twins huffed while crossing their arms over their chests to show that they were equally annoyed.
"I do know where you sleep," the blonde reminded her brothers and the boys gulped. That was one threat that always got to them because they would never forget the time they pulled a prank on Trin and then they woke up glued to their ceiling. She had told them with a triumphant smirk on her face, never mess with a chemist. Boy, she had gotten to some trouble on that one, but it stuck to her brothers' minds. They never pranked her on their own again.
"Same old Trin," Rocky muttered while shaking his head in a disapproving manner.
Trin rolled her eyes. "Mister Rhodes, this is my friend, Tatsu," the blonde introduced her girlfriend to her uncle. She would have liked to tell everyone that Tatsu was her lover, but she doubted they would react well and she did not want to cause any trouble for her parents. She honestly could care less about how the rest of the family acted.
Tatsu decided she was not impressed with the man because of the formal way that Trin had spoken to him. She did not think that anyone should address their uncle as "mister" unless something was seriously messed up. Even though she did not have any uncles or aunts, but Tatsu knew there was just something not right about the Possible family.
Actually, Trin had already told Tatsu that out of her extended family, only her uncle Slim accepted her and liked her. The others seemed to believe that she was evil incarnate, or at the very least partners in crime with evil incarnate considering what they had to think of Shin. She had never really done anything particularly bad around them, but she guessed that they got their perceptions of her from Nana Possible or they heard tales about her.
"So, you build rockets?" Rocky asked Tatsu. He acted like Trin was not even there anymore, which the blue-eyed young woman noticed and did not appreciate.
"No," the mechanic responded plainly. It was blunt, but it was also the truth. She did not build rockets. She merely took apart and pieced together whatever the twins put together when she was bored and waiting for Trin. She really had no interest in rockets unless they were on cars.
"Well then, what are the spuds talking about?" Rocky inquired with a raised eyebrow and a wrinkled forehead.
"She does build rockets!" the twins insisted. They had seen her do it, so they did not know what she acted like she did not.
"And they go way up in the air," Jim added.
"I think she actually sent a couple into orbit," Tim said with a strong nod.
"Oh, so, she's playing modest," Rocky commented with a smile as if he knew her and somehow knew how she was and why she would do something. Tatsu did not like the assumption.
Rocky and the twins started up a conversation on rockets, which began a conversation on aero-science. It was there that Shego found out that the whole Possible family, excluding two people, were into the mechanics, math, or physical makeup of outer space. Trin and Anne were the exception and they were also the only pair not into physics enough to have a casual conversation about the subject, even though it did not look like half of the family was making the effort to include them. There was more to the Possible family than met the eye, the ex-thief considered.
"And you voluntarily joined this clan, huh?" Shego remarked, speaking to Trin. The green-skinned female knew the story behind Trin. It was almost impossible to miss the story in Middleton, especially if Trin was in town. People actually talked about it like it was real news or really interesting. She did not think it was either considering how old it was.
Shego also noted around Middleton, they told Trin's story as if it was amusing. Now, Shego was not a soft person or emotional, but even she failed to see what was so funny about a child being abandoned in a mall by her birth parents. She could not see how people would find such a thing funny. She also did not see why people thought it suggested something was wrong with the child. If anything, it showed something was very wrong with the adults and Shego had to assume something was seriously wrong with the people of Middleton.
"Like you haven't," Trin replied about voluntarily joining the Possible clan.
Shego rolled her emerald eyes. She had not joined the family. She was only dating a member of the family. It was not the same thing, in her opinion anyway. And she would rather not join a family that thought physics was so great that they should sit down and converse about it at length.
"You mean you're not enjoying yourself?" Trin commented.
Shego scoffed. "Who could enjoy this?" She motioned to the conversation with her hand.
"Aren't scientifically inclined?" the blonde pointed out.
"It's one thing to be scientifically inclined. It's another thing to talk about it like it's a thing. Besides, who cares?" Shego threw up her hands. Yes, she was intelligent enough to follow the conversation and understand a lot of it, but really, who cared? They were not in a lab or in a university. They were supposed to be relaxing.
Trin shrugged and pointed to her family to answer the question of who cares. "Obviously." They watched for a few minutes.
"How long will this crap go on?" the moss-hued woman inquired, referring to the scientific discussion that was giving her a headache. "If I wanted to hear meaningless, scientific ranting, I would've stayed working with Drakken."
"I'll spar with you to take up some time. Come on," Trin offered as she walked off.
Shego followed behind the blonde because sparring sounded like a lot of fun right now. Tatsu followed because the conversation held no value to her and most of it gave her a headache, too. At this point, they all wished they had gone to Japan with Shin.
Anne did not stick around either. She had things to do for the week that she would be trapped in the ranch. And she did, indeed, feel trapped. Her predicament was something similar to how a ghost was trapped in a house; on occasion, a person seemed to notice she was there and might possibly interact with her, but even if no one paid her any mind, she still could not leave.
The Possible family tended to ignore Anne, which was fine by her. There was a time when they would not even do her that favor. If no one bothered her, then she would not bother anyone, much like her oldest daughter. Actually, now, even if someone bothered her, she pretended that the person was not there. It was easier to act like the person was not there than to get into a shouting match with four people.
The neurosurgeon went to retrieve her notebook computer and worked on an essay that she was writing for a medical journal. She stood out in the Possible family because of her MD. They were a treasure trove of PhD scientists and she was the one medical doctor among them. Considered a leader in her field, it still did not give an "in" with the Possible clan.
Trin believed the difference between her mother and the Possible family was what made most of the family treat her mother as if she were lower than the rest of them. She believed the Possible family thought that their science credentials topped her mother's medical expertise. The blonde liked to point out that there was more likely to be a medical emergency at a family gathering than a need to launch a homemade satellite in the air. Therefore, her mother was infinitely more valuable than everyone else, which she included herself there. She thought the world of her mother and she truly hated that anyone would try to downplay what the redhead did.
Anne had learned long ago to not think too much of how the Possibles felt about her because nothing would change their minds as far as she could tell. After all, they had thought poorly of her since before she even met them; they had only knew of her and looked down on her. She only needed the affection of a few Possibles – her husband, daughters, and sons were it. Everyone else was just there to her, except for Slim since he could tolerate her. It was pointless to acknowledge most of them anymore since she had put up with them for so many years.
-8-8-8-8-
"So, Trin, what's the big deal with this family? It's easy as hell to hate you, so I can see why they would, but why your mom?" Shego inquired while going at the blonde with a series of kicks that Trin finessed her way around.
They were at the side of the house and Tatsu sat off to the side on a fence post. She had called winner if they had the time. She doubted they would have time with the way the pair always fought each other.
"Why are you so nosy?" Trin countered, if only to be annoying.
Shego frowned and hit Trin with a plasma-charged fist. Trin laughed as the blow landed and a trail of blood trickled down out of her mouth. She liked how the former villainess worked – annoyance was met with violence. It was charming to her, but she did not understand why her little sister was attracted to the quality. Could it be that Kim was more like her than she liked to think? It was possible, she supposed. For whatever reason, this did not sit well with her.
"Going to spill now, Possible?" Shego inquired with an arrogant smirk.
"You keep hitting me like that and you're going to make my baby jealous," Trin remarked.
"It's not my fault Tatsu can't fight," Shego countered and she had to duck a rock, a big rock. Growling, she turned to glare at the mechanic. "Damn it, Tatsu! What's with you and throwing crap? It's like you're eight years old," she huffed. It did not help matters that Tatsu had good aim and if she had not had such keen senses, that rock would have cracked her right in the forehead.
Tatsu waved Shego off, dismissing her totally. The former thief turned her attention back to the fight. She dipped and ducked several punches from Trin and then jumped back to avoid a sweep kick. They danced for several minutes before there was a change.
Out of the blue, Trin explained her understanding in regards to what was up with the Possible family and the resentment toward her mother. "First and foremost, it should be said that I'm not entirely sure what the Possible women and Mr. Rhodes have against my mother. This is only through my observations, as my parents have never explained the actual problem. I think they're all just PhD snobs. They tend to look down on anyone without such a degree and they also take their careers in space much too seriously, looking down on anyone who did not work in or have an interest in their field."
Shego's brow furrowed. "I guess that explains why they don't like you and your mother, but it seems pretty damn petty."
"Just because you have vast intelligence doesn't mean you have depth."
"That's true, I suppose. Look at Dr. D, after all. Your uncle Slim and… what did he call your father? Oh, yeah, the Squirt. Slim and Squirt don't seem like they mind."
Trin shook her head. "I can't really explain why her father and uncle are different from the rest. Maybe her father just likes the fact that a gorgeous woman was interested in him and still is, so he could care less what career she was headed toward." She bet that many men would think the same thing if her mother showed some interest in them.
"I can relate to that," Shego laughed.
"I like to think that my father and my uncle are generally more open to new things, my uncle especially. I don't think he's met a person he didn't like, unless that person tried really hard."
Shego scoffed. "What about your dad and his thing with circus folk?"
"If you haven't figured it out yet, my father is odd. He says things about circus folk and show folks, but what were the odds of him coming into contact with them often? Even if he does, he would probably say something, but still give them help or be social. After all, he welcomes you into the house every time you show up." Trin was certain they were an affable pair of brothers. Shego rolled her eyes.
Really, the whole family seemed affable. Seeing the Possible family interact with other people, it was hard to get the idea that they were snobbish in any way, but when it came to Anne and Trin, civility was always thrown right out of the window. Well for them, and when the family decided that someone was not worthy of their great intellect. Trin had seen them often snub people they believed to be stupid.
The blonde supposed she could understand ignoring fools because who wanted to deal with stupid people? Shego was of similar thinking, but Anne was not stupid, so she did not see why the Possible family would look down on her. It was just clear the Possible family did not like the neurosurgeon because of the looks that they gave her, the fact that they seemed to outright ignore her, and purposely excluding her from things. This troubled Shego in the sense that she wondered if Kim had purposely failed to notice these things. She hoped her girlfriend was not suppressing.
"So, your uncle is cool with you?" Shego asked curiously.
"Yeah. He accepts me as one of the family, no blood relation necessary. In fact, he's the only one," Trin said.
Tatsu chimed in. "Not the only one. Your dad."
Trin smiled a bit. "Well, yes, my dad. Also, the same two people who accept my mom and will probably accept you both."
Slim and James were different from the rest of their family, though. Trin was not sure why her father and his brother were different. She had never heard the story of how her parents met, so she did not know what made her father fall for her mother and overlook the fact that she was going to be a medical doctor; aside from the notion that she was drop dead gorgeous of course. As far as her uncle went, she just chalked it up to the fact that the man was cool. He was just very understanding and it seemed that he believed that there was no reason for him to look down on anyone. He was just cool.
"So, the perfect family isn't so perfect," Shego laughed.
"Could you not be so smug about it? This is Kim's family, after all," Trin pointed out.
"One day you'll join it too," Tatsu pointed out, speaking to Shego.
The emerald-eyed female scoffed. "To hell with that. There's no place in this family for me, especially when they let this one in," she remarked while nodding toward her opponent.
Trin was going to say that they barely let her in, but she decided against that. She was a member of the Possible family whether they liked it or not. She would always be a Possible, no matter how much the extended family tried to push her out.
"You wouldn't like to marry Kim someday?" Tatsu asked Shego in a slightly confused tone since the pale woman claimed there was no place for her in the Possible family.
"Tatsu, could you stop being annoying? Don't put me on the spot like that. What the hell is with you talking suddenly?" Shego countered and the mechanic only smiled a little; evidently, she was just having some fun and purposely being irksome. The moss-hued woman decided to turn the tables on Tatsu because she could also be bothersome and she got a kick out of it too. "What about you? You're going to marry Trin?" she asked the blue-eyed female.
The mechanic looked away and pretended not to hear the question. She tried her best to maintain her composure to avoid blushing. She is such a girl when it comes to her sweetheart, Shego thought about Tatsu. It was a bit amusing to pick on the mechanic about her relationship with Trin because Tatsu was much like a schoolgirl in love.
At the moment, Tatsu was stuck in that weird mood where she was like a schoolgirl because she tried to imagine herself marrying Trin and also tried her best to not blush while thinking it. Her marry Trin? Wow, that would be quite a thing, she thought while smiling to herself. She was not sure if they had been going out long enough for her to consider such a thing, which she supposed might be true of Shego, too.
After all, Shego had been only dating Kim a fraction of the time that Tatsu had been dating Trin. But, there was also the fact that Shego had known Kim twice as long as she had known Trin. Maybe she was just thinking too hard on the matter, the mechanic conceded. She decided to stop thinking about it and just wait for her chance to fight.
Shego began to wonder about Kim now that the other couple had brought her up. She thought about how Kim had remained with the family to talk science. She wondered if she would have to put up with snobbery, even from Kim. So far, she had not seen any hints of such a thing, but the fact that Kim remained with that crew instead of following them struck her as odd. Did Kim like science more than martial arts? Did they have less in common than she had first thought?
"I've got winner," Kim declared with one hand in the air as she wandered out to the battlegrounds. She grinned as she reached them.
"I've got winner," Tatsu informed the redhead.
"Then I've got you," Kim replied with a playful smile as she nearly kicked Tatsu, but the mechanic moved out of the way just in time. It was amazing that Tatsu did not fall on her face as she got off of the fence post.
Shego guessed she worried too much from the way that Kim smiled while going after Tatsu. The ex-sidekick breathed a sigh of relief, though. She then focused back on her own fight as Trin punched her on the cheek.
"Pay attention," Trin smirked. Shego growled.
-8-8-8-8-
Next time: Dinner time and also a bit of the Spanish Inquisition.