MAJOR love at bcbdrums for all their help!
Set-Backs
Shego glared at the several burnt bags of popcorn, and then at her hand as her nails tapped on the counter. Perhaps she had been too angry and unfocused as she heated them. She sighed as she tossed the most recent bag in the trash and warmed up her hand again as she looked at the last two. She tried to let the past two days' set-backs fade away so she could focus.
After a very pointed phone call the morning after the first freezing night they had waited all of Friday for the electricity to be turned on. There had been no generators available to steal in the meantime—none that were strong enough to power the lair or even half of it, to be more precise. They hadn't bothered getting a smaller one for essentials either because the power should have resumed by that evening. But Friday came and went...and no power. Several ill-received threats later had Shego wondering if they would even turn it on by Monday, as Drakken had predicted.
Shego had no idea what had possessed her to not simply go get them a hotel room, budget be damned... She'd insisted they stay in the lair. It seemed simple enough as it had already gotten late and she wasn't keen on another windy winter flight in the dark. Not to mention that Drakken had still been seeing double for part of the day. So another freezing night went by.
They'd spent all of Saturday in the lab finding more light sources and working on a list of projects he'd been re-thinking, trying to make the best of a bad situation. Things got worse that evening. The temperature had continued to drop as the night went on and was seriously making her regret her hesitation to travel. She also regretted the copious amounts of ice cream she had indulged in. It hadn't helped.
"Shego, where do you keep your blankets?" asked Drakken. He leaned into the kitchen with his lantern in hand.
"In my closet...why?" Shego's eyes narrowed.
"Well. We both agreed to move into the living-area nook because it's warmer than the rest of the lair... More blankets couldn't hurt," said Drakken.
"Fair enough. Grab a few more pillows, the couch isn't that soft," shrugged Shego. "I'm finishing up the popcorn."
"I see..." He looked at the trash can with a raised brow. He looked to her and then headed out without another word.
"If you're going in your room, don't fall again!" Shego yelled after him.
She heard him shout something back but couldn't distinguish it. She glared in reaction. She wasn't about to relive that for the fourth time in two days. His stitches may have held up, but all the impromptu dips were pushing it. His whining hadn't been helping her small headache from the cold either.
It's too cold and I'm not dealing with it.
A short while later Shego had finally gotten a bag of popcorn at the right temperature... Close enough, anyway. As she approached the small living area she could see the glowing lantern lights. It wasn't their normal area; it was the henchmen's break one. Much smaller and tucked away near the entrance they had once used, it was more of a mud room with an area rug and some chairs and a beat up sofa if she was being honest. For some reason it had kept most of its warmth compared to the other parts of the lair. Though, she pondered if Drakken just hadn't wanted to share a bed with her for a third night.
At least he didn't try that juvenile pillow wall like at the motel.
She froze as she rounded the corner.
"What are you doing?" asked Shego as she walked back into the living area.
Drakken looked up from where he tossed a sheet over the armchairs. She could clearly tell what he was doing: he was avidly making a blanket-fort in the small nestled living area of their villain lair. She could see he'd gathered all the pillows and blankets he had been able to find while she'd gone to make popcorn. Even though it was obvious, she really just wanted to hear 'Evil Dr. Drakken'...tell her he was building a child's play-fort in their supposedly 'evil' lair. She raised a brow.
"What does it look like I'm doing, Shego," he said, rolling his eyes. "I am securing a warm location to avoid freezing to death."
"By?" She placed the popcorn down.
"Making a well-insulated cave..." he muttered under his breath.
"Drakken?" she sighed.
"Fine. Shego...I'm making a fort," he snapped as he aggressively tied a sheet.
"Uhmhm... Is it an evil fort?" Shego asked with a smirk.
"Why must you constantly try to vex me so?" He narrowed his eyes at her.
"Entertainment... Your facial expressions... It brings me slight joy," responded Shego with a slight smile. "So is this a 'No Girl's Allowed' fort? Because I see my bedding has also been harvested."
"Why would there be no girls allowed?" Drakken looked confused.
"Typical little boys always do that," said Shego. "I made one for 'No Boys Allowed."
"When Eddie and I used to make them the only rule was we couldn't bring anything flammable," said Drakken with a shrug as he yanked at the sheet again. "Honestly, I think Eddie hoped girls would join... But that was mostly our cardboard tent spaceship."
"I hope there are pictures at your mother's for validation of that," said Shego as she opened the flap of the sheet fort. "How did you get a mattress in here?"
"...I carried it," said Drakken with an eye-roll. He yanked out his hair tie and used it to secure the sheets he'd given up on tying.
"I went to make popcorn. How did you get all this and a mattress in here...from across the lair?" questioned Shego.
"I used the sheets to make giant knapsacks to carry all the sheets and pillows... Then I went back for the mattress... Why did it take you so long to make the popcorn?" Drakken's expression shifted from informative to curious.
"I don't want to talk about it," said Shego as she climbed into the blanket fort. "It's a little small in here."
"Ohm, I can readjust it I guess." Shego heard him sound nervous.
Shego slid across the blue sheet-covered mattress as she held up her glow to see around her. She found a lantern and clicked it on. There were pillows along the back and he'd even used sheets to double-insulate the walls. It was a noticeable difference in temperature. The lair was steadily losing heat but one wouldn't have noticed in here. The mattress was round so it was the one off his bed, which made sense. He'd probably rolled the thing all the way there. She wondered how many things were now broken throughout the lair because of it.
"No, it's fine... Did you want me to bring the pillows in?" asked Shego as she leaned out the flap.
"You get them and I'll grab the rest of the snacks." She saw the jovial grin ghost over his face as he sprinted towards the food she'd set out earlier.
"You're a child. You know that, right?" asked Shego as she slid the pillows in.
"She says as she creates a pillow-fortress inside no doubt," retorted Drakken as he knelt down at the entrance. A pillow hit him in the face. "Hey!"
"What did I tell you about narrating things?" Shego said with a glare.
"To only do it when we're mocking others?" He raised a brow. "You are 'others.'"
"I said when we're mocking others...not each other," said Shego as she in fact made a pillow-fortress for extra insulation.
"The popcorn is a little burnt," muttered Drakken as she heard crunching. Shego glared.
Shego shoved the final pillow into place and looked around the colorful fort of green, red, and blue. She rolled her eyes at the Christmas colors around her. They really needed more color diversity; half of the blue and green were hers.
She saw a thick purple blanket tossed to the side. Drakken moved in front of it and plopped down and handed her a mildly-warm water bottle. Drakken was grinning as he looked around and she rolled her eyes and smiled.
He's such a child sometimes...
"This turned out better than I hoped." He flopped back on one of the many pillows. "This should hold us over for the night. In the morning we'll look at a hotel till Monday."
"You did well," responded Shego as she took a handful of popcorn.
"So what did your forts look like? Lots of ponies and Barbie blankets?" asked Drakken as he turned to lean on his hand.
"I think you're describing yours," said Shego, mirroring him on her side. She shrugged. "I don't really remember."
"How do you not remember?" inquired Drakken. "I mean, I remember my favorite one..."
"Is this going to be a storytelling thing again?" groaned Shego as she fell back against her pillows. "I'm feeling tired..."
"But...the snacks..." she heard him mutter.
"Do what you want," she scoffed as she pulled her pillow closer.
She heard Drakken sigh.
"You're right. It's late," Drakken fell silent. "'Night, Shego."
Shego heard the click of the lantern and the light vanished. She felt herself release a deep sigh as she looked into the darkness. She thought about the blanket fort around her and imagined a little Drakken making one with his younger cousin. Her mind faded back to Thanksgiving, to all the photos and the story of Stumpy.
Her mind raced back to all their storytelling the night they'd spent in the hotel after the hover car had stopped functioning. Mostly due to the rain that Drakken had caused with his 'Drakken-Gia' failure. The had mostly talked about their young adult years and their dark stories. She narrowed her eyes further in the dark because she really wanted to know about his favorite fort. But then she would need to share back like they had before.
She shifted and felt a blanket tossed carelessly over her in the darkness. She heard the lantern fall over and Drakken hastily grab for it as it rolled against her back. He blindly snatched at it and she jumped as his hand groped her rear in the dark. He yelped, and the whole fort seemed to shift as he must have jumped back, realizing what he had grabbed. Her face felt warm and she didn't ignite her hand in the dark for that purpose alone. She didn't know how to react. A few months ago she would have plasma blasted him out of the fort. A few weeks ago she would have made a suggestive comment. At the current moment...she had nothing.
"Sh-Shego?" she heard him whisper.
Shego chose to say nothing. He was testing to see if she was asleep or hadn't noticed. It seemed like the perfect plan, actually. She felt the lantern yanked from her back and Drakken settle back down into his spot. Yes, pretending to be asleep would have been the perfect way to move on with the evening's close quarters. But as he sighed with relief she felt the deviousness sneak back into her and she smirked.
"Geesh Doc. At least buy me dinner first." She heard him groan. She flared her hand. "I really don't consider Oreos buying me dinner."
"Shego! Ohm." He looked at the lantern and held it up sheepishly. "I was reaching for this... I-I ohm—"
"Relax, I know," sighed Shego as she turned around to face him. "I'd hope if it was intentional it would have been a bit more of a substantial grab."
"Oh...ohm." She watched his expression go through a series of switches before settling on relieved. "I'm surprised you didn't hit me."
"Puh-lease," she sat up and groaned, "it's you."
She felt her stomach give a sour twist at her own words. She didn't look at him to register the relief she was certain would make its way across his face. But saying it out loud felt like she'd slapped herself in the face. It was Drakken. Drakken's who had given her a look of relief when she'd lied and told him she'd kissed him as a joke. Who'd spent a whole week avoiding her flirtations and finding them annoying. The idea of him being worried that his accidental graze was something more than an accident was almost hilarious. She snorted.
"What do you mean...'it's me'?" Drakken looked annoyed as she looked up at him.
Shego raised a brow in confusion.
Why does he look so offended?
"What's your problem?" scoffed Shego. "Are you upset I didn't blast you?"
"Well no... It's just," he looked sheepish, "I am a human being... I could have intentionally grabbed your...you know. Just like any other man...or woman."
"You can't even say ass," Shego chuckled. "Don't be so offended. It's just...you're about as likely to grab my ass intentionally as Junior is to wear knockoff sunglasses to fashion week."
"I'm not offended. Just... You know what? Never mind. I thought we were going to bed." He yanked his blanket around him.
"...Drakken." She heard him mumble, and she smirked. "Do you...want to grab my ass?"
"I am done talking about this... Good night," he hissed.
"Don't say I didn't ask," she chuckled.
Shego felt her smirk fall and she sighed as she let her hand's light fade. She wasn't exactly tired if she was being honest. She slid out of the blankets and back out into the lair. The temperature had indeed dropped since they'd gone in their fort. She shivered as she lit her hand to walk. She honestly didn't know what she was doing. Looking for a magazine? A puzzle? There was no power so her heat lamp was out of the question and she couldn't sleep. Her mind shifted back to trying to figure out Drakken, which was a dead end, and then to the fort, where it was warm. She hated the part of her that wanted to run back into the fort and have him tell stories she didn't know how to relate to.
The only stories Shego had were ones he already knew, or more about her life in Team Go. She opened the still-cold fridge and grabbed some water. She put it back and grabbed a bottle of wine ...then two. She took a sip and then spit it out; it had not held up. She tossed the bottles in the sink and gave way to more ice cream...which she told herself not to... It was more like a milky, flavored soup at the moment. She glared at the wine bottles and sighed. No wine floats to be had.
He got me into those things and he doesn't even eat them... Wonder where he got the idea—
Shego sighed. She really did want to know about his stupid forts because of how elaborate and detailed he'd made this one. She had only vague recollections of having one of her own, once. She knew it wasn't well-constructed and it fell in on her. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on it. She imagined pink and Barbie blankets...which she knew weren't right. She tried to remember what she looked like when she was around seven or so... Did she have shorter hair? She heard a familiar woman's voice telling her it was bedtime...and a vague fuzzy image of a man opening her curtained door... It collapsed. She'd been angry, but there was laughter.
Shego stabbed at her ice cream and took a deep breath. She glared into the darkness. She knew there were memories... Remembered them here and there... But there was nothing to validate her thoughts. She didn't have pictures like Drakken and Motor Ed. She didn't have family gatherings and funny stories. She felt her shoulders fall and she felt a wave of emotions fighting her physically. Perhaps that's why she enjoyed Drakken's family gatherings so much... Why she'd even liked her brief stay at the Possibles's...maybe... She shook her head.
Maybe I just need to stop being bored and overthinking.
She saw light coming down the hall and looked up to see Drakken walking into the kitchen. She snorted at the sight of the lamp light illuminating him as he wore the purple blanket like some sort of cocoon. He looked agitated as he looked at her, but his expression changed.
"Shego, are you okay?" His face softened.
"I'm fine." She rolled her eyes, realizing she probably didn't look it. "I'm just bored."
"Oh, is that all..." He looked hesitant but seemingly chose to believe her. "Did you want me to leave you alone?"
"No. I need something to kill time," said Shego. "Want to tell me about your fort?"
"...Not if you're going to patronize it." His brow furrowed.
"I won't. Tell me about your favorite fort," Shego said with a shrug, kicking a chair out so he could sit down.
"Shego...aren't you cold?" asked Drakken looking at the chair and ice cream.
"Yes," she nodded and took another bite of her mushy ice cream before moving to toss it into the sink as well. "And this is starting to curdle."
"Well then why don't we go eat those snacks—not the popcorn—and I'll tell you about the Rocket, the best fort." He shrugged. "I'm not tired... I just didn't want to wander around in the cold looking for things to do like some people... Wait...you said you were tired?"
"You grabbed my ass," said Shego calmly.
"...So fort stories then?" Drakken chose to move on. The correct choice.
"Fine," she sighed as she walked passed him. "But dibs on the Oreos... There's only six of them..."
"Oh...are there," said Drakken calmly as he walked beside her.
The blanket was promptly tossed over her head and she heard Drakken run.
"Not if I get them first!"
Shego stopped walking and yanked the blanket off her and glared.
"Seriously Drakken! How old are you?" she growled as she stomped after him. "If you eat all of them...so help you..."
Several small arguments and a partially collapsed fort later… the two had decided to split the remaining cookies and go over some of Drakken's old plans. Shego let out a sigh as he continued to argue a point that could not be made.
"What if—" Drakken began.
"Still no," sighed Shego. "What is it with you and robot armies?"
"Less variables than human armies and mind control has proven to be less than favorable." Drakken rolled his eyes and leaned back on his pillow.
"I'll give you that," shrugged Shego as she sat on her half of the fort. "Did you want the last cookie?"
"After you chucked me into a wall for it?" Drakken said with a scowl.
"Fine... I asked—" Shego smirked as Drakken grabbed the cookie as she reached for the tray. "Okay, so far we have discussed robot armies, water tampering, mass hysteria, and...still my favorite... giggle butterflies."
"That was a joke," stated Drakken.
"Uhmhmm. Sure it was," smirked Shego. "Why don't we plot when you're not fueled on sugar and possible head injuries?"
"You're the one who made me hit the wall," Drakken retorted.
"Fort story. Now." Shego lay down and snuggled her pillow. "Dazzle me with tales of...The Rocket."
"The Rocket was a fort we set up in the garage. It was massive—half boxes, half sheets. My grandmother even helped us by putting a hole in the roof for star-gazing."
"I can't imagine your Nana doing that," said Shego, imagining the woman she'd met at Thanksgiving.
"No. Not Nana. My grandmother Pru. She was my father's mother," Drakken said with a smirk. "She always helped Eddie and I with our whims. She was also the reason nothing flammable in the forts was a rule... She gave us a lot of science kits...probably not intended for children. That's probably why we liked them."
"So as opposed to volcanoes and slime...?" Shego questioned.
"We made a flame thrower when I was eleven," Drakken said with a shrug.
"Was that a factor in the tree house fire in the tale of Stumpy?" asked Shego. Drakken didn't make eye contact.
"She helped us come up with a lot of inventions... Sometimes I'd get inspiration from the stories she told," said Drakken. He was ignoring her question completely now.
"Anything worthwhile?" asked Shego, eating some of the questionable popcorn.
"Her inventions were more for the better of the world...not the dominance." Drakken shrugged again. "Even her bedtime stories about Dr. Drakken always ended with him doing good."
"Morality stories... Wait what did you say?" asked Shego. Drakken shook his head. "Did you steal your villain name from a bedtime story?"
"Hey. He was terrifying! He was the most feared character in the story, right down to his clawed gloved hand that would stitch people up or tear them to pieces," grumbled Drakken.
"What kind of morbid children's stories were you told?" asked Shego with a raised brow.
"It wasn't like that... More often than not he was feared but he wasn't exactly evil... He was always trying to save people from their own stupidity," scoffed Drakken. "I think my grandmother made him up because she couldn't do the same."
"No ideas?" asked Shego.
"No. She used to make tons of things... But from what my uncle told us she had a horrible lab accident when she was in practice. It resulted in her having limited dexterity in her hands.. it also made it difficult for her to read or write after because of mild head trauma... Still the stories and ideas she told us. Brilliant." Drakken looked dreamy-eyed for a second. "Nothing evil though. Pity."
"Couldn't you just make the opposite of what she had intended to make?" asked Shego. Drakken sat up.
"Possibly..." he muttered under his breath. "I'd have to try to remember them... Maybe if I told you her stories..."
"Maybe someone should finish one story first. The Rocket, remember?" Shego shook her head.
Drakken pouted. Shego rolled her eyes and continued with a soft smile.
"We're going to be at a hotel for the next day or two... Waste my time, then."
"Sounds fair." Drakken shrugged. "Actually, we should probably be getting to sleep—"
"I want to hear about this stupid cardboard fort," snapped Shego.
"It's just a fort Shego... It was just made of cardboard that we painted to look like outer-space inside...and we had a skylight... We tried to make a zero-gravity chamber but Eddie just ended up in the hospital," sighed Drakken. "Honestly, now that I say it out-loud...it really wasn't that amazing... I'm sure you and your brothers had better."
"Did it have glow-in-the-dark stars?" asked Shego. "Elaborate."
Shego listened to Drakken sigh and then start trying to recall all the details about the massive cardboard fort. How it took up half the garage, Eddie getting stuck in their window that was made out of plastic containers and duct-tape, the scary time his uncle had dressed up as an alien and climbed on the roof to scare them, how they had attacked him with a hose...and then they had to rebuild a part of the fort.
Shego tried to picture herself there if only to will her own memories. She both hated and was fascinated by tales and pictures of Drakken's childhood. She hated the fact they were seemingly uninteresting and made her feel uncomfortable about her own lost memories. She'd spent most of her early teen years trying to piece foggy memories together...but it was always that. Fog, voices, feelings, and scents...but no distinct memories... And no pictures to solidify the ones she could recall. She hated that. She looked at Drakken smirking as he talked.
Drakken let his reminiscence fade away. He was certain Shego was bored by his ramblings about an old cardboard fort that was held together with tape, glue, and some questionable wood in some spots. Honestly it was a giant death trap if he really thought about it. Her eyes were closed and her face held no expression. He let his voice fade and decided he must have lulled her to sleep. He silently turned off the lights and pulled the blanket up around him.
She did have a good idea with trying to make good inventions bad...
His mind was just about to start delving into those mental stories when the light flared back on.
"What was that? You just started telling me about having Eddie's birthday party and how you got trapped in the damn thing... Suspense much," snorted Shego.
"I thought I'd bored you to sleep," said Drakken in defense.
"Wouldn't be the first time," she muttered. "But you could at least finish. You and...what's-her-name got stuck in the cockpit part of the box because some dumbass blocked the flap."
"The dumbass's name is Eddie and it was because he liked Shawna and thought I'd annoy her enough to make her like him," said Drakken with an eye-roll.
Honestly...what idiotic logic.
He smirked.
"Joke was on him though." Drakken felt smug. "We ended up kissing."
"Excuse me?" asked Shego. She smirked. "All right, Dr. D... Some fort make-out sessions. I'm all ears."
"Shego, I was twelve. It was a kiss...not a make-out session." Drakken rolled his eyes. He smiled though. "Turns out, Eddie had been picking on her all week. That's why she kept hanging around me, because I kept telling Eddie to bug off... I even locked him in the attic because he kept interrupting us talking about space camp."
"Hold up. This girl... Shawna? Hung around you guys a lot... She actively indulged in your rants about space camp...which I will remember for a later date to use against you...and followed you everywhere?" asked Shego.
"To avoid Eddie," corrected Drakken.
"No. Drakken. If she wanted to avoid Eddie, she would have gone home. Shawna had a crush on dorky space camp Drew...and kissed him the first chance she got without everyone around," snorted Shego. "Please tell me you knew that?"
"...I... Well thinking back...that does make sense." Drakken felt a little flustered. "How did I miss that?"
"So what happened after the kiss?" asked Shego. "Did you guys go around holding hands? Pass notes in class?"
"Well...no. It was both our first kiss so we were just awkward for a few days... Then I decided to pretend nothing happened because of how weird she was acting... We never talked about it," sputtered Drakken. His face felt warm. "I don't think she had a crush on me, Shego."
"Oh my— Yes...yes she did," Shego groaned. "You have always been the least-observant person... It's not a new thing, it seems... Was she cute?"
"Well...I thought so," said Drakken. A pillow hit him.
"When a girl kisses a boy when he is being an absolute nerd...she likes the boy." Shego rolled her eyes. "No wonder your childhood bedroom is still a virgin."
"On that note...good night," Drakken hit the light and a green silhouette of her face looking across the bed at his remained briefly in the dark.
He heard her sigh as his own mind ran. He didn't want to talk about his bedroom, his crushes, or kisses...especially with her. He glared. She had some nerve telling him that, especially after she'd kissed him for a simple joke to push his buttons. He shook his head in the darkness. He wasn't going down that road again. He had finally shaken it from his head, and it was not worth dwelling on. He felt her tap his shoulder.
"What?" he muttered, waiting for more sarcasm.
"So...did you ever make out in The Rocket?" asked Shego.
"No... Eddie broke it down with a rogue four wheeler that next summer." Drakken rolled his eyes. "People only make out in forts in questionable child-themed teen movies. Why, is that what you did when you had forts?"
"No," she said quickly. "Seems a shame, really. Perfect place for that... Lost in an imaginary private world... Just two people..."
"That's probably why people think it happens," grumbled Drakken.
"Hey Drakken..." Why did she sound so quiet?
"What?" sighed Drakken.
"Do...do you want to make out?"
"Good night!" snapped Drakken. It was silent.
Drakken pulled the blankets snug to him and slammed his eyes shut. He heard her give a soft laugh and he decided sleep was the best option right then. He forced it out of his thoughts and tried to focus on nothing. Nothing turned to something...then to another thing...and another. His mind was mentally organizing his lab for some reason. It was focusing on anything other than Shego and her snide little joke...
She made everything into a joke when it came to him.
Time seemed to tick by. He should be asleep. Drakken looked into the darkness. He knew Shego was two feet away from him and his thoughts were running wild. He was thinking about her question now. She'd asked him to make out and he wasn't sure if she'd been joking. She had laughed. He could never tell with her, and it drove him crazy. He growled inwardly at himself. Why was she getting to him like this more often? Her jokes and fun at his expense had started to change the last few months, if he was being honest.
He felt her shift and tug his blanket over her, along with her own. He narrowed his eyes and shifted a little so he didn't lose the inch or so she'd taken. It happened again...and again he moved.
He brought his hand up to rest under his cheek and started trying to force himself to sleep, but his mind wasn't allowing that. They'd spent the whole night talking and he telling her stories. His brain was more active than normal because of it. He thought of a swarm of old inventions he'd long tossed out, wondered if any of his grandmother's things were in his mother's attic... Pondered why Shego hadn't shared her own stories and instead had egged his on. Why was he warmer?
Wait...when did she get so close?
Drakken stiffened as she felt the fabric of Shego's shirt touch his hand. He calculated where she must be sleeping and he felt his face go warm as he realized that the fabric was resting against her chest. He moved his arm away so as not to wake her and couldn't find a comfortable place to rest it. He heard her sniff and her hair's scent hit him. He could roll away...turn around even. That thought stopped as she shifted again and she was pressed up against him. He swallowed hard as her head tucked under his chin atop his folded arm and she let out a deep sigh. His right hand kept fidgeting as his arm lay straight on top of his side. His shoulder hurt from the stiff angle.
Why did I put myself in this situation? I could have made a pillow wall... Yeah, she would have killed me.
He glared into the darkness. That small voice of reason in his head was suddenly gone. There was no argument against staying put as he tried to find one: something to justify shoving her away and rolling over; wanting to grumble and whine for her to wake up and budge over. However, none answered. Instead he shifted the arm that was already trapped under her to be under her neck. In that one moment, she shifted and nestled into his shoulder.
Oh whatever!
He internalized an annoyed growl. He moved his stiff right arm to pull her closer with no other thoughts to stop him. He was greeted with her arm wrapping tightly around him and a contented sigh. Her legs slid over and between his and he furrowed his brow before letting his leg relax comfortably between hers. It was oddly the most comfortable and warmest sleeping position he'd ever been in. And his mind resonated with a weird silence he wasn't familiar with. He wanted to think about what he just had been thinking about, but there was nothing. The inner quiet was making his stomach knot. Then suddenly and without warning a thought occurred.
What is she playing at? What has gotten into her... Has she run out of other ways to try to get under my skin?
Now his mind was racing on to topics he really shouldn't be thinking about. A series of questions ran through his head... While it was clear her thoughts toward him were nothing more than platonic...did she think of him as even less than that? As if he was some sort of sentient being incapable of physical relational actions and desires? True, he didn't feel a need to go around seeking physical relationships... They rarely appealed to him.
There were other things he craved, such as respect, domination, and vengeance. It didn't mean he didn't think about those things from time to time. As he was noticing more frequently around her, he was still human after all. Did he actively observe and think about a person's physical appearance? No. Honestly, he didn't find doing so necessary unless to size up if he could take them in a fight... Which he'd done less and less as Shego would typically take care of said individuals.
But then the kissing thing. He felt that rush of pain in his chest again at the memory of their last kiss. She acted as if it was simply a joke, no matter what. It was one thing if it was a needed distraction or if it was a warranted act of some kind. Quite another to simply assume him kissing anyone was also a joke. Her poking at him to make out with her had seemed like a good jab because it was always her initiating it for her own jest.
I should have just kissed her... It would have put an end to her little games.
He felt a small tug of a smirk on his lips at the thought. The image of her shocked face as the joke would have been ruined... Or even at the idea of when she'd asked if he'd wanted to grope her rear. The smirk and eye roll would have gone and he would have probably gotten a plasma blast... It might have been worth it just to know she still saw him as a man, instead of whatever she actually saw him as.
He began to drift off as he felt a bit smug at his own mental play-out of what if he had done differently, wondering if she would have been as shocked as he imagined. Perhaps she would have even been angry or teased him. No, she wouldn't have teased him because she hadn't expected it. He pondered if he should just throw caution to the wind and act on it the next time she made some sort of comment. What if it shocked her so much, she actually acted back on some sort of instinct.
He was nearly asleep when he felt Shego shift. His eyes shot open as he was hyper-aware of her stomach moving against him...because his memories and his little what-if thoughts had triggered a reaction he had not intended. He swallowed hard and tried to figure out his next move, tried thinking of any other thought to reverse what had happened. Something horrible...something sad even. While he had been mentally building up some sort of bravado that he was in fact a man and she should know that...this was in no way how he wanted to invoke that thought.
Her leg dug over his tighter and she hugged him closer. He swallowed hard but the scent of her hair and the feel of her body were not helping him in any way. When had his body become as sensitive to her nearness as the part he was desperately trying to prevent from touching her? The situation not showing signs of changing on its own, he began to try to figure out a way out of it. He wondered how close to the edge of the mattress he was that if he rolled away and pretended to be asleep still, he could do so without disturbing her. He didn't know if he wanted to laugh or cry at the idiotic position he was now in. She shifted closer again. Cry. He really wanted to cry.
Shego had thought it was a stupid idea at first, snuggling closer and closer to Drakken. She had no idea what or why she was doing this to herself. Why she had kept inching towards him was beyond the rational operation of her mind. Perhaps because it was chilly, she could explain that much away. But she had zero excuse for nestling against his shoulder when he'd shifted in his sleep, nor for why she'd wrapped her arms around him. She had decided to give up any potential reasoning for why she'd wrapped her leg around him. All she knew was that she was very content right then.
He's asleep... I could be asleep. Nothing weird...just accidental cuddling. It happens.
She smiled into the silken sleeve of his pajamas. The sound of his breathing was almost trance-like. She had shamelessly hoped he'd take her up on her offer of a simple make-out session. It had sounded stupid when she'd said it, and she felt stupid afterward... But in the moment...it had seemed worth a shot. She sighed a little in defeat.
What am I doing?
She was putting herself through mental turmoil she didn't need... That's what she was doing. It was painfully clear by his reaction to accidentally groping her, and to her suggestions... There was and would never be interested in her that way. She began to wonder if it was even different than platonic now...perhaps he even saw her as a relative. She felt physically ill at the thought. She hoped that wasn't the case.
He didn't answer you...
Her eyes shot open. He hadn't. He had not said yes or no to her offer. Simply turned out the light and had gone to sleep. She wondered what he would have done if she'd just taken it as a yes and not dismissed it... Would he have kissed back...would it have escalated? The idea of it made her feel warmer than being held.
Next time... Next time I'll just—
She made that mental agreement with herself. The next time there was an opening, a comment unanswered...she would just go for it. She wouldn't call it a joke, she would wait for him to initiate the response. While they were partners, and their work came first...she wasn't going to ignore an opening to something else next time. That was what she told herself... But she was tired, and that was the type of mental talk most people gave themselves when the actual scenario would never actually arise.
She smirked and snuggled closer...and froze. She was suddenly aware of something pressed against her stomach. She stopped breathing for a second as she surveyed the situation. Perhaps it wasn't what she thought it was... She shifted again. Her eyes shot open. Yes, it was exactly what she thought it was. She shoved her face deeper into his shoulder without thinking about it. She began trying to figure out a way to roll away and not wake him up.
At least his body doesn't see me as platonic...
She wanted to slap herself at her own thoughts. While she had just revved herself up mentally, this was not the scenario she was planning on taking action in. She moved her leg a little to slide up his calf. If she planned it right, she could roll away and pretend to still be asleep. She tried to shallow her breathing as she was sure her moving against him was not helping the situation. She slacked her arm that was holding him and readied her leg. She did a mental countdown and in one swift movement went to yank her leg away.
The plan had been flawless and should have gone off without a hitch. Unfortunately she became horrifyingly aware that her cuddle companion had woken up and was trying to do the same thing. She knew this simply because...his leg had hooked hers when she'd moved it as he tried to pull away at the same time. The situation might have just ended as slightly awkward and bothersome, if not for his location in their fort. When they tried to move, Drakken had fallen off the mattress and in a flail had not managed to let go of her as had clearly been his plan.
This also resulted in a rebound of her movement with her tumbling after him instead of getting away, the momentum of his dropping the eight inches to the ground winning favor and taking her down with him. If there was a more awkward situation in all their years of working together, Shego couldn't remember it. As she lay on top of him, their legs still interlocked...it was clear to Shego—they were both aware the other was awake, some parts more than others.
Shego fought every inch of her being not to burst into laughter because of how much idiocy had transpired in the last few hours. She could just act like nothing had happened, and they both would go about their days, never mentioning it... She could play off being the sleepy one who didn't notice. Yes. That would be perfect. That would save face and everything would be fine.
"Well good morning to you too, Dr. D," she felt escape her lips.
"Neghn!" He shoved her off him and back onto the mattress. "We're not talking about this...OW!"
"Ow!" laughed Shego as he attempted to climb over her in the dark. "A little rougher than I thought it'd start."
"Shego!" he yelled at her, clearly attempting to navigate the dark and escape.
She should have been nice about the whole thing as she had put him in that situation. But she felt the laughing win over at his overreaction.
"Hey, why are you the one freaking out? I'm the one getting a spontaneous proposition in the middle of the night." She was laughing now and handed him the unlit lamp that had fallen next to her. "Did you want the lamp?"
"Yes," he practically whispered. Something in his voice sounded off. She handed him the lamp as her laughter died.
"Drakken?" she called after him as he escaped the fort. She lit her hand and saw the light from his lamp fade around the corner.
Shego waited for a few minutes, surveying the wreckage in the blanket fort. The back section was down and she could see the cave wall. Cool air was leaking into what was once a warm fortress. The blanket had clearly been what had tangled up Drakken's foot as he'd tried to climb over her. She let out a deep sigh as she looked into the darkness.
"We both could have handled that better," muttered Shego.
More Head-Shaking Idiocy This Way-
