Shego knew what was the next step in her plan. And it was the most painful one, even if any outsider would consider it the most pleasant. The touching was more or less fine and they needed to up the ante. But how could she do something like that to a man in mourning? Well, there was no indication of the latter. The work was going on at its usual crazy pace. Her casual asking around revealed that the official reason for Drakken's trip was a family emergency. Which was not essentially wrong. Just as was his plowing ahead as if nothing unusual had happened. Burying oneself in work was also a coping mechanism. Shego could not take away from that. So how to set up them to move forward? She knew the way, but before that she needed to learn that stupid box step.

…

"Just relax, follow the music and let me lead, Shego. We'll start slow and go faster when you are ready."

The last one was the hardest. Shego has never allowed herself to relinquish control. Even when she was part of Team Go, it was her who dragged those blockheads around, they would've been lost otherwise. Then she created for herself a false sense of security by allowing somebody else to care about her. That ended in total disaster. And now she had to let go again. Allow Drakken of all people, whom she considered inept in all social graces, to teach her something she didn't know. The world has just flipped on its axel at some point. When they saved the world instead of conquering it?

"So is it a wide skirt or not?"

Shego stumbled at the sudden question, but was put to rights on the next turn. "What?"

"Your dress. What skirt does it have?"

She still had no dress. And she was cutting it dangerously close. "No..."

"You sound uncertain. It is or it isn't. Usually."

"There is still no dress, okay? But it won't be with one of those ridiculous puffy skirts, that's for sure."

"Okay." And he pulled her closer at the next turn.

Shego noticed the maneuver, but did not comment. They did seem more stable like that. "So for the sake of light conversation… What would've been the next step after finally accomplishing world domination?"

"Light conversation indeed… But nothing really. I would've given it back."

"What?!" Rusty or not, but it was only thanks to Drakken's skill that they didn't tumble over after Shego's shock made her forget the dance steps.

"What would I want with it? The world is a mess, Shego. A dump I have no intention of cleaning. The point was not to dominate it, but for everybody to know I could."

"So taking the world hostage for a big payout?"

"Huge."

"Naturally." Has she just moved closer and her breathing became labored? Was she getting tired? Impossible. So what in the world was going on? Just continue the conversation like nothing strange was happening. "So… you know what happens in such cases. If you take credit for a crime of this scale, you are marked as a terrorist and go on the Most Wanted list. Which is, of course, the highest accomplishment, but… sooner or later S.W.A.T boys will be at your door to take you out. And bye-bye payout."

"That's why I have you, Shego dear."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence, but even if I dispatch the boys in black, I can't do anything about a targeted air strike."

Drakken just shrugged in response. As if he didn't care about such end, or an end period. Was he ready to die with the glory of the only one who managed to hold the whole world hostage? That was certainly one for the books. Literally.

They made several tours with the tempo gradually picking up. Shego knew she was digging her own grave, but she knew she needed to know. She was already losing sleep over it, which was absolutely crazy. She has never lost sleep over a guy. His words. Yes, just his words.

"Why are you the lesser evil, D?"

"You don't know? That's strange…"

"Cut the crap and just tell me!"

Drakken twirled her out unexpectedly and then pulled her back into his chest. "Because I am a looser with ambition to dominate the world. And if even by some stroke of genius I would've accomplished that, I would never even try to dominate you. …That's all for tonight. Let's continue the day after tomorrow."

The door slammed behind the ex-supervillain, but Shego remained standing in the center of the room. She raised her hand and saw it was shaking. She attributed it to the aftershocks from the dancing and spinning, but at the back of her mind echoed a shameful and persistent thought: dominate me any time.

…..

At that point in time, Shego had to face the indisputable fact – her plan was spiraling out of its strategically laid out trajectory. Was that the same feeling Drakken had with every appearance of Kim Possible, who managed to ruin everything right before they succeeded? But there was no Kim Possible at the lab to fight to release Shego's frustration with, well, herself. Drakken was right. Again. And it drew her up the wall. The whole villainous community knew that despite Drakken being her boss, she was the one who wore pants in their absolutely professional relationship.

Shego was an independent, formidable force of nature, who could not only steal pretty much anything, but also kick anybody's ass and walk away without breaking a sweat. Kimmie was an exception, but didn't make the general rule inapplicable. Yes, she had invitations from other villains for joint capers and even worked with some on occasion. But she always returned to that badly designed and sparsely furnished lair in the Caribbean.

And that demonstrated her deep hidden weakness. If she was so strong and independent, why was she hiding behind Drakken's blue coat? Had Adrian screwed her up to such a degree, she was afraid not only to be on her own, but preferred to cling to someone, who could stumble on an even road? Okay, Drakken could walk very well, and danced more so, but… metaphorically. Oh who was she kidding? She was a mess, the plan was a mess and they had little over five weeks before they face D's worst enemies.

What else could go wrong?

"Miss Shego!"

Oh dammit. Leila. What could she possibly want? "Hello there," Shego drawled, rearranging her face into a neutral expression.

"Are you going to the medbay?"

"And why should I be going there? As you see, I am in perfect health."

"There was an accident in the main lab and Andrew and Doctor Drakken-"

Shego's hands lit up on instinct. "If that man ripped his back again, I'll fry him myself!" She bolted towards the medbay, but stilled finding she was the only one rushing over. "Your boyfriend is injured and you are just standing there?!"

"It was a mild accident," Leila explained, nearing hyperventilating Shego on a more sedated pace. "They always follow safety regulations so whatever happened couldn't be serious."

"Girlie, you need to get out of the lab more. If only you knew what D and I managed to survive… You will never leave your box with safety regulations. Okay, where are those naughty boys…"

The accident was indeed mild. Some heavy equipment was not secured properly and fell over while Drakken and Andrew were standing in the aisle. Drakken managed to literally make a safety net, but Andre's clavicle was broken and D earned a sprained wrist for his trouble. After hearing the doctor's explanation, Shego grabbed onto Drakken's healthy wrist and led him all the way to his room.

"Strip," she ordered, standing sentinel in front of the door.

"Wh-a-a-at?"

"You heard me. How heavy was that equipment exactly?"

"But I don't feel any discomfort-"

"I will be the judge of that. Now strip."

With extreme reluctance, Drakken took off his lab coat. T-shirt soon followed. Shego thoroughly inspected D's back for blood. And no, she didn't initiate the whole situation to ogle him. She had ample opportunity to do so every morning. Crazy brain – go on vacation. Now.

"You are lucky, your back is fine. Couldn't you just step away?"

"Andrew was there too, I couldn't just step away and let him be squished to death. You don't evaluate your options when you ignite your hands, right?"

"The glow is part of me. It's instinct."

"My vines are too. Their self-preservation instinct will keep my alive. Healthy or not that's another matter. Now that the condition of my back is cleared, did you actually need anything?"

Shego took a deep breath not to blow up in response to Drakken's irritation. "Tonight at eight, in the karaoke room. No excuses. You don't want to fail again, do you?"

….

That time Shego entered the room after Drakken. She purposefully waited around the corner until she saw him go in. Entered and locked the door so they wouldn't be disturbed. Drakken was searching for something in his pockets, so he noticed her only when Shego sat next to him. Rather close, but that was their new norm already.

"Kiss me."

The search instantly seized. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me, D."

"Just like that?"

Shego didn't know if she should be thankful to Drakken for not resorting to his usual antics under pressure aka running and hiding until it blows over. He actually sounded insulted. He must think she is mocking him. Maybe if she rationalizes it… "We are not going to suck face there, but no one will believe we are an established couple if there isn't a natural peck or two. And it can be made natural in a natural way – with continuous practice."

"No, not doing it."

Shego felt the prickling of the upcoming energy, but she clenched fists to remain in control. In everything, even kissing, were the easy way and the hard way and Drakken forfeited his right to a pleasant experience with his pigheadedness (which was ridiculous; when was the last time he was offered a kiss with no strings attached or any kiss for that matter?). He was also a fool not to move away, but even then Shego was certain in her ability to be fast enough to… well, it takes two to dance as well as to kiss, but in the latter case either can lead. So what else could Shego do while not taking no for an answer? She grabbed Drakken by his large ears and smacked her lips to his.

If Shego had any strategy to actually keep Drakken glued to her kissy face, she didn't execute it. Or maybe she did…The moment their lips touched, Shego's world flipped over. Every synapse was fired up with incredible pleasure, she couldn't get enough of. The reality just disappeared, replaced by all-encompassing passion. She was kicked out of the paradise however by a groan of pain, followed by a push that almost made her land on the floor.

"Wh-a-a-t… Hell…wa-ah-as… tha-a-at?" Or something like that, because all Shego could see were blue spots that kept moving with meteoric speed.

"You tell me. You are the one in my lap."

Was she? Wherever she was, something told her she should be somewhere else, so Shego just keeled over to the left. She felt being pulled under, the room warping on itself. Though she heard disjoined phrases: enormous fever, ice packs, irises fully blown… but she could make no tail or head of the context. Not that she had any wish to return to the accursed karaoke room from her bliss.

Still… the fog in her mind began to gradually disperse, bringing her back to the dark room and cold and wet sensation on her forehead and neck. She tossed the ice packs away and sat up. She instantly regretted the motion becoming disoriented once again, but Shego has never allowed anybody to see her in a weakened state and she was not starting now.

"What are you doing?! You need to stay in a horizontal position!" came a bark that burned like a laser through her ears.

"I am doing… whatever I want. I am not some weakling-"

"You were practically comatose ten minutes ago! Sorry, I didn't mean to yell. This was just … unexpected."

"I bet, it wasn't. What happened?"

"I don't know, Shego. I have absolutely no idea what could've triggered your reaction!"

Shego's head became clear enough to interpret Drakken's emotions properly. Not that it was particularly difficult - his face was extremely expressive. At that moment, he was confused, agitated and… in pain?

The fact that his pain (she must've pushed Drakken against the sofa, squishing Drakkenia in the process) brought her out of the haze, made Shego think about the eventual progressing of things without the interruption. She had absolutely no recollection about anything that happened after the initial connection. How did she end up in his lap?

"What did we do?"

Shego's question stopped Drakken in his tracks. "You don't remember?"

"I was completely out of it. Absolutely no conscious control over my actions."

"This is bad, Shego, very bad."

"We should do it again."

"Have you lost your mind after… after what happened?"

For some reason, Shego found cute Drakken's discomfort at calling spade a spade. "It could've been a coincidence. Maybe it was an aneurism or something."

"Aneurism? You would've been brain dead with that. At best!"

"Well, I am not an average human, so… There is no definite proof if we do not test it properly."

"I can't argue with that. And you know it. I hate it when you are right. Okay, sit down and don't move."

Shego moved closer to the back side of the sofa, intrigued by how would Drakken approach her… it…doing it together. As it turned out – in a classical Drakken way – head on aka with no delicacy. He sat down, grabbed Shego by the back of her head and planted one smack dab on the lips. It was a powerful but short kiss, five seconds at most, but Shego's mind already started to fly to the euphoric heights.

"How do you feel, Shego dear?"

"Goo-oo-ood," she drawled, her forehead hitting something solid. D's shoulder?

"You know, what it means, right?"

"That you actually have a super power?"

"That we need to scan your brain."

"Oh what fun…"

…..

"And what are they doing here?" Shego demanded, arriving at the lab's section G at the designated time of nine in the evening, which was communicated to her via text with an enormous list of things she was forbidden to do during the day. Drakken pretty much told her to not do anything, but in his usual ranting way.

"Dan and Paul are here to supervise. I wouldn't manage to whip up an MRI without them in just a day. If you get comfortable on this lounge right here-"

Shego was not planning to get comfortable anywhere with an audience. Which she indicated to Drakken pushing him into one of the aisles, hopefully, out of the nerds' earshot. "I am not doing it with them watching us," she hissed in the manner which always made Drakken get out of her way.

"Wasn't that the point of your plan? PDA and everything?"

Shit, it was. "Doy, but they better keep it between themselves."

So Shego had no choice, but to take place on the lounge and allow the boys to place a DIY contraption on her head which was supposed to scan her brainwaves. "Does it even work?"

"Of course, Miss Shego. We tested it on each other just moments ago."

"Sounds so encouraging…" Shego grumbled, still not understanding why she consented to become a guinea pig again. Curiosity for one. Who would've thought that Drakken's kisses were literally mind-blowing?

It was different this time. And yes, her brain considered the kiss extremely pleasant, but there was a tenderness to it that was new. Shego was only half conscious and she could hardly control her desire to ride the wave of endorphins, but she still could hear voices, even if they didn't make much sense.

"Bloody Hell, she is high as a kite!"

"High? What nonsense!"

"But look, Doctor Drakken, the hormone levels are through the roof. Could it be meth?"

They knew about the meth lab? Only after mere months working with him? And she had to torture it out of him?

"Are you high, Dan? What could meth do with this?"

"In your saliva. On that note, what happened to others?"

"Others?"

"Eeeeh… Others you swept saliva with."

"Those… those are of no importance at the moment." So there were others? "I'll make the analysis, but your meth theory is pure nonsense!"

"But why, Doctor Drakken? It could very well go somewhere else apart from your skin. Or… you hold the strongest aphrodisiac known to men. And that has possibilities…"

"Now listen here, Dan. I am glad, my villainous nature is rubbing off on you, but there are lines that one should never cross. Look at her! She has been completely out of it for six minutes! Aphrodisiac? Don't make me laugh! Whatever is doing what is going on, it has rape drug written all over it. And Shego is a superhuman! How many women and men will die because of the overdose they won't even realize they were having? So if I catch you or any of your buddies synthesizing anything similar, I'll strangle you with my own vines, consequences be damned. …Now… You finish up here while I deal with the saliva analysis. Remember, there are cameras here, so don't you dare touch her before she wakes up! Instant dismissal otherwise. Without references.

"At least there is no need for a cure for this mess."

"Damn… the man can't catch a break."

"What are you on about, Paul?"

"I had another place in mind, when they scouted me to work here, and then I heard there would be a girl here, so I jumped ship. Seven years, Dan, seven years of studies, working through the nights, no parties, no social life at all. Finally, I thought something could happen, but we all saw what went on at the orientation. The moment Leila and Andrew met – we all knew. And it was fun to watch them dance around each other for half a year…

"But then I thought that if someone like Drakken could score such a babe than there is still hope for me, but now look at them. There is no kissing, no sex, nothing. Clearly, there is no queue to date him, but now he can't enjoy even what he has. It's pitiful, man. And stop looking at her like that."

"Oh, for God's sake, Paul! Nobody can forbid me to enjoy the view. I am not doing anything wrong."

"Nobody, but me that is."

The young IT specialist's fingers froze above the keyboard. Yes, Shego did have that effect on people, particularly with all her bearings. Well, not all, but they didn't know that.

"I meant no offence, Miss Shego," Dan stuttered, visibly diminishing in stature with Shego's every step. "I was just admiring your beauty."

"You need to work on your lines, Paul, if you hope to 'score' with anybody. Not that women like such words to be used while talking about them. Anyway… show me the scan results." Dan obliged, not that Shego understood much there, but what she could grasp about the visualizations, was that her mind seemed indeed to be pretty high. "So did it blow up like that right away or grew over time?"

"You mean, could there be a critical duration where you get into a state of overdose and your brain stops functioning?"

Shego shook her head in dismay. Why did those scientists had to speak in such long sentences? "Yes."

"It was pretty intense from the start and did grow, but very slowly. I wonder, why Doctor Drakken didn't ask about the time frame… It does ease up the situation a little."

Shego did not answer, because she knew it was easier for Drakken to avoid kissing all together. And logically, it was a solid strategy to avoid the whole unpleasantness. Especially, because they were not dating and had no inclination to engage in accompanying activities, but… they had to convince everybody else that they did.

Shego found Drakken bend over the microscope. Ironically, that was how the whole debacle started in the first place.

"So is it meth or not?"

"Ludicrous. Of course, there is no meth in the top level of my skin, saliva or DNA, as I've known for as long as I have been blue, it's just like a full body tattoo. I couldn't do anything about it, but that doesn't mean, I didn't do anything to learn everything about my unique appearance."

"So nothing forbids us to proceed as planned."

"Meaning?"

"Meaning, D, that light pecks are safe. We must have more control and thus need more practice."

"That sounded so…wrong. You do understand that you can form an addiction?"

"Don't make me laugh, D. And just to clarify, that was 100% sarcasm."

Two weeks later, Shego was not so sure. She devised a game for them to ambush each other with kisses so they wouldn't startle at the action and get used to it. The whole process was just too enjoyable! Sometimes she had to wait hours, hiding behind large machinery to get Drakken off guard during work. She couldn't commence her kissing 'attack' if he was handling anything dangerous, so the right timing was hard to come by. Necks and ears were fair game too, so the opportunities abound.

What Shego couldn't rap her head around, was Drakken's active cooperation with all of this, considering his straight-out refusal in the beginning. Moreover, he wasn't a bad kisser. Which again, begged the question: were there others? She was intrigued by the possibility and strangely incensed. They did everything not to get over the three second limit, but sometimes Shego lost herself and it was Drakken, who had to detangle her from him. Was she getting addicted? And why wasn't he saying anything? Teasing her or anything else? She saw that something was going on in that crazy head of his, the silence was a 180 turn from his usual overemotional personality. It was even more unnerving than his indecipherable rants.

…..

"Tonight, D, we'll deal with your image."

"And what is wrong with it?"

"If I start, we won't finish till morning. Go to the bathroom and get your hair wet."

Thankfully, Drakken didn't object to the order and trotted to her shower, while Shego arranged the hair products on her vanity table.

"I still don't understand what is wrong with my hair," Drakken said, taking a seat in front of the mirror.

"It is not about what is wrong, but what can be done with it for you to look your best. Your tux's arrived, right?" Shego asked, putting large amount of mousse into Drakken's hair. It had a bit of curl when wet and she wanted to capitalize on that.

"Of course."

"It's not off the rack, right? You made alterations to fit you perfectly?"

"Don't fuss about it, Shego."

"I am going to fuss about it! You know that everything there will be about appearances and how you manage to present yourself! We need to get rid of this Mohawk of yours. It shows your bolding patches."

"Because I am bolding. I will hardly be the only one there with such problem."

"Doesn't matter, D. All imperfections must be dealt with. Your attitude is key. If you are thinking that you'll go there and shout at everybody how famous you are and why they don't know you, then you'll be tossed out before you even reach Possible or any other of your former mates. Be cool. For whatever reason you were invited, you were, so you have all the right to be there as everybody else. Moreover, you don't need anything to be in the spotlight. Let's be real, a blue-skinned man will never be lost in a crowd. Hold yourself as if you are their equal. Whatever accomplishments they have, it was you who saved the world while they were hiding under their beds. Don't go to them, they will come to you. If they don't, that's not our problem. We go there to chill and to eat free food and stay in a luxury hotel. And the uni that didn't see your worth is paying for everything, so treat it like a vacation. Got it?"

"So be the opposite of me."

"Well…"

"I am not an idiot, Shego. I know I am bad with people. Mostly because I can't pretend to be someone else, because circumstances require it. I am not flexible in my convictions like some. With me what you see is what you get."

"And that's… admirable, D. But you need to bend a bit on this."

"I'll try to… be cool."

"Wonderful! Now look what I've done with your hair! Good thing you haven't cut it during all this time."

Shego watched as Drakken closely examined his new hairstyle from every angle. Shego made his hair shiny and wavy giving him an exotic image. And if she was completely honest with herself… he gave off an evil aura which was kinda hot.

"Looks… vain. I mean, what real man uses so much hair products? I am not 25 and not from the 80s."

"Valid points… Back to the shower then."

"Get us some drinks, because getting this stuff out will take some time. That was a joke not critique."

Shego just wanted for him to get on with it. Still what to do with all that hair? Drakken was right that no scientist will take him seriously with gelled up haircut, they'll think he is dying his hair or something. The majority of the people there will be over forty so he will be one of the few men with no gray hair which is already a plus. Natural sophistication then. She can make that happen.