I do not own any Disney characters named herein and am only borrowing them to tell a nonprofit tale meant for entertainment purposes only.
Kim Possible: Vamped
By LJ58
47
Kim was sitting in a chair near the bed when Monique woke that evening.
"Hey," she said, smiling at the dark-skinned beauty in an old tee shirt she used for a gown. "You'll never believe who came by today. Or why."
"Well, from your voice, it sounds like someone totally unexpected, and something really shocking. So, hit me with both barrels," she said, padding into the room's bath to climb into the shower.
Kim walked over to the door as the water began to run, and said, "Bon-Bon showed up. Believe it or not, she was sad about your death."
"Wow. Who knew? I thought she was the kind too shallow to care about anyone but herself."
"Well, she did have a reason for coming by, though. Want to guess," Kim teased as Monique began to wash as Kim watched through the opaque door.
"I'm still a little tuned out here, Kimberly," Monique admitted. "How about you just give me the news," she asked over the fall of the water.
"She wants to buy your shops."
There was no immediate answer. Kim said nothing as she noted Monique had frozen, and only slowly started to continue showering as she obviously absorbed that one.
"What did you tell her?"
"I told her I would have to think on that one," Kim admitted. "She did say something that made me laugh."
"Oh," Monique asked.
"She said you likely left your boutiques to me trying to inspire me to finally find a fashion sense," Kim declared.
That made Monique burst into laughter.
"No? She was wrong?"
"I just knew mom had no real desire to play retail, or try to run a boutique, let alone over a dozen of them. And I thought…. Well, it might show you how much I cared," Monique admitted as the water stopped, and she stepped out to take the towel Kim handed her.
"That's sweet," Kim said as Monique took the towel.
"So, you're a voyeur now?"
"Only with you, gorgeous," Kim smiled warmly. "So, technically, they remain your shops, Moni. What do you want to do?"
Monique paused in drying herself and looked over at her.
"It's going to be hard for either of us to run my little business, isn't it?"
"You're going to be favoring night hours until you grow strong enough to manage full days," Kim admitted. "Even Dana still prefers nights. I think it's just our new….nature. Running around all over the world as you did…."
"I get it. Maybe… Maybe you should sell…."
"You just hate to let go, don't you?"
"It was my dream for so long," Monique admitted, and wrapped a towel around her, and went to drop onto the edge of the bed. "Only I'm not really the girl I was, am I," she asked.
"You're whoever you want to be," Kim told her, hearing Dana with Shego, knowing she was about to take off for her shift. "The question is, what do you want to do now? If you want to try to hold onto them…."
"You tell me. Technically. Legally…. They're yours now."
Kim sighed and sat down next to her as she heard Dana shout, "Later, mom," as the door slammed after her.
"She's something else," Monique said, looking toward the window even if the drapes were still closed.
"She is."
"She's lucky you found her. You're lucky to have someone. I always worried you were going to end up in some rundown apartment alone the way you were living."
"I'm not that bad," Kim sputtered.
"Kimberly," Monique said quietly, "You never know when to quit. Even now, I doubt you do. Only sometimes you do push too far and too fast. I remember those aliens, and even Ron said you almost died facing them."
"It was close," she admitted.
"So, the real reason? I hoped you would get into the business, enjoy it, and maybe….do something safe and normal," Monique told her. "I wanted you to be safe, and have a life where you could be happy and maybe…."
"Oh, Monique," Kim sighed, and leaned into her as an arm slid around her.
"So, what now? Boss," Monique asked quietly. "Don't tell me you haven't been thinking about how to solve this one."
"I….had an idea. Kind of a spur of the moment while I was working on my….other problem."
"The science thingy?"
"The science thingy. Anyway, what if we sell all but the Middleton shop? Bonnie gets her shops she hopes to use for her own use, and we keep a source of income, and a place for my BGFF to work and express her own talents," she smiled.
"You're not going to join me, are you?"
"I figure I'd be in my lab, working on refining my new idea."
"What idea?"
"I'll tell you over dinner. Meanwhile, think about it. You get the final decision because I still feel they're your shops. Get dressed," Kim said, leaning close to kiss her cheek. "We'll see what Shego thinks of our plans, too."
"You just want to argue again," Monique smirked now.
"Not that," she complained as Kim stood up to scowl down at her. "Actually, Shego is pretty grounded, so if she sees through my ideas, I know I have more work to do," she declared.
"You got me there. Green-girl does have a nose for nonsense," Monique grinned as she stood up, and went to the drawers she already knew had been put aside for her.
"Well, she worked for years with the most nonsensical man alive," Kim pointed out.
Monique laughed as Kim walked out, leaving her to dress.
"She still feeling good?"
"Yeah, we were talking about Bon-Bon's offer."
"Yeah? She try to stake you," Shego asked as she put the roast on the stovetop and then checked her potatoes and beans.
"I told her to think about it. Meanwhile, we're going to go over my idea I think I've come up with to excuse all my private research of late while GJ was self-destructing."
"The council, anyway," Shego smirked.
"The same thing," Kim waved a dismissive hand.
Shego said nothing to that, but she had wondered if Kim still held GJ responsible or not.
"So, what is your plan? Not your dimensional television?"
"Well, no. Technically its forbidden tech, and I'm not supposed to even have the schematics for it any longer," she said, and then snorted. "Like I couldn't rebuild what I first designed in the first place."
"So, what is your big idea?"
"Something they're probably going to freak over just as much as my quantum projector since it could conceivably cost certain people a lot of money."
"Really? Sounds interesting," Shego grinned.
"I thought so. And it is a justifiable consideration. I mean, think about how many times even ordinary felons break out of jail and endanger people, and sometimes the world again."
"You're planning penal reform?"
"Of a sort," she grinned. "Remember our means of taking our prisoners at the start?"
"Sure."
"So, rather than huge penal systems, what if it was just one small institution?"
"When you say small….?"
"Okay, I'm thinking we shrink major felons and the real threats down, a few inches or so, and put them on a self-contained….farm, or something like that. They have enough to manage and have to work to supply their own needs while earning the redemption they would never learn otherwise. Less violent prisoners could be held in normal prisons, with the understanding that breaking out is an automatic felony that drops them into a farm or something."
"That sounds…."
"Doable? Right? And think, no more huge bloated budgets wasting money while overlooking the real point of prison. No need for guards risking their lives or worrying over riots, or things like that. Hmmm, we could even televise their lives to warn others about breaking certain laws. A means of fundraising to manage the less substantial costs that could be put into real rehab or help for those needing it."
"Sounds like the usual powers-that-be would demand you be locked up. You'd cost them millions," Monique predicted.
"She's got a point," Shego said quietly. "And what's to prevent someone abusing that kind of system, and dropping innocent people in there, or getting rid of people they don't like?"
"The shrinking tech would be strictly monitored and controlled. No one could use it on a whim because only I would be the one that ran it at the start, ensuring the initial startup was both fair and just."
"And once it got going, assuming it did," Shego asked.
"Well, hopefully, they would arrange for a panel of impartial judges and only they could use it once a sentence was passed."
"Still sounds…."
"You're not worried about you, are you? I mean, you aren't a villain any longer," Kim pointed out as Shego paused in preparing the table to eye her sternly.
"How many innocent people are in jail now, Kimmie? The system is bent. It was always bent. It will always be bent. You may be putting some real loons away that can't reach out and hurt anyone any longer. Maybe. Only you would also make it easier for the corrupt to put away scapegoats and patsies that would never have a chance to finger the really guilty."
"I had not considered that one," she admitted. "I'll have to think some more."
"You do that."
"So, what do we have tonight," Monique asked.
"Roast, green beans with baked potatoes. We still have some garlic rolls leftover, too," Shego told her as she put the serving dishes on the table.
"No more casserole."
"The kid grabbed it for her lunch tonight," Shego grinned. "You were too slow," Monique was told.
"So, how are you feeling," Kim asked. "You don't need blood, do you? Since you just rose, you might not be….?"
"I actually feel pretty good, Kim," she smiled and watched as Shego poured tea into their glasses from the pitcher she had just gotten from the fridge.
"Good. Wade figures the nourishment his substitute gives us is good for about a week so far. If you feel like you need more, though, let me know. You might not be fully acclimated yet since… Well, you are still…."
"A baby," Shego smirked at her.
"Hey," Monique sputtered.
Shego just grinned.
"Now, forget the science, and the bad ideas from a warped Pollyanna, and let's eat," she declared.
"I am not warped."
"No," Shego declared, eyeing her. "Not you."
"She is right, Kim. It does have a lot of issues to work out before I would trust anyone else with it."
"Maybe a lunar prison," Kim murmured. "Couldn't escape, if they had no space suits…."
"Eat," Shego swore, "And stop watching bad movies for ideas. You're as bad as your brothers lately."
"You take that back," Kim howled as Monique broke into laughter.
~KP~
Ron came in from a long night at the restaurant where he worked when not focused on missions or duties from Yamanouchi, and dropped into a chair as Yori walked into the room to give him a cup of cold lemonade.
"Thanks," he smiled, and yawned.
"Dana-San said something unusual today," she told him.
"Considering she's practically Kim's clone lately, I would think all she says is unusual these days," he yawned again.
"Ron-San, she said Kim's girlfriend was staying with them now."
"But… Wait. Does she already have another girlfriend?"
"If so, she certainly moved on quite swiftly," Yori declared. "Only I do not think Possible-San is the kind to do so. She took months just to stop calling you even after you both broke up after accepting your relationship was not…as expected."
"I know," he frowned. "Kim's always been the kind to obsess over some things. Only after Monique…"
"I have to wonder, Ron-San. Do you think she risked bringing Monique-San back in spite of the risks?"
"Oh, man. I hope not. Even Kim already admitted Monique couldn't be brought back even by her. If she did…. Oh, man, I hope she just moved on. Even if it does sound….off."
"Perhaps, Ron-San, we should visit again. Just to ensure that Possible-San is not letting her heart's grief endanger anyone?"
"I want to say she'd never do that, but…she can be crazy sometimes," he groaned. "First thing in the morning. Maybe we can catch them all off-guard, and find out what's really going on."
"Not now?"
"Better not. Even Dr. Director is hesitant about facing Kim at night lately. Her other side tends to show more often then," Ron grimaced.
"I bow to your wisdom," Yori nodded. "Come. I have a light meal for you, and then we shall retire so we may rise early."
"Not too early," he groaned.
Yori gave him a faint smile, but she was still focused and concerned over the words that Dana had unwittingly let slip that evening while chatting with some of her companions.
To Be Continued….