Double Entendre
Chapter 12
Middleton High School
"Hey Ron!" Steve Farley, starting shortstop for the baseball team, called out as he came up to the blond youth standing in front of his locker. "Wait up a sec."
Not used to having jocks coming up to him with smiles on their faces, Ron quickly turned about, "Yeah, Steve? Something wrong?"
"Not at all." Steve grinned as he extended his hand in a friendly gesture. "I just wanted to say thank you for looking after Jessica and the other girls. I know the news has been leaving you out of it, but Kim's been making sure that everyone knows that it was you that saved everyone at that old camp."
"Ummm…thanks." Ron bashfully responded as he took the jock's hand and shook it.
"Listen…" Steve said in a low voice, "If anyone gives you a hard time…you know like those bullies on D-Wing…you just come and let me or any of the other guys who are dating any of the girls on the squad know and we'll set 'em straight for you."
"Ummmm…." Ron stammered.
"You took care of our girls when we weren't able to." Steve insisted, "It's the least we can do for you."
"Thanks, Steve." Ron smiled as the baseball player walked away. "Wow…" He muttered in a low voice, "I didn't see that coming."
"Why not?"
Turning about, Ron's smile grew wider as he at once recognized the green-eyed redheaded girl standing in front of him, books in hand. "KP! Ummmm….thank you for…uhhhh…you know…"
"I'm just telling the truth, Ron." Kim proclaimed with a smile on her face. "The press might be too stupid to get the story…or your name…right, but I'm gonna make sure people know what really happened. You were a hero and don't you ever forget it."
"Thanks, KP." Ron's grin now became a gentle, fond smile. "Too bad the Senors got away though." He shook his head.
"They might be the slipperiest bad guys we've taken on, but sooner or later, they'll slip up. We'll get 'em eventually." Kim chuckled as the pair overheard a boy and girl talking about their results on the Animology quiz. "What do people see in some stupid fad?"
"I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it, KP." Ron rebutted, "In fact, I was going to ask for your help with a question. If you were going on a journey that will change your life, what snacks would you bring?"
"Ron!" Kim shook her head in disbelief, "Don't tell me that you've gotten sucked into this too!"
"I don't know, Kim…" Ron replied, "It seems pretty scientific. It's supposed to be able to predict your perfect mate. Aren't you the least bit curious?"
"Not if he's some blue baboon!" Kim snorted.
"Don't even joke about that, KP!" Ron admonished with a look of shock and horror on his face, "A blue baboon would be disastrous for you!"
"I think I'll take a hard pass on it." Kim laughed as she spied the Dirty Pair walking together down the hall. "Tara…Hope!" She called out, waving at her favorite cheerleaders, "Come here!"
"What is it, Kim?" Tara asked as she and her best friend quickly rushed to their fellow cheerleader's side.
"Yeah…whatcha want?" Hope inquired.
"I'm curious…" Kim quipped, "What's your opinion on this animology bull?"
"Eh…" Tara shrugged her shoulders, "It's a fun little quiz. Gotta admit though, it got a few things right about me."
"Me too." Hope agreed, "I'm not sure I'd use it to pick whoever my soulmate is…if I were looking for a soulmate that is…but it got some stuff about me right."
"What are you?" Ron inquired.
"Tan giraffe." Tara replied.
"That makes sense." Ron noted, "You are something of a loner, you're brave, and you're a quick thinker and you like helping people, but you'll never admit to it. What about you?" The blond boy asked Hope.
"Gold falcon." Hope answered back with a grin.
"That definitely fits." Ron chuckled as he read her personality profile, "Smart and aggressive, your pride gets in the way sometimes, and you're very good in romantic situations."
"Better believe I am." Hope grinned, "Best lay you've never had…" She winked, "Yet."
"See you guys later!" The Dirty Pair chuckled as they waved goodbye.
"You know…" Ron shook his head, "I never can tell if they're kidding or not."
"That makes two of us." Kim chuckled, "C'mon Ron…let's get to class."
Laughing as they made their way down the hall towards the gym, the pair spotted their fellow cheerleader Jessica walking from the other direction. "Hey, Jess!" Hope called out, "Over here!"
"Hi guys." Jessica grinned as she picked up her pace. Joining her friends as they continued on to the gym, she announced, "You take that animology quiz yet?"
"Yeah." Tara chuckled, "Tan giraffe."
"Gold falcon." Hope laughed, "You?"
"Ochre and Grey Dolphin." Jessica answered back with a grin. "Not quite sure how accurate it is though."
"Well…you are a good friend." Hope declared, "And you do like to have fun."
"And you do make everyone around you feel good." Tara added with a warm grin.
"Well, thank you." Jessica smiled back, "And I guess I can get pretty weird at times…"
"Like when you streamed those non-stop episodes of The Fearless Ferret Comedy Hour at that sleepover at your house a couple of weeks ago." Hope laughed.
"The look on Kim's face was priceless." Tara smirked, "Not to mention Bonnie."
"Yeah." Jessica chuckled, "I think that was one of the few times those two were ever in agreement about anything."
Shifting to a more serious topic, Tara asked, "Have you heard anything more about that girl who had the seizure?"
"Margaret?" Jessica nodded her head, "Yeah. Steve told me that they found traces of a designer drug in her system."
"Really?" Hope exclaimed, "I always thought she was a goody-goody type."
"She is!" Jessica asserted, "I've never ever seen her touch so much as a drop of booze—not even beer. Much less pot or any other drug. Later on, Steve told me that Jeff told him that a couple of nights before she had her seizure, she went to a party some friends of hers were having. Steve said that according to Jeff, she got home late and looked kinda out of it. Also…" The freckle-faced blonde's expression took on a worried cast as she lowered her voice, "It looked like she'd…well…let's just say that when she left for the party, she was wearing underwear and she wasn't when she got home."
"Damn." Tara swore, "Some bastard slipped her a roofie."
"Yeah." Jessica nodded her head. "That's what the police think. Unfortunately, other than the fact that she's no longer a virgin, there wasn't any evidence of sexual assault. The party was at least a week before she had her seizure. She's had multiple showers since then and there weren't any bruises or marks…nothing like that. She also doesn't recall anything happening at the party after arriving. It's like that drug took part of her memory away as well as doing the other stuff. They're interviewing people who were there, but you know how it is…big party like that…"
"You're always going to have crashers." Hope nodded her head. "No one there's going to talk to the police anyway. Party like that…even though Margaret and probably most of the other real guests tried to stay clean…someone's gonna spike the punch bowl and someone else is gonna start passing around a joint."
"And no one's going to rat out a friend or friend of a friend." Tara added.
"Right." Jessica agreed, further recalling, "There's something else. Josh's band was playing at the party. He might know more, although I'm not sure what. Besides, the police have already talked to him."
"Thanks, Jess." Hope smiled, "Anything else? Have you heard anything on when Margaret will be coming back?"
"Not anytime soon." The freckle-faced cheerleader replied. "They're not releasing her to return to school until they're sure all that shit's been cleaned out of her system and that she doesn't have any other seizures and they've got her in therapy and rape counseling sessions. Hopefully, she'll be back by the end of the semester, but I wouldn't bet on it."
"Thanks for keeping us in the loop, Jess." Hope muttered, keeping her voice down so that the other students in the gym couldn't hear, "Let us know if you hear anything else."
"Sure thing!" Jessica answered back, "And would you two do me a favor? If you hear anything, let me and Steve know."
"Of course we will." Tara promised as they entered the locker room, "Well…we better get changed before Ms. Crabapple blows that goddamn whistle of hers."
"Probably the only thing she's blown in fifty years." Hope quipped as she pulled off her top. After changing, she whispered to her friend, "Check with Josh after gym?"
"Definitely." Tara replied, "And then we touch base with Max and Sheila at the Kitty Kat Club tonight."
Middleton High—cafeteria
As he sat down at the table across from his best friend, who was currently sipping her drink from a straw, Ron smiled. "I finally finished the animology quiz."
"Let me guess…" Kim chuckled, "Blue baboon?"
"No." Ron, a dejected look on his face, "Pink sloth. The worst one possible. An outcast, a follower, socially inept and smells of overripe fruit. Yep…" Ron slouched in his seat, "That's me."
"Ron…" Kim shook her head, "The results of a stupid faddish personality quiz cannot determine your life!" The teen hero then glanced down at the book, "You arrive at the multiplex only to find that the movie you wanted to see has sold out…"
"What were you saying, KP?" Ron rolled his eyes as he saw how his best friend was now taking the quiz, "A faddish personality quiz?"
"It's just for fun, Ron." Kim laughed. "No one takes these things seriously…" As she uttered her words, the pair overheard Amelia and Bonnie, the two girls who were at the top of the Middleton High food chain talking.
"Amelia! Over here! I saved you a seat."
"I heard you're a lavender mouse." Amelia sniffed dismissively. "I'm a red otter. Major conflict."
"What are those two doing talking to Josh?" Kim asked grim-faced as she spotted Tara and Hope speaking with the object of her crush at a separate table.
"Maybe the Dirty Pair want a little Mankey action." Ron quipped, then, seeing the glare being sent his way by his best friend, quickly backpedaled, "Or maybe not. It looks like they're just talking. You can usually tell when they're flirting and they don't look like they're doing that. If anything…" He pondered, "It looks like they're having a pretty serious conversation."
"That's even worse." Kim grumbled as she spotted Rufus poking his head out of Ron's pocket. Smiling down at the little rodent as she held out a piece of cheddar cheese. "Rufus? Want some cheese?"
"Yah…Cheese." The little rodent chattered.
"All you've got to do to get this and the rest of the cheese I've got in this baggie…" Kim held up a little plastic bag with a couple of wedges of cheese, "…is go over there…" she pointed to the table where Josh and the Dirty Pair were talking, "…and listen in on their conversation. Wanna do that for me?"
"Ok." Rufus saluted and then, taking the cheese from Kim's hand, skittered away to complete his mission.
"We heard that you played at that party Margaret Thompson went to about a week or so ago…that right, Josh?" Tara asked in a friendly voice as she picked at the mystery meat on her plate.
"Hmmm…" The blondish haired boy tried to recall, "Give me a moment…Yeah…I think I know the party you're talking about. Clarice Williams' party. Her parents told her that she could have a few friends over and that we could play, but no booze."
"But there was booze…right?" Hope queried as Rufus silently listened in.
"Yeah.' Josh confessed. "Some of the kids smuggled some in and we had some crashers. I think they were from one of the colleges. A few of them had t-shirts with Greek letters on them."
"Frat-boys." Tara interjected, "Did you get a look at the letters?"
"Yeah." Josh nodded his head, "They were Alpha Sigma Sigma."
"How appropriate." Tara drolly commented. "Did you see Margaret at the party? How was she acting? Was she drinking any of the booze?"
"I saw her some." Mankey answered back, "At first, she seemed okay. She was staying away from the booze. But then I saw her talking to one of the boys in the t-shirts. She set her glass down on the counter and the other boys with Greek t-shirts were kinda blocking my view."
"I bet that's when they slipped her the roofie." Hope murmured.
"Now it all makes sense!" Josh exclaimed, "The police asked me a lot of the same questions you're asking. I told them pretty much what I'm telling you now only they didn't say anything about her being slipped a roofie. Margaret picked up her drink and finished it and then danced with that boy she talked to for a while."
"How did she look while she was dancing?" Hope inquired, "Did she look nervous or like she was about to pass out or excited or anything like that?"
"At first, she appeared normal…I mean she's an okay dancer…but then it looked like she started really getting into the music." The young musician/artist recalled. "She acted more and more…I don't know…uninhibited? Then she started taking her clothes off."
"What happened then?" Tara asked, "Did someone try to stop her?"
"Yeah. I thought she was acting strange, so I quit playing and jumped off the stage to go to her, then a couple of the frat boys—big guys—I mean bigger than Brick—got in my way. Every time I tried to go around them, they blocked me until a couple of other guys from our school showed up. It looked like there was going to be a fight and then another one of the frat boys came up and whispered something in their ears and they left. I went looking for Margaret, but she was gone, so I went to Clarice, but she was already half-way plastered. She said something about Margaret going off with those frat boys in their car."
"You told all this to the police—right?" Tara inquired.
"Yeah." Josh nodded his head. "They took my statement and everything."
"Were you able to get a description of those Alpha Sigma Sigmas?" Hope queried.
"I did one better." Josh smiled. "I drew pictures of them for the cops."
"Think you can draw their pictures for us?" Tara pleaded. "We'd really appreciate it. We're going to pass them around to all the girls in the school."
"Sure thing." Josh replied as he took out his sketch pad and began drawing. After several minutes, he tore out the drawings. "Here you go girls. Copy them and pass them around. I don't want what happened to Margaret to happen to anyone else. And I hope that son of a bitch who slipped her that roofie gets what's coming to him."
"Thanks, Josh." Tara smiled warmly at the artist, "And don't worry, luv. He will." Changing the subject, the blonde asked, "How are things going with Kim?"
On hearing his friend's name mentioned, Rufus paid closer attention. "I don't know." Mankey shook his head, "She still won't talk to me and I don't feel comfortable trying to talk to her with Ron there…like I told you, if he's interested in Kim, I don't want to come in between them. What do you think? You know them better than me. Is he interested in her?"
Letting out a breath of air, Hope carefully considered her answer. "If you want me to give you my honest opinion…" Taking the young man's single nod of his head as confirmation, she continued, "I'm not sure he's sure. But, I do know that Kim doesn't see him in a boyfriend/girlfriend sort of way and I do know that she's crushing like crazy on you."
"I was kinda afraid of that." Josh confessed. "It'd almost be better if she hated my guts. Right now…" He shook his head, "I don't see any way of us getting together that doesn't involve Ron getting hurt—and I don't want that."
"You're a good bloke, Josh." Tara said with a warm smile on her face. "We'll catch you later."
"Damn." Tara swore in a soft voice, "That sucks."
"I know one thing…" Hope muttered as the pair walked out of the lunchroom, "We need to get Stoppable laid. And no…I'm not doing the honors—not without having several shots of tequila first. If I'm gonna break in a damned virgin, I wanna get good and hammered."
"Don't look at me, luv." Tara snickered, "Not unless you wanna replace that tequila with gin and throw in a diamond necklace. Then I might…might…think about letting him have some nookie."
"So…what do you wanna do about the pictures?" Hope asked, "Maybe see if the police have 'em?"
"That's what I was thinking." Tara replied as the pair ducked into an apparently empty classroom. Taking out her Kimmunicator, she contacted Wade. "Hey, Wade. I need to ask a favor of you, luv."
"What is it, Tara?" Wade inquired.
"Can you scan these arseholes and run them through your database? We need to know if they've been busted or are still on the loose." Tara requested as she set the three sketches down on a table.
"They're the sons of bitches who drugged and raped Margaret." Hope growled, her words and voice at once alerting the young tech to the seriousness of the request.
"Give me a moment." Wade replied as he scanned the sketches through Tara's Kimmunicator and then began typing ferociously on his keyboard. "Okay…I've got something, but I don't think you're going to like it." The ten-year old genius reported. "They were brought in for questioning by the Middleton Police, but were released due to lack of evidence."
"Which local colleges have Alpha Sigma Sigma chapters?" Tara asked.
"Middleton College does and so does the University of Upperton." Wade promptly replied.
"Can you run these goobers through the chapter membership records?" Hope asked.
After several moments of hacking, Wade announced, "Got 'em! Middleton College. There's an Alpha Sigma Sigma house on the college's fraternity row. I've fed in the GPS coordinates to your Kimmunicators. Oh…" He added, almost as an afterthought, "The chapter's on disciplinary probation. One more violation, and their charter is revoked and they're shut down."
"Thanks Wade." Tara and Hope both blew the blushing young boy kisses.
"You want me to make these jerks famous on the web?" Wade offered. "It'd be my pleasure."
"Not yet." Tara's lips turned up in a devilish grin. "I'm gonna call a friend of mine and have her meet us at the Kitty-Kat Club and then we're going to pay them a visit. After we smash and trash 'em, then we make them famous."
"Kim and Ron are on a mission right now so they might be difficult to get hold of. The Senors swiped Pop Pop Porter's cryovator."
"Pop Pop Porter?" Tara exclaimed, "Who the hell is he?"
"You don't know?" Wade asked, his mouth agape in astonishment. "Pop Pop's Mini Corn Dogs?"
"Wade, luv, I'm British. I'm all about fried foods—especially fish and chips served with curry sauce and wrapped in an old newspaper…" Tara's mouth began to water as she imagined biting into a delicious beer battered fried cod and fried chippies dipped in curry sauce, "…but I've never heard of those."
"Little party snacks." Hope explained, "They're flash frozen, so all you gotta do is nuke 'em."
"Oh…kinda like little bangers…you know…" The Englishwoman chuckled, "Bangers and mash…" Letting out a breath of air, she translated, "Sausages."
"Sorta. More like tiny hot dogs." Hope clarified. "Pigs in a blanket except with corn meal."
"Oh." Tara frowned, "Yuck."
"Anyway…" Wade explained, "They're following that up. But I can get 'em if you need 'em."
"No." Tara shook her head, "I think we can handle a bunch of frat-boys. We've got a secret weapon."
"Yeah." Wade sighed, "What I'm afraid of is that your secret weapon might be a loose cannon if she's who I think she is. Do me a favor and make sure she keeps her temper in check. You wanna give them a butt kicking, I'm all on board with that; but please tell her not to fry any of 'em."
"Don't worry." Tara laughed, "I'll make sure Cheeky pulls her punches."
"All I'm asking." Wade sighed in relief.
"Catch ya later, Wadesy."
"You're gonna call me that from now on, aren't you." Wade groaned.
"It's that or Half-pint…your choice." Tara chuckled.
"If it's all the same to you…" Wade sighed, "I'll go with Wadesy."
"The Kitty-Kat Club?" Jessica Sundstrom who was stacking books in the teacher's office, thanks to the thin walls, couldn't help but catch the conversation between her fellow cheerleaders and the boy that Kim was always talking to before she went on her missions. "Hope and Tara are gonna take those frat-boys on and Kim and Ron are on a mission. They don't stand a chance alone. I gotta get Steve to help me talk them out of it."
Returning to his human companion and his redheaded friend, Rufus scampered up on their table and saluted.
"So?" Kim asked as she held up a wedge of cheese, "Are they going after Josh?"
"No." Rufus emphatically shook his head. Scampering up to his human companion's shoulders, the rodent whispered, "Talk. Alone." Skittering back down the table again, he held out his hands, "Cheese?"
Smiling down at the little rodent, Kim handed him the wedge, "Thank you, Rufus."
"Anytime." The naked mole-rat chattered before nibbling on his cheesy treat. "Yum."
Kitty Kat Club—later that night
"Sheila here, Big Mike?" Tara asked as she handed the keys to her Alfa-Romeo to the part-time valet.
"Yeah." The giant high-school student smiled, "You going after the assholes who hurt Margaret?"
"That's the idea." Hope nodded her head.
"Good." The giant youth rumbled, "Wish I could join you, but I gotta finish my shift. Punch 'em one for me."
"Count on it, Big Mike." Tara smiled as she looked up at the gentle giant.
Entering the nightclub, the two adventuresses at once noticed the person they were seeking lounging against the bar, wearing a black cocktail dress and diamond choker. "Hey, Cheeky." Tara greeted as she gave the dark-haired villainess a kiss on her lips.
"Cutie." Shego smirked as she returned the blonde's kiss, "Cheerleader. I got your call. So…what are we waiting for? Let's go kick some ass."
Exiting the nightclub, the trio immediately made their way to the valet's station where Hope and Tara spotted two very familiar faces. "What you two doing here?" Tara demanded as she stared at Steve and Jessica.
"We're gonna try and talk you out of doing something stupid." Steve said.
"You're not Kim." Jessica exclaimed, adding her pleas. "You're not professionals…"
On hearing that, Shego began to laugh hysterically. "Sorry…but did you just say that Cutie and the Cheerleader weren't pros? And that Pumpkin and the Buffoon are? Thanks you two. That's the best laugh I've had all day." Her laughter finally dying down, Shego spoke in a much more serious tone of voice. "The Princess is still a rookie in our little world of fun and games. You've probably seen me playing footsie with Cupcake on the news…"
"You're that Shego woman…right?" Steve inquired.
"Give the boy a cookie…" She then leered at the freckle-faced blonde standing next to the baseball player, "Or you can give him some nookie. Yeah…that's me. And believe me…I'm pulling my punches when I go one on one with little Kimmie." She then added a touch of menace to her voice, "You don't want to be anywhere near me when I go all out."
"Okay…" Steve reluctantly conceded with a lump in his throat, "You can handle those frat boys on your own, but Hope and Tara…"
Her hand lightly grazing Tara's cheek, Shego interrupted, "Cutie's been in the game as long as I have and has almost as high a body count. The big difference between us is that she only works with the good guys while I'm more flexible. And Cheerleader over here…" she then placed a hand on Hope's arm, "…already has at least three kills under her belt. She's become hell with a pistol and sniper rifle. I know I wouldn't want to be in her sights. Added to that, she's a pretty good scrapper. Cupcake and the Buffoon are still virgins when it comes to the really dirty stuff in our business like killing. She then exposed her left leg to show a scar. "See that? One of Cutie's shuriken did that to me. Of course…I got her too. Come on, Cutie…show 'em your beauty mark. It's only fair, I showed 'em mine."
"Okay…" Tara said as she lifted her skirt to reveal the plasma burn scar.
"I thought you got that in an accident." Jessica gasped. "Are you telling me that…"
"Cheeky gave it to me." Tara interrupted and then turned to the green-skinned villainess, "Didn't I get that from you in Leipzig?"
"No." Shego shook her head, "Barcelona. I was hired to steal some plates at the mint for a counterfeiting ring…"
"Oh yeah…I remember now. "I was hired by MI-6 to stop you. We mixed it up and I nicked you with the shuriken."
"Which you coated with acid!" Shego growled. "Do you have any idea how much that hurt!"
"Hey…you got me back with that plasma ball." Tara retorted. "That hurt like hell!"
"You got careless." Shego's lips turned up in an evil grin, "You were thinking too much about the fact that I wasn't wearing any underwear under that short skirt I had on at the time and paying too much attention to my pussy when you should have been concentrating on my hands."
"Hey…" Tara smirked, "What can I say, luv. You were the one flashing."
"What's the story with those two?" Jessica whispered to Hope who answered with a sly grin.
"It's complicated."
"Listen…" Tara announced in a loud voice, 'We can fill you in on everything later. Right now, though the three of us are going to…
"The five of us." Steve interrupted as Jessica nodded her head assertively. "Margaret was a friend of ours and goes to school with us. We want to be there to help kick the asses of those bastards who raped her. That's not open for discussion."
"We're wasting time." Shego growled. "Either get rid of them or bring them along, but we need to get changed and go."
"Fine!" Tara sighed, "You two can come along. But you do what we tell you when we tell you."
"And stay the fuck outta my way." Shego sneered.
"All right." Steve and Jessica nodded their heads in acceptance, "You're the bosses."
"Give us a few minutes. We need to get changed into our work gear." Tara said as she and Shego both opened the trunks to their cars and took out carry bags, with Tara tossing one of the bags to Hope.
Emerging a few minutes later from the changing room in the valet's station, Hope and Tara were now wearing their black catsuits with Hope carrying a holstered pistol and taser around her waist and a combat knife in a boot sheath, while Tara carried shuriken attached to a belt around her waist as well as a pouch containing several throwing knives and a combat knife in a boot sheath. Shego walked out in her normal green and black outfit, her lips turned up in a sarcastic smirk.
"Ready to go, ladies. Got things to do…frat boys to burn."
"Ummm…" Jessica stammered, "You're not going to kill them—are you?"
"No." Tara shook her head as Shego let out a derisive snort.
"You're no fun, Cutie."
"We're not going to kill them." Tara continued from where she was interrupted, "But we are going to leave them with some bumps and bruises…and maybe a few cuts and contusions."
"And possibly a concussion or two." Hope added with a smirk.
"And if one of them gets a little singed…" Shego shrugged her shoulders, "Next time they'll know better than to play with fire."
"We're all gonna be pulling our punches here, Jessica." Tara declared, "But those bleeders are going to learn a lesson."
"Long as they don't bring in any guns, it'll just be a beatdown." Hope announced, "But if they decide to up the stakes…"
A small plasma ball manifested itself in Shego's hand as she completed the raven-haired cheerleader's sentence, "Then they'll get what's coming to them."
"And if guns do come into play..." Tara commanded, "You and Steve get the hell outta there and call the cops. Got that?"
"Got it." Both Steve and Jessica nodded their heads.
"Okay…let's get going."
Alpha Sigma Sigma House—Middleton College
"Heh." Shego snorted as she gazed at the manicured lawn and obviously expensive two story house, "Just as I thought. A bunch of self-entitled shitheads. I'm going to enjoy ripping these bozos new assholes."
"Right." Tara inclined her head in the direction of the house. "Cheeky you get the honors of blowing the shit out of that door. Then Hope and I make our entrance, followed by you, Steve. Jessica? Stay back and have your cell phone ready to dial. Ready?"
"Let's do this, bestie." A grim-faced Hope replied, readying her taser as the three women and one man approached the door.
"Whenever you're ready, Cutie." Shego smirked as she conjured up a fireball in her hand.
"Let 'er rip!" Tara shouted as Shego let loose her fireball, shattering the door into splinters. "Now!"
Bursting into what was apparently a combination foyer and bar area, Hope, entering first, spotted one of the fraternity brothers, a heavyset male wearing a Greek letter t-shirt and jeans, draw back his arm to throw a punch. Striking quickly, the lovely brunette fired her taser, impacting the young man square in his chest, the electric current quickly driving him to the ground a quivering mass.
"What the hell?" The fraternity brother behind the bar cried out as he reached under the counter.
"Bad move, toerag." Tara swore as she threw a pair of shuriken, each one striking on either side of his head, grazing each ear in the process. "Hands up and slowly step away from the counter or the next one goes in your heart."
Holding his hands in the air, the slender young man slowly backed away from the counter. "Okay…Okay…I'm doing what you tell me. Just don't throw any more of those things."
Entering next, Steve tackled another one of the fraternity brothers, following up his tackle with a solid punch to the jaw. "Had enough?" As his opponent went limp, Steve picked him up and, moving swiftly, jerked the frat-boy's arm behind his back, twisting it just enough to cause the boy to grimace. "Move and I'll break it."
"Cheeky? Wanna invite any blokes upstairs down to the party?" Tara requested, giving the villainess a sweet smile.
"Love to, Cutie." Shego grinned. A few moments later, there was a loud shout, "FIRE IN THE HOLE!" and then a thunderous crash followed by three half naked boys running down the stairs. Moments later, Shego's voice, now grave and serious, called out. "Cutie? You and Freckles better get up here. Yesterday."
"On our way, luv." Taking the stairs two at a time, Tara burst into the room where Shego stood. What she saw on the bed made her teeth clench in fury: A high school aged girl with blonde hair and blue eyes lay on the bed half undressed and in a dazed condition.
"Looks like we got here before anything could happen." Shego surmised, "But she's stoned out of her gourd. We need to get the paramedics here."
"Right." Tara nodded her head as she took out her Kimmunicator. "Wade? We need you to send police and paramedics to the Alpha Sigma Sigma House at Middleton College. We found a girl here…she's been drugged."
The young boy gulped in dread, "Did they…"
"No." Tara replied in a soft voice. "We got here in time."
"Thank God." Wade sighed in relief. "They're on the way. You guys better get done what you need to and get out. I figure you've got about three to seven minutes."
"Right. That should be enough time."
Moments later, Jessica bounded up the stairs. "Is she going to be okay?" The freckle-faced blonde asked with a worried look on her face.
"I hope so." Tara answered back in a soft voice. "Can you be a dear, Jess, and keep an eye on her? We're going to ask some quick questions of those tossers downstairs."
"Go ahead, Tara…Shego. I'll look after her." Jessica replied as she took station next to the girl on the edge of the bed.
Returning down the stairs, Tara spoke up in a loud, clear voice. "Okay boys…we're going to play a game my friend here loves to play…I'll let her explain the rules to you."
"The name of the game, slimeballs…" Shego sneered, "Is Ouchie. I'm going to ask a question. If you don't give me an answer I like, I get to give you an ouchie. I do hope you give me answers I don't like." Her lips turned up in an evil grin, "Because I love to give ouchies. So…first question. Where's the stuff?"
"What stuff? The guy behind the counter sneered.
"BEEP…wrong answer!" Shego snorted as she let lose a low-level plasma ball, hitting the boy in his arm.
"OwOwOwOw…" The frat-boy whimpered as his arm hung limply.
"It's only a first degree burn." Shego's lips turned up in an evil grin. "Next one will be a second degree burn. Then a third degree…you get the picture. So…where's the stuff?"
"Derick's room." The boy whined, "First door on the left, fourth drawer down."
"On it." Hope said as she dashed up the stairs returning moments later with a box. Opening the box, she nodded, "That's the stuff."
"Take one—we'll have Wade analyze it." Tara requested. "The rest we leave for the police." Turning to Shego, she grinned, "Cheeky? I think we have time for one more question."
Nodding her head, the supervillainess spoke, "Next question…who sold you the stuff."
"We don't know!" Holding his hands up in supplication as the villainess began her windup, the frat-boy begged, "Honest! We get a phone call once a month and we place our order. We then pick it up at the mailbox down the road."
"Dead drop." Tara growled, "Most likely the dealer uses a disposable phone. Still…" Taking her Kimmunicator, she placed it next to the phone, "Wade? Can you scan the last month's numbers called and received?"
"Sure thing, Tara." The young techie replied as the sound of sirens could be heard, heralding the approach of the police and EMTs. "Got 'em. You guys better leave."
"Right." Tara nodded her head as the sirens grew louder, "That's our cue." She then shouted, "Jess? Paramedics are here." Pulling out plastic handcuffs, Tara, Shego, and Hope each bound the frat boys as Jessica wrote a sign reading Illegal Drugs Here with an arrow pointing at the box containing the roofies. "We've gotta leave. We'll hang about the area until the cops and EMTs show."
"I think everything's covered, bestie!" Hope said as she delivered a parting kick at the tasered fraternity brother lying on the floor.
"Need to work on your follow through, Cheerleader." Shego grinned as she gave the fallen thug a harder kick. "Like this."
"Right everyone!" Tara called out, "Time to bugger off." She then gave the cowering fraternity brothers a quick piece of parting advice. "Cops will be here in seconds, so don't do anything stupid. Got it?" Waiting until the boys all nodded their heads, she turned to her friends, "Let's go."
Constable Hobble watched as the paramedics wheeled the young woman they found in the upstairs bedroom to the waiting ambulance on a gurney. "How is she?" The police officer inquired of one of the EMTs.
"Her condition's stable, but she's under the influence of whatever those punks gave her." The paramedic reported. "We're taking her to the hospital right away. It'd be helpful if we could have one of those damned roofies so that the lab could analyze it."
"Go ahead." The senior police officer nodded, granting his permission. "We have plenty for evidence." As he spoke, a junior officer came up and reported.
"We've gotten statements from the boys. All they'd say is that three girls busted into their house. Two of the girls wore black outfits—one had blonde hair and spoke with a British accent and the other had dark black hair. It's the third girl that really scared them though. From their descriptions and the damage done to the house, it looks like they had the bad luck to receive a visit from Shego."
Constable Hobble let out a low whistle, "We've been wanting to bust these punks for weeks but could never get any evidence until now. I got a feeling the parents of one or more of those poor girls who got raped got tired of waiting for us to do anything and hired Shego and a pair of mercs to take care of business."
"They must have paid a lot of money to hire Shego for a job like this." The other police officer shook his head, "The other two girls seemed to be pros too. That's a lot of talent to take down a bunch of frat boys. At least they left them alive…bruised and singed, but alive. So…what do you want to do Constable?"
"We've got the evidence on those bastards now. Bust 'em for possession and sexual assault. We'll see about piling on other charges when we get back to the station. Once this gets out, the college is sure to revoke their charter so that means we won't have to deal with anymore Alpha Sigma Sigma-holes."
"And Shego and the other mercs?"
"What are you talking about Officer Jones? I didn't see hide nor hair of Shego or any mercs." Constable Hobble smirked, "I don't know about you, but all I heard was a bunch of crazy ramblings from some drunk and stoned frat-boys…right?"
"Right, Sir." The younger officer smiled as he tore the notes he had taken from his questioning of the boys out of his notebook and, taking a lighter, burned them.
"You're not going to talk to the police or reporters?" Jessica asked.
"Not our style." Hope smirked, "The less people know about us—the better."
"We understand." Scott and Jessica replied, nodding their heads. "We won't tell anyone."
"Thanks, luvs." Tara grinned at her friends. "We're happy letting Kimmie and Ron get all the fame and credit."
Turning to Shego, Jessica, choosing her words very carefully, asked, "If I might ask…why did you help? I always thought you were a…"
"Villain." Shego laughed, "Yeah. I am. Never doubt that. But there are certain lines I don't cross. One of them is drugging young teenagers—or anyone else for that matter—and sexually assaulting them. Those assholes crossed that line. As far as I'm concerned, I was just helping to take out the trash."
"Well…thanks, Shego." Steve sincerely replied. "We appreciate all you did."
"You're welcome." The green-skinned supervillainess, not used to receiving genuine thanks, haltingly responded and then turned to her fellow mercenaries. "So…what are your plans?"
"I was thinking about dining in tonight." Tara answered back in a sultry voice as she gave the villainess a coy wink, "Care to join me?"
"Depends." Shego teased as she licked her lips sensuously. "What are you thinking of eating?"
Lowering her voice to a whisper, Tara replied, "You."
"Sounds good to me, Cutie. Wanna ride or are you going to take your wheels?"
Turning to her roommate, Tara asked, "What are your plans, Hope?"
"I was thinking about going to the club and bringing home some take-out." The olive-skinned cheerleader grinned lasciviously, "You two want me to bring some prime beef back for you?"
"Nah…" Tara smirked as she tossed the keys of the Spyder to her friend, "We're going to have a private dinner tonight." Giving Shego a kiss, Tara growled sensuously, "Come on, Cheeky. We'll take your car."
"Get in, Cutie. By the way…" The raven-haired villainess leered, "What animal are you?"
"Tan Giraffe." Tara grinned. "You?"
"Red Jaguar." Shego purred. "You know what that makes us…don't you?"
"I'll show you in a bit." Tara teased as she nibbled the other woman's ear. Then, waving at the others as Shego put her car in gear and peeled out, Tara called out, "See you all at school Monday!"
Watching as her fellow cheerleaders and the supervillainess drove off, Jessica shook her head in amazement at recent developments. "Tara and Hope…mercenaries. Tara…hooking up with Kim's biggest enemy. I didn't even know she swung that way…not that it matters…"
"If she hasn't told anyone but Hope, that probably means she doesn't want it to get around." Steve pointed out.
"I guess I can understand that." Jessica nodded her head. "While I think most of us wouldn't have any problems, there are a couple on the squad like Bonnie and Marcella who'd kick up a fuss."
"Not to mention many of the jocks." Steve reluctantly admitted. "Not that I think she'd be scared of any of them—not after what I saw tonight."
"Yeah." Jessica smirked, "Those three were pretty badass. I wonder why she and Hope held back at Camp Wannaweep…but then…Ron really did step up in a big way." The freckle-faced blonde tilted her head to the left as she considered the matter.
"Yeah." Steve agreed, "From what you and Kim told me, he had the situation well in hand. Maybe they figured he didn't need their help. They might also have wanted to give him a confidence boost."
"That fits in with some of the other stuff that happened." Jessica mused, "It makes sense. Just before everything happened, while we were on the bus, he looked like a whipped puppy after Kim chewed him out." Seeing the look of confusion on her boyfriend's face, she explained, "Ron got a little too carried away with the Mad Dog bit on the bus and he was getting on everyone's nerves, so Kim went back to settle him down and I think she said the wrong thing the wrong way because he…Steve…he looked so beaten."
"Sounds like he needed that confidence lift." The baseball player remarked.
Yeah. Jessica affirmed, further recalling, "They agreed with Mr. Barkin on Ron leading everyone to the payphone and when Kim tried to take over and began issuing orders to everyone in the cabin, they backed him over her." Smiling, she gave her boyfriend a peck on the cheek, "We better get home before we get busted for being out past curfew."
"Good idea." Steve laughed as the pair got in his truck. "Let's go, Jess. Too bad we can't tell anyone about this." His laughter fading away, he ended on a serious note, "But…at least we got the bastards that raped Margaret and those other girls."
"Yeah." Jessica nodded her head and then snuggled up closer to her boyfriend and gave him a kiss on the cheek, "You know, you were pretty badass in there too. I saw you take down that big guy. I don't care what anyone else says, Steve, you're my hero."
The night of the raid—Middleton Mall
"That was a great movie." Crystal remarked to the young Asian woman walking next to her, both girls well within each other's personal space. "I love fantasy…you know…just losing yourself in being someone else for a little while." Laughing, the tawny-skinned cheerleader joked, "Don't worry…I'm not gonna start calling myself Cassandra the Dark Elf and run around school in a chainmail bikini…"
"Oh…I don't know…" Zoe bantered back, "I bet you look hot in a chainmail bikini."
All of a sudden feeling flushed, Crystal stammered, "Ummm…nah…I uhhh…I don't have Tara's or Bonnie's boobs. And I'm not extroverted like Jessica and Liz or the take charge type like Kim and Bonnie. Guess that comes with being a black sheep." Laughing, the cheerleader explained, "I took that animology quiz for grins and chuckles…stupid, huh?"
"Not at all." Zoe replied with a warm grin, "It's been making the rounds at the Club too. "Clea is a saffron rabbit and Max won't tell us what he is…"
"What are you?" Crystal asked as the fingers of the two young women lightly grazed other as they walked.
"Maroon panda." Zoe laughed as the couple's fingers again grazed each other. "You know what that makes us?"
"Yeah." Crystal replied in a soft voice as the pair exited the mall. Only this time, instead of moving away, their fingers intertwined as they proceeded to walk together hand in hand.
"That's my bus." Crystal sighed as the transport pulled up at the stop. "I better get on it before it leaves and I get grounded for missing curfew. I had a great time." A lump forming in her throat, she asked, "Ummm…I was wondering if…we're having a cheerleading competition this Saturday…would you like to…if you can get off work that is…"
"Come and see you?" Zoe smiled, "I'd love to. Clea owes me a favor, I can get her to switch her Friday night for my shift. Maybe dinner afterwards?"
"Yeah." Crystal replied, her lips turning up in a grin, "I'd like that."
"Great!" Zoe exclaimed as the pair slowly released each other's hands, "It's a date then. See ya on Saturday."
"Cool! See ya then!" Crystal responded as she boarded the bus. "Call me if you get the chance."
"Count on it."
Easily finding a seat to herself on the nearly empty bus, Crystal looked out the window, her gaze lingering on the Asian beauty as the bus pulled out. I don't believe it! I think I just had a date with a girl and I made another date with her! Does this mean that I'm…no…She shook her head as the bus turned down the road towards her home. I can't be…can I? What if I am? What will my friends say? My parents? Everyone at school. I'm so confused. I don't know what to think.
Sometime later, after the tawny-skinned teenager had returned home and was safe in her room. She took out her cell phone and dialed a number. "Teen Hotline? Can you help me? I ummm…I think I might be gay."
Possible House—that night
"How did your mission go, Sweetie?" Mrs. Dr. Possible asked her daughter as she passed a platter of sliced roast beef around the table.
"All right." Kim smiled as she took a slice of roast beef and a portion of mashed potatoes and then ladled a spoonful of gravy over the potatoes and beef. "We destroyed Senor Senior's freeze ray and thawed out the Billionaire's Club, but there was one hitch…"
"The blue fox found her yellow trout." Ron chuckled.
"Oh?" Ann grinned, "So…who is he?"
"Junior." Kim grumbled as she ladled a portion of peas on her plate.
"Junior?" Ann chuckled, "Well…like you said…it's just a fad."
Before Kim could respond, the evening news came on the television, the sound carrying over into the kitchen.
"This is Summer Gayle of KMID News with an important news bulletin. The Middleton Police Department has reported a major breakthrough tonight in several cases concerning the drugging and rape of young high school and college women in the Tri-City area."
On hearing the news report, the Possibles and their guest dashed into the living room and, gathering around the television, paid close attention as the anchor delivered her report.
"Constable Hobble? Can you tell us what happened?"
"I'd be happy to, Ms. Gayle. We received an anonymous call that there was a disturbance at the Middleton College Alpha Sigma Sigma house and responded with police and EMT units. When we arrived, the door was blown open. Entering the domicile, we found the drugs in question out in the open and a young woman in a drugged and half-undressed state lying on the bed."
"And was the girl sexually assaulted?"
"I'm sorry, Ms. Gayle, but we're not at liberty to discuss ongoing investigations."
"Is it true that the villain Shego was seen in the vicinity?"
"No comment."
"Can you tell us what the members of the Alpha Sigma Sigma fraternity are being charged with?" The reporter asked as the frat-boys were loaded into the back of a police van.
"Yes." Constable Hobble replied, "Possession of illegal drugs and sexual assault."
"Thank you, Constable. This is Summer Gayle for KMID News.
"Oh my!" Ann gasped.
"Those must be the same ones who drugged Margaret." Kim grimly noted, then, seeing the questioning look given to her by her father, explained, "Remember when we worked with that Global Justice agent—Will Du?"
"The guy Hope and Tara called Twinky." Ron chuckled.
"Yes." Kim, barely repressing a smirk at the nickname, nodded her head. "Well, just after we met Agent Du, Margaret had a seizure in one of the hallways. Tara, Hope, Steve and Jessica were there to help."
"That's good." James nodded his head.
"Tara and Steve took care of Margaret while Hope and Jessica went to get help." Kim recounted, "They took Margaret to the hospital and ran some tests on her. That's when they found out that she'd been drugged and sexually assaulted."
"You'd never think this sort of crap would happen in Middleton." James grimly remarked.
Ann remarked, "I've been hearing of cases in Lowton. Unfortunately, it was only a matter of time before that drug would start showing up in Middleton and Upperton. Do Tara and Hope know about the drugs?"
"Yeah." Kim replied, "I think they're really angry here. You know how they've got no problems dropping F and S bombs all over the place?"
"Yes." James responded with a note of disapproval in his voice, "And I can't say that I approve of you hanging around those girls—I don't think they're a good influence on you, Kimmie-cub. They're a little too wild. I'm surprised their parents haven't done something about it."
Barely resisting the urge to ironically smirk as she noted inwardly at how her own use of F and S bombs had gone up recently, Kim elaborated, her explanation not at all easing her father's anxiety, "They're emancipated minors, Dad. Hope left her home and filed the paperwork for legal emancipation and Tara's already legally emancipated."
"What's the story with Hope?" Ann asked.
"It's not a very happy one." Kim sighed, "Her and her parents had a very serious fight and lines were almost crossed. When they threatened to send her to a private boarding school—really more a reform school—she called her Aunt Lucinda and moved out. She's rooming with Tara now."
"Then I definitely don't approve!" James growled, "I don't want you to…"
Placing a hand on her husband's arm, Ann interrupted, "We talked about this a while ago James, and you agreed that while they might not be perfect, they were good girls at heart."
"They are, Dad." Kim readily agreed. "And Hope had very good reasons for leaving. Anyway…they weren't swearing when they found out from what Jessica told me. They were dead silent. That's when you know they're really mad."
Shaking her head, Ann let out a breath of air. "While it's good that the police got the frat-boys who were using that stuff to hurt those young girls, the problem hasn't gone away and it won't until they catch whoever's pushing this stuff."
"You're right." Kim nodded her head, "Whoever's making and selling this stuff has to be stopped."
After asking to be excused from the table, Kim and Ron made their way up to her room where she took out her Kimmunicator and contacted her techie, "Wade? Did you catch the news report this evening?"
"Yeah." The ten-year old genius responded.
"What really happened?" Kim demanded.
Taking a deep breath, Wade recounted the entire story from when the girls had contacted him about the sketches that Josh had drawn through their decision to raid the frat-house with Shego and how Jessica and Steve Farley had accompanied them and participated in the raid.
"So…Jessica and Steve know about Tara and Hope?" Kim inquired as she thought to herself, sighing inwardly with relief, They must have been talking to Josh about Margaret during lunch. He was drawing sketches of the fraternity boys for them to give to Wade.
"Yeah." Wade answered back, "I'm in the process of analyzing one of those roofies, but it's slow going. It's almost like the designer of this chem deliberately set out to make it almost impossible to crack the formula."
"Thank you, Wade." Kim responded with a warm smile, "Keep us updated on anything else."
"You think we should give Tara and Hope a call now?" Ron asked.
"That's probably not a good idea." Wade interjected. "Tara said something about having a private dinner with Shego, and Hope said something about going to the club for some takeout—I think the words she used was prime beef."
"Definitely not a good idea to interrupt them." Kim declared, her face becoming even redder.
Nodding his head, Ron agreed, "Yeah…I have a feeling you're right. Well…we can talk to them at school on Monday."
Monday at School
"Where's Ron?" Tara asked as Kim, waving at them, rushed up to the pair.
"He got sidetracked by Mr. Barkin." Kim grinned, "I have a feeling it'll be a few minutes before he can catch up. Barkin had his 'I've got extra homework for you' look when he flagged him down." Her smile vanishing, she concluded, "Long enough for us to talk."
"What do you want to talk about?" Hope inquired as the pair drew closer to their redheaded friend.
"Wade filled me in on your raid on the frat-house." Kim replied, "First off…tell Shego I said thanks and I appreciate it that no one got killed or seriously hurt."
"I'll pass it on to her." Tara answered back, adding, "It wasn't easy for us to pull our punches—especially after we found that girl in one of their bedrooms."
"Do you know how she's going to be?" Kim asked.
Letting out a breath, the blonde spy responded with a shake of her head, "No. Just that we got to her in time and what you've probably already heard on the news."
"Any ideas on who sold that shit to those frat boys?" Kim asked, her voice carrying a sharp edge.
"Not yet." Tara shook her head, "Hopefully we'll find out something soon. Sheila told me that she'd ask around. You know she won't be very nice in asking questions though."
"Yeah. Well…" Kim took a deep breath, "This is one instance where I'm just going to go with that old saying of what I don't know won't hurt me. When you find something out and you get ready to go after whoever's selling and making those drugs… Kim pleaded, "Count me in…please."
"Could get ugly, Kim." Hope warned, "When we hit the people making and selling that shit, we're not going to pull any punches."
"Yeah, Kim." Tara further cautioned, "You might want to really think about this. We were able to avoid doing any lasting damage to anyone this go round, but that's going to be different when we go after the manufacturers. Odds are we are going to end up killing some people—bad people to be sure—but if you come with us, the chances are very good that you're going to have to take a life."
"And…Sheila will probably want a piece of the fuckers too." Hope added, "You think you can work and play with her for at least the duration of the job."
"I don't care." Kim replied with a hardness to her features that neither girl had seen before. "Those bastards making and selling that shit have to be shut down. And yeah…I can work with Shego if it means taking those scum out."
"All right." Tara replied, "When we find out something, you're in."
"Thank you." Kim replied in a soft voice as she noticed Ron coming towards them, "Guys…I think this is one mission I don't want Ron knowing about. Is that okay with you?"
"I think that's a good idea, Kim." Tara nodded her head in understanding. "Ron's too good a person to see and do what we're going to see and do. You are too…" The blonde sighed, once again attempting to dissuade her friend from joining them on this particular mission. "You've got plenty of time to change your mind if you want. I'm not expecting any immediate results."
"No…" Kim shook her head, "I want in. I didn't know Margaret very well or any of those other girls personally, but Margaret is a fellow classmate and student. I'm not going to just stand by while this junk is being made and sold to be used as a date-rape drug."
Both Hope and Tara replied with heavy sighs, "All right. When it goes down…you'll be there with us."