Disclaimer: I own who I own, which doesn't include any boys or Kim…or Shego.
Charchee: Remember, candy is dandy but fruit helps you poop.
Shegal92: Thank you for your words of wisdom, Charchee. I'm sorry you didn't want to say anything else to the readers. Sorry that it's been taking me forever to upload. It's a long chapter (to write, at least) and I was on vacation for three weeks. It gets really good in this chapter, I promise. Oh and please review.
The girls lounged on their pillows, obviously their sleeping bags not being an option. They listened as the guys yelled furiously at each other, running up the stairs. They smirked, chuckling at the chaos now unraveling. The laxatives were taking affect.
"Now would be the ideal time to strike." Golden Arrow noted. Shego held up a finger, signaling her to wait a minute, and turned her head towards the stairs.
"Drakken, you better not use my bathroom unless your will's written!" She yelled. They heard a door slam, as though in defiance.
"Apparently he's used to your threats." War Hawk said wryly.
"I'm going to have to use a whole bottle of freshening spray just to make the air breathable again." Shego groaned.
Artica looked at the stairs. They were the main passage to the two other bathrooms, Drakken's and Shego's. The other one on the first floor was probably occupied and had a line. What if…what if they were cut off from the two bathrooms upstairs? What if they only had the other bathroom to go in? She let out a puff of vapor, watching as her visible breath disappeared. She could arrange that easily.
"Shego, did you ever manage to stay on your feet gliding on that ice rail at my lair?" Shego looked questioningly at Artica.
"Not yet, why?" Artica chuckled.
"You'll see. Just follow me, girls."
&&&&&
Kim's mouth dropped open as they stood at the top of the stairs. Artica had iced over the entire staircase! It was thick, too. And smooth, flat as the top of a school desk. Slanting downward and extending almost to the kitchen, it looked like a giant frozen Super Slide without the rubber. Even the rails weren't excluded, glazed as a Krispy Kreme doughnut. No one was coming up…and there was only one way down.
"Only question is who's going first?" Artica looked at Shego. Shego did a mocking bow.
"All yours, genius." Artica mockingly curtsied and approached the ramp. She jumped on and flew down the once-was staircase much faster than Kim had thought she would. She stayed on her feet like a pro, not so much as stumbling even once. She slid about to three quarters of the after ramp and carefully stepped off of the ice. Everyone started clapping and whistling.
"And that, ladies and…ladies, was Artica "the Ice Queen" with the famous "Tarzan of the Ice"." Golden Arrow cupped her hands over her mouth, acting like an announcer.
"Next, we have Mischief "The Great"." Mischief started stretching as War Hawk announced her, hands cupped over her mouth copying Golden Arrow.
"What do you think she'll be doing for us, Joe?"
"Well, I don't know, Bob, she's pretty unpredictable." The girls giggled over their new nicknames. Mischief backed up…and ran forward.
"Tally-ho!" She cried with a British accent. She slid on her stomach all the way down and Kim laughed with everyone else. She looked silly, like a clown or something.
"Looks like someone was feeling like a party animal with "The Penguin"." War Hawk commented.
"Looks like you're right, Bob. Question is; will Shego or Kim be going next?" Kim exchanged glances with Shego.
"Ladies first." Shego said playfully. Kim waved her hands towards the ice slide.
"Be my guest." Shego shook her head.
"Not until you go."
"Somebody better think fast, Joe, or the boys'll catch them…us." Kim strode towards the staircase.
"If you insist." Kim flipped her hair. Shego almost laughed at Kim's pathetic excuse for an attitude. But right as Kim began to try to slide, Monkey Fist turned the corner abruptly.
As expected, the two collided and went sprawling down the slide. Shego stood on the edge of the top, watching as Kim and Monkey Fist tried to untangle themselves and get up. The untangling, easy. The getting up, not so much. Shego laughed as they slipped and slid across the ice, struggling to either get to solid ground or stand up on the ice and skate to solid ground.
"I didn't know that couples were allowed in this competition, Joe."
"Neither did I, Bob, but they do a poor excuse for a log roll." And then, with Shego standing on the edge, Drakken rounded the corner. Shego didn't even know what hit her until she felt a hard thud on her back.
They twisted and turned, trying to regain control. They slid quickly down the ice and Shego's stomach crept into her throat. She lashed out at the ice with her nails, trying to slow them down. She was unsuccessful. She felt them slide evenly now as they slid into the after-ramp. It was over. No, not quite. She found herself on top of Drakken with one of his hands winding around her lower back and one of his legs squeezing the back of her right calf. She had her arms around his neck and was twisted in an uncomfortable position. She instinctively got off as fast as she could, slipping a little on the ice.
"What the heck were you doing?" Drakken accused her, sitting upward. This unbalanced him and he scooted a few inches.
"What was I doing? What were you doing?" Shego attempted to stand but halfway up she fell back down on her bottom.
"Well, Bob, that was a beautiful display of creativity."
"Yeah, Joe, they were really getting into it." Golden Arrow and War Hawk laughed.
"I dare you to come down here and say that to my face!" She yelled. She attempted to ease herself up from a four-legged position, but her feet slid too close to her hands and she fell over. It would be better to crawl to the side, she realized quickly.
"What are you and your little friends trying to do now?" Drakken pursued Shego, crawling behind her.
"We were blocking your passage way to those two bathrooms because you wouldn't stay out of mine!"
"Who's the one who gave us laxatives?"
"Who's the one who gave us bugs?"
"Who's the one who tricked us by having Metaphor morph into my mother?"
"Who's the one who glued our sleeping bags to the ceiling?"
"Who's the one who put a fart machine on me?"
"Who's the one who decided to have a sleepover on the same night as me?"
"Who decided to have a sleepover?" Artica pulled Shego the rest of the way to solid ground and Monkey Fist pulled Drakken the rest of the way to solid ground. The two exchanged looks that said, "This is going to last the rest of the night and into the morning". Shego looked up at the top of the stair case.
"Aren't you guys coming down?" Metaphor looked ready to.
"In a minute, as soon as my guy bumps into me." Metaphor mocked them. Golden Arrow shoved her down instead. She screamed and Golden Arrow hooted with laughter.
"There's your guy!" She called after her. Metaphor glared at her as she came to a halt.
"Hah, hah, you're such a funny girl." Golden Arrow crossed her arms and stood there smirking.
"Just go down already. Your boyfriend Ron's not up here to fall into your arms." War Hawk teased. Golden Arrow playfully hit her.
"I'd much rather have Drakken's beefy cousin." She joked half-heartedly. Like a quarterback tackling the opposing team, who else would round the corner and knock down Golden Arrow at that exact moment. Everyone stood open mouthed as she and Motor Ed came tumbling down the stair case. They slid down, just as tangled as the girls before them. They eventually got to solid ground as well.
"Dude, that was seriously awkward." Motor Ed commented.
"Um, Golden Arrow, you're shaking." Shego tried calm down her friend. Golden Arrow glared at Motor Ed.
"He's not going to wake up tomorrow." She growled. That only left War Hawk standing at the top of the staircase. She crept towards the edge and faced forward.
"Ricky Ullman, Ricky Ullman!" She cheered, glancing behind her back, waiting.
"When pigs fly, Bob." Golden Arrow yelled at her. She shrugged and slid down gracefully.
"Show-off." Shego murmured. Soon, all the other boys had joined them.
"I think I pooped out my intestine." Ron moaned.
"Nothing's coming out for a week." Gemini proclaimed.
"Sorry, Drakken but we plugged up that toilet." Dementor pointed in the direction they had come from.
"We already plugged up the two upstairs." Drakken shrugged it off. Fire burst from Shego's hands.
"Two words; You're dead." Sego stalked off and the rest of the girls followed.
"Two words; As if." Drakken slapped high fives with Killigan.
"That was a good one."
&&&&&
"Whose turn is it for revenge?" Metaphor asked. War Hawk shrugged.
"I don't know. I was hoping you did, Shego?"
"What? Am I like the one with all the answers?"
"Yeah. You're the one who keeps track of this stuff." Shego shrugged.
"Let's just wait for them to make their move. We iced the stair case and all they did is plug up my toilet. Even though what Drakken did was horrible, I'm thinking we did the better thing therefore it's their turn." Everyone nodded, even though a few were still confused.
"So, what the heck are we going to do in the mean time?" Shrugging seemed to be a popular thing, Kim realized.
"Let's do something that girls actually do at sleepovers, not like eating bugs and putting fart machines on people."
"Oh, let's sit around in a circle and share our innermost thoughts." Shego said sarcastically. Oh wait, that was Mischief again. The girls looked at Mischief.
"That actually sounds…interesting." Golden Arrow chose her words carefully. She wasn't sure about this, what if they talked about a subject that was personal to her? She wouldn't know what to say.
"We've got nothing better to do." Shego did not like this idea. There were some things she'd rather take to her grave than admit out loud. And she knew better than to lie to any of these girls. They would eventually find out.
"Okay, so…"
"Um, who is…no…"
"Who was your favorite Disney princess when you were little?" Mischief leapt unafraid into uncertainty, Ron's voice sounding (as usual) so sure of itself. For a minute, they blankly looked at each other, waiting for someone to speak. Who would be the first to answer a semi-embarrassing question?
"Snow White." War Hawk whispered, only heard because of the pin-drop silence.
"Ariel." Golden Arrow smiled as she stared at the ground.
"Aurora." Kim spoke up, surprised she was actually talking.
"Belle." Artica threw out.
"Cinderella!" Mischief cried out in a little girl voice. There was a pause, waiting for the next person to go.
"War Hawk took mine." Metaphor muttered. The group turned to Shego. What would her favorite princess be? Had she even had one? Kim wasn't sure.
"Princess Fiona." They giggled, the tension thinning as Shego made the joke.
"Disney, Shego. Not DreamWorks." War Hawk reminded her. Shego sighed.
"Princess Jasmine." She rolled her eyes. And so, the girls shared their innermost thoughts. All defenses down for the moment.
&&&&&
"What do you think they're doing?" Monkey Fist looked at Drakken.
"Planning revenge, of course." Drakken scoffed.
"But isn't it our turn?" Dementor asked.
"They did the laxative thing and the ice slide thing." Gemini pointed out.
"They were both counters. The laxatives were obviously counters of the Fear Factors 'R Us prank and the ice slide was in response to us plugging up the toilets. It's their turn."
"It makes sense." Killigan noted. Drakken nodded.
"Perfectly. All we need is a spy to hear what the girls are planning." Everyone looked at one another. They nodded. There was an ancient ritual for a decision to be made by several people. They all knew it well.
"One, two, three…not me!" Drakken yelled. Five others yelled, "Not me!" as well. All but one had yelled it.
"What?" Ron, spacing out, had lost the tournament.
"You have to go spy on the girls." Drakken sang mockingly. Pretty much, "You're dead meat."
"No way! They'd eat me alive if they caught me!"
"Then don't get caught." Monkey Fist said simply. Ron moaned. Why always him? He knew better than to argue with his (and Kim's) arch foes, so he hid in the shadows of the hallway. Listening, hoping they would just kill him quickly and painlessly. He was surprised at what he found.
"Okay, I've got one. What was one of the stupidest/embarrassing things you've ever done?" Everyone thought about Artica's question.
"Just one?" Shego asked.
"Yeah, Shego. We don't want you to look too retarded." Artica joked.
"Come back to me. I need to find a good one." Artica looked towards War Hawk.
"I think I've got one. But it's not one of my best goof-ups." War Hawk cleared her throat dramatically.
"Golden Arrow and I were eating at a fast food McDonald's coming home from who knows where. I turn away from my French fries for a few minutes to go get a refill…"
"I remember that!" Golden Arrow tried not to laugh.
"I bet you do. Anyway, I came back and my French fries were gone. I asked her where my fries went and she told me I ate them. I get convinced that I ate them and then she offers me her fires, which are really my stolen fries, but of course I don't know that yet. And I'm all like, "That was nice of you, what a thoughtful friend!" And then she tells me they were mine to begin with."
"They had to pull us out of the play equipment." Everyone giggled.
"That was stupid." Shego commented.
"Not compared to some of the stuff you've done, like eating a packet of salt because a group of kids from school dared you to."
"You took that dare?" Metaphor asked.
"Yeah. That doesn't count for my stupid thing because she said it!"
"Whatever. Who's next?"
"Kim hasn't been talking lately." Golden Arrow smirked at her.
"I don't have one." Kim replied honestly. All the ones she was thinking of Ron had done. Could she fool them?
"So you've never done anything stupid in your whole life?" Kim shook her head.
"Not that I can think of."
"Liar." Kim winced at the word. But it was true.
"Well, it was a while ago…"
"Enough with the dramatics. Just say it!" She wasn't sure if Shego was playing or she was irritated. Probably a mix of both.
"Okay! Once, Ron and I were on a mission and I was disarming a laser and I…" Kim's voice faltered.
"And you what?" War Hawk gently prompted.
"…I somehow twisted it around and hit myself in the head." The girls laughed and Kim blushed faintly. She shouldn't be embarrassed, they probably had worse, but it was still embarrassing.
"Did you get a bump?" Artica asked. Kim wished the floor would swallow her right now.
"Yeah, a nasty one right on the forehead."
"A goose-egg." Shego looked at War Hawk.
"You're so funny." War Hawk stuck out her tongue at Shego.
"Shego, have you thought of yours yet?"
"Should I just do the most recent?"
"Prior to the sleepover."
"Okay, give me just a little bit longer." Artica looked expectantly at Golden Arrow.
"What?"
"You know what." Golden Arrow thought for a minute, looking deeply into space.
"Once I thought four plus eight equaled sixteen. I'm trying to correct my math teacher, telling her four plus eight equaled sixteen. Good thing Shego was never in my math class." Shego smiled, looking like Yep that's me all right.
"Who's next?"
"Well, one time I drank out of the toilet to see why dogs do it." The girls followed the rushed words and strange voice to Mischief, her face showing no sign of embarrassment.
"Please tell me nothing was in there but toilet water." Mischief nodded her head eagerly.
"Roger rat, Rar Rawk." No one needed to say whose famous talking dog voice that was.
"This is probably a let down after the intriguing toilet story…" Mischief puffed up her chest, not noticing the sarcasm in Metaphor's voice.
"…but one time I morphed into a guy in his briefs in the middle of the mall." Artica suddenly burst into loud laughter.
"I saw that from the electronics store! That was you?" She calmed herself down. Metaphor however wasn't happy with Artica.
"Okay, then. What's yours?" She snapped.
"Geez, Metaphor. Down girl." Shego looked at Metaphor strangely. She wasn't the only one surprised by Metaphor's sudden snapping.
"Sorry, just a little edgy. We may have a tag along in the building." The villainesses nodded, but Kim felt excluded once again. What were they talking about?
"Anyway, Artica's got the floor."
"I was just going to tell about the time I couldn't figure out how to unlock my car and finally some employee from who knows where pops up and helps me." She shrugged.
"Okay, Shego. Are you finally ready?" They all looked at her. She smiled.
"I've got one that'll make the French fry one look normal."
"But will it be better than the toilet one?"
"Probably not, but I will try. I got up early as usual but didn't feel like getting dressed. Mistake one. I decided to train a little bit before breakfast in the gym. Mistake two. Third mistake, I used my fire while training. Keep that all in mind. Oh and Drakken was surprisingly awake. Keep that in mind, too. So I'm slashing targets and thinking no big whoop, until I missed the target. My follow-through, well followed through and I caught my pajama bottoms on fire."
"I take it these aren't the flame-resistant kind?"
"Shut up, Kim." Kim knew she couldn't have missed the giggle and smile after Shego had said that.
"Anyway, so I'm sitting there with my pajama bottoms on fire and the first thing I think of is the stop, drop, and roll method they teach us in like kindergarten. So as I'm rolling, my sleeve catches on fire. Don't ask me how or why it didn't catch on fire first. And so I'm screaming, my weird life flashing before my eyes, and who else but Drakken comes in and sees me on fire. He freaks out, yelling the "s" word lauder than I've ever heard it been yelled before. He runs down, telling me he'll put it out. Well I can't just wait for him as the fire creeps closer to my hair which is attached to my head. Eventually, I freak out and go running at the door. Drakken opens that door and hits me hard in the head. I go sprawling across the floor and he dumps a bucket on ice cold water on me. The fire's put out, burnt half of my pajamas, and I've got a bloody nose from the force of the door opening. So it was both stupid and embarrassing." Shego smiled sheepishly.
"Wow, I think that beat my math one." Golden Arrow sustained a laugh.
"It beats my unlocking-the-car one by a mile." Artica smirked.
"Right up there with drinking out of the toilet, being tricked into believing you've eaten your French fries when instead someone stole them and hitting yourself in the head with a laser." Metaphor looked at Kim. Kim diverted her eyes from Metaphor' strange cat ones. She was having a great time, but it was still hard to be around villains (or villainesses) all the same.
"Who has another question for us?"
"I do!" War Hawk said energetically, yet still meekly.
"What song would best represent you and why?" The girls sorted through all the songs they had ever heard, trying to find the one that represented them most.
"Shego goes first this time. She's been last with every question so far."
"Just give me a minute, gosh!" They all waited anxiously for Shego's pick.
"Can I have two?"
"If you have to."
"My first one would be that one country song, I can't remember who sings it. "Don't Ask Me How I know", that should be my anthem right there. But with verses about messing around with doomsday weapons and fighting mutants." Shego laughed.
"I heard that song yesterday. Yeah, I think you can relate to the line about not punching your best friend in the nose when you know she didn't mean it!" War Hawk teased Shego.
"Really I think you're more of Tim McGraw's "Can't Tell Me Nothin'". Shego mockingly hit Artica.
"I'm afraid of number two." Metaphor shivered, but she was out of Shego's grasp.
"Number two would have to be "Reflection", the pop version." Shego said more seriously. "Reflection", wasn't that the song from Mulan? About being who you really are? Kim was so sick of being as confused as Ron with Japanese directions on how to assemble a robot. No one made any comment, so Shego continued.
"Sometimes I'll just look in the mirror and glance backwards, looking for the person that the mirror was reflecting. And then I'll realize it was me. I can really relate to the part about wearing a mask. It just seems that way sometimes. Whose turn is it next?"
"I'll go, before everyone takes the good ones." War Hawk spoke up.
"I think "Breakaway" would be my song. I was so tired of being where I was at, that I finally just left. Now I've got my own apartment and a full time job, but I don't regret a thing. I don't know where the rest of my life will take me, hence the "I don't know where they'll take me" line, but it had to be better than where I was at. I broke away."
"I think you can also relate to the line about spreading your wings and learning how to fly." War Hawk searched Shego's face for sarcasm, but there wasn't any.
"I'll go next." Golden Arrow spoke up.
"I think Toby Keith's "Do I Know You (Bottom of My Heart)" from his "How Do You like Me Now!" cd. There were some…people I ran into yesterday and I swore I knew them from somewhere. But I, unlike the song, realized that they were my…" Golden Arrow couldn't finish her sentence. She felt like she was swallowing a knife, remembering the incident. She had said too much.
"…My birth parents." She croaked.
"Did they recognize you?" Shego asked, sincerely concerned. Golden Arrow shook her head.
"No, thankfully. Plus, I've been brain-washed so many freaking times the police could arrest me for a crime I had no clue I did. I know it's to protect me, but it's so…frustrating. All I want to do is "breakaway"." No one laughed at the joke. Everyone knew what she was talking about, except Kim. Always excepting Kim. But she did feel there was a very serious issue with Golden Arrow. One that she probably didn't want to talk about openly.
"Let's lighten up this down air." Even Golden Arrow smiled as Mischief tried desperately to lighten up the "down air" with a bright and cheerful voice. Was that Mischief's own voice? No, that was from some preschool show. But like Kim would know that.
"My favorite song would be Shedaisy's "Don't Worry 'Bout a Thing" because at least I view myself as a very optimistic person. I hardly worry about anything that I can remember and I love making people laugh." Mischief sound like Kim, which just made her more upset. She forgot to mention she liked to make fun of other people.
"That sounds just about right." Artica nodded her head.
"What's yours, Artica?"
"Hm, it's hard to say. I think I'll go with "Home wrecker" because I'm trying to get over something very devastating that has happened."
"You caught some prettier girl flirting with your boyfriend." Kim knew the song. Gretchen Wilson was an awesome singer. Artica stared at Kim like she was an idiot. Maybe Kim might have jumped to conclusions.
"No, my older brother married a witch two months ago and I'm still trying to get over it. Plus the fact that apparently now they're expecting and all my so-called friends won't stop calling me Aunt Artica." Shego snickered.
""What was once a villainess' name is now a continent." She murmured.
"Oh." Was all Kim could say. Maybe she shouldn't try to guess about them any more.
"I guess it's my turn." Metaphor shrugged.
"Mine would be, oh crud you guys are going to make fun of me."
"No, we aren't." War Hawk shook her head.
"Speak for yourself." Shego grinned maliciously.
"You think you're so evil, but you're not." Dr. Drakken's voice, but not exactly his body.
"Be careful with your voices, Mis. You don't know whose listening." Though Metaphor was only joking, Ron quivered in the hallway. He should just walk back and say they're sharing their innermost thoughts. Nah, then they'd all be in crowding in the hall. And personally, he was having fun spying on the girls.
"My song would be "Come Clean" by Hilary Duff. Mostly because I'm still trying to accept myself and get others to accept me, too. I can change into anyone I want to, but I'd still rather be myself. But no one's ready to accept a scaly mutant like me, so I'm forced to be something I'm not." Metaphor concluded. Now everyone was staring at Kim, waiting.
"The last song, dun, dun, dun!" War Hawk teased.
"Do I really have to?" She had a song in mind, but did she really want to say why she felt that way?
"Kim, a word of advice. You do not want to lie to these girls, trust me on this." Trust me on this? What, was Shego suddenly her buddy?
"No offense, but what are they really going to do to me?" Kim instantly regretted saying that. The way they looked at her she kept expecting one of them to say, "Do you dare doubt the power of the villainesses?"
"They slit my stomach open and played with my intestines while I was still conscious." Kim's mouth dropped open.
"It was only Tigress and me, but still it happened." Kim couldn't believe Golden Arrow would do that to Shego.
"Hey, in my defense Shego lied about not having a crush. It was a long time ago and I'm not the one who cam up with the idea. Though it was weird watching you throw up from the inside out."
"I wouldn't have puked if A. Tigress hadn't shown me things I did not want to see and B. You had at least knocked me out."
"I'd much rather hear Kim's song than discuss who was at fault with the stomach slitting incident of whatever year." War Hawk squirmed.
"I agree with War Hawk. Please Kim, can you say anything?" Artica's already pale blue skin was getting even paler.
"Thank you, Shego for your words of wisdom. My song would have to be "Over it" by Anneliese van der Pol." There was silence. Kim wouldn't have to explain, would she? Two, maybe three minutes passed before Shego finally said something.
"Why is that your pick?" Kim was foolish to think they would let her slide.
"I don't want to say why." She muttered.
"C'mon, Kim. We won't make fun of you." Metaphor encouraged her.
"We're not going to tell anyone what you say or what anyone has said." Shego promised.
"What's said in the circle; stays in the circle." War Hawk, no wait Mischief again, confided.
"Okay, I guess. It's just, sometimes I feel like I can't escape. From school…from saving the world. Like it says in the song, I'm carrying the weight of the world. Sometimes, I just want to run away from it all. Just, get in a car and drive until the gas runs out." Kim looked away. She knew they were giving her sympathetic looks. How could they possibly know what it was like, they were villains! Except Shego. She had been there, done that…but failed in the end.
"It's fun when you start out, all the going to different countries on school nights and kicking evil butt. Soon, though it all gets old. You've got school, and villains, and the scraps of social life you have left. You try so hard to put it all together again. Your schedule cramps and you can't have a minute to relax without something demanding your attention. It's then you just want to scream, I'm not a hero I'm a teen for cripe's sake! But no one hears you. You're the one everyone turns to, but they don't understand even heroes fall." Kim looked up at Shego. It was like Kim's thoughts were coming out of Shego's mouth.
"Being a teenage villain isn't exactly a life of luxury, either. Sure it's cool you get freebies, but then you realize everyone has a conscious. Try mixing it with school and an after school job and pretty soon you're ready to break down and cry." The girl's nodded at Metaphor's words.
"Sometimes you're forced to be who you aren't. Like pretend you're a bird maniac when all you want to do is grab them around their skinny little necks and strangle them. Or pretend you absolutely hate your best friend. Or hide the picture of your crush because he's a super hero and…it's all just a big mess." War Hawk sighed.
"Sometimes, people put pressure on you. Like you're a bad person if you don't do a certain thing. They crush your own dreams so that you can't think about anything else. Sometimes you just want to turn around and punch them, but if they're someone you love you can't." Artica stared off into space.
"Sometimes, you're just trying to find your place in the world. If you don't belong, you're kicked out. It's that simple. There are few occupations where I can be my true self. There was already a whole team of super heroes, so I tried the other side. I needed to find some way to support my younger sister if I want to keep us together. And so, here I am." Metaphor shrugged.
"Sometimes, you're just trying to find who you are. I don't have my own voice. I have to use someone else's. For a girl who wants to be as much as an individual as me, that's a nightmare. I dyed my hair purple, for crying in the sink! I've found friends who like me the way I am. For most of the time, I'm annoying. But they're still my friends. I can't just walk away from that. I want to hear people say; now that's an amazing person. And how many more options are there for a copycat?" Mischief borrowed Kim's voice, but she didn't care this time. There was a pause and finally Golden Arrow had the courage to speak up.
"Sometimes, you owe them one because they saved your life. Like, something was destroying you from the inside out and you couldn't take it any more and…almost go to way desperate measures. But they save you and they force you to do horrible things, worse than just petty thievery. Like, don't freak out when I say this…murder. And every time I do that thing, I get brain washed so I don't try to stop the people responsible for my actions. The scary thing is not knowing what I've done or anything. I remember if I went to the mall with War Hawk or something, but I have no clue who I've killed. But if I run away, they'll just come after me. I can't escape." Kim looked into Golden Arrow's eyes. She was so nice; she had so much to offer. But she was locked inside.
"Let's get off this subject." Mischief declared, her voice sounding like Tara's. But she had never met Tara. Hm…
"Let's try a positive topic…like boys!" Squeals erupted in the group. Now that was a topic even Kim could join in on.
"Shego can't join in this conversation because her last boyfriend was a syntho-drone!" Metaphor teased.
"So was Kim's!" Shego objected.
"But she didn't know that until he knocked her out." War Hawk pointed out.
"I didn't know either until Drakken caught me kissing him." Everyone stared open-mouthed at Shego.
"You kissed a syntho-drone?" Artica arched a brow.
"Again, I did not know it was a syntho-drone!"
"What did you think it was, some surfer from California? Drakken was working with syntho-drones, not models."
"I just figured it was a cuter hench man."
"Yeah, Drakken's going to get another guy for you to drool over. You know he gets jealous easily.
"What's your point?"
"You kissed a syntho-drone, Kim didn't, you fought over the same guy who isn't even real, Drakken has a crush on your, and "the Supreme One" sounds like a pizza and not a royal title."
"Shut up, Aunt Artica."
"Call me that again and I'll…"
"Ladies, ladies. We haven't even discussed crushes yet and we're fighting." Golden Arrow cut in.
"She does have a point."
"Too many points! Only one grand prize!" Kim stared at Shego.
"Don't worry. She does that a lot when she's confused." War Hawk leaned over and whispered.
"Okay, who wants to start?" Shego spoke up, tired of being on the loosing end.
"I have a boyfriend, I don't count!" War Hawk announced.
"Yes and some things are better left unsaid." Shego hinted. The girls caught her drift and started on Kim.
"So, Kim. Who do you like?"
"No one."
"Kimmi, no lying. You have to like someone."
"Is it your friend-that's-a-boy Ron?" Artica beamed at her mockingly. Ron's heart pounded so hard he was sure they could hear it.
"No, it's this other guy."
"Josh?" Shego teased.
"I'm so over Josh. His name's…" Kim saw the opportunity for a joke.
"…Drew Lipsky."
"But that's Shego's crush." Shego hit War Hawk playfully.
"You know that Stan the Man's the only guy worthy of me." She said.
"Wait, who's this "Stan the Man"?" Mischief questioned, her voice mimicking James Bond.
"The only man worthy of me; weren't you paying attention?" War Hawk covered Shego's mouth.
"Our waiter from Outback Steak House in Orlando." War Hawk explained, letting her hand slip for the moment.
"He is the finest man I've ever seen and an honor to his gender!" War Hawk covered her mouth again.
"She has a hunch that he likes her back because he called her "Hon"." War Hawk removed her hand completely.
"I'm convinced he needs me." Shego grinned.
"I'll believe that." Metaphor smirked.
"I have a question for Miss Arrow and I will only take the honest truth." Shego went off the subject.
"Sure, what?" Shego exchanged glances with the others. Only Artica and War Hawk got it.
"If you lie, I have the right to inflict whatever revenge I think is fitting."
"Okay, thought I'm not sure what you're talking about." Shego did a dramatic pause.
"Do you or do you not…like Ron Stoppable?" Another set of squeals arose.
"No lying!" War Hawk mocked. Golden Arrow looked at them, mouth open.
"I…I…I didn't expect this to arise again." She finally admitted.
"Please. You know we were going to try to find out eventually." Golden Arrow nodded.
"But this is so soon."
"Just say whether or not you like him. We'll tell if you're lying or not." Shego tilted Golden Arrow's head so that their eyes locked.
"Do you or do you not like Ron Stoppable?" It's very hard to lie when someone is staring directly into your eyes.
"I…I…I like him, okay? Are you happy now?" Golden Arrow broke away, her cheeks flushed.
"He's just so nice and sweet and funny and so different from other guys. He's not afraid to be himself and isn't embarrassed about hanging out with a girl-whose-a-friend." Ron had to remind himself to breathe. She did like him! She did, she did, she did!
"I've never seen you so…gushy over a guy before." Shego said.
"You haven't so much as ever had a crush on a guy before." War Hawk noted.
"And now, you're all over this buffoon?" Shego questioned. Kim had never seen someone blush as hard as Golden Arrow was now doing.
"You can't have this guy." Artica announced.
"Why not?" Golden Arrow glared at her. She hesitated for a moment, not sure whether to speak or not. She decided to, it needed to be known.
"Because I claimed him first." Artica muttered. Kim was shocked. Two girls starting to fight…over Ron? They couldn't mean her Ron.
"You did, but I didn't have a crush on him then."
"And suddenly, you do. But I still called him first."
"It didn't count!"
"Yeah it did!"
"Girls, girls. You're both wrong, if you want to get technical." Golden Arrow and Artica looked at Shego.
"I called him before you guys knew him, if you want to get technical."
"So you do like him! Ha! I knew it!"
"I don't now, but you guys are getting so nitpicky."
"Shego and Ronald, sitting in a tree…"
"Shut up!" Metaphor, who had stayed out of the catfight, now turned to Mischief.
"And how do you feel about him?" Mischief looked blankly at Metaphor.
"He's cute, but I don't think he likes me." Mischief answered maybe a little too loudly in Kim's voice. Kim, confused and slightly frustrated, turned to War Hawk.
"Do you want to admit you like my BFF, too?" War Hawk shook her head.
"I have a boyfriend, remember?" But just as suddenly as it had begun they stopped fighting. In fact, they stopped talking altogether. Even their breathing shallowed as they looked towards the hallway entrance. Shego pointed at Mischief while she was still fixed to the spot and Mischief continued the conversation, using all of their voices at once.
And then, Kim heard it. A footstep, only one. Someone had been spying on them and had heard what they had said about Ron. Silently, the girls went to their backpacks and pulled out coils of rope and a handkerchief. War Hawk picked up her pillow and they all slowly went towards the hallway. Keeping in a blind spot where whoever was in the hall couldn't see them, they crept towards the entrance. Shego motioned for Kim to come with them. She ran silently to them, Mischief staying behind and keeping up a fight on who had dibs on Ron first. War Hawk gave Kim the pillow.
"Secure it." Shego breathed, pointing towards the floor. Kim kneeled down and held the pillow down. Shego counted to three and all the rest of the villainesses raced into the hallway with the coils of rope and the handkerchief. Before Kim knew what was happening, a boy was thrown into the pillow. So that's why she was told to secure it. And then she realized it was Ron, bound and gagged like only a professional could do. The girls came back, hands on hips.
"Well, well, well what do we have here?" Shego glared at the shaking Ron.
"I'd say a spy." Artica growled.
"Really? Because I see a hostage." Golden Arrow smirked. Ron was dragged to the circle of pillows.
"What should we do with him?" War Hawk asked, sneering at Kim's BFF. Kim had to admit though; this time he had done it to himself.
"I don't know. I say we let Shego decide." Shego grinned evilly down at Ron.
"I say we get a little competition going between us and the boys." Shego walked away and down the hall. She emerged back at the boy's camp, where the boys were surprised.
"Shego?" Drakken asked. She gave him a beckoning finger and he followed into the center of the hall.
"A spy?" She asked.
"Clever, no?" Drakken smirked. Shego shifted her weight.
"I admit, clever. Foolish, but clever. But you better promise to take those secrets to your grave. How long has he been there?"
"He's been there since you girls began planning. He knows all about your little scheme."
"What scheme? We were sharing out innermost thoughts, you are the ones planning another prank." Drakken's uni-brow furrowed closer together.
"But it's your turn."
"I think you're a little confused, Dr. D. It's the boys' turn." Dr. Drakken shook his head.
"We were obviously confused by the lack of clarity of whose prank was coming next."
"I wasn't." Shego muttered. Drakken groaned quietly.
"Whatever. Point is; where is the buffoon now?" Shego smirked.
"With my girls, bound and gagged. Or you could say he's being held hostage." Drakken glared at her, sizing up the worth of the buffoon and Shego's unsaid demands.
"What do you want?" Shego studied her nails, trying her hardest not to laugh.
"Nothing. Just a healthy competition, that's all. You can pick the game, but if you loose we're keeping the buffoon." Shego took her eyes off her nails again and looked at Drakken's face. He was interested.
"What do we get if we win?"
"You get the buffoon, in exchange for the formula needed to get our sleeping bags off of the ceiling."
"So, either way you win?"
"Nothing gets past you. So, what game are we playing?" Drakken pretended he was thinking about it, but he knew exactly what game he wanted to play.
"Are you familiar with the game of Blackmail?" He said slyly.
"Yes, I believe I am. See you in ten." Shego turned around towards her end, but first Drakken caught a glimpse of the other side. Shego wasn't bluffing, the buffoon was right there. Drakken knew he'd kick some Shego booty…as soon as he figured out how to play the game.
Eager girls waited as Shego came back.
"What's up?" War Hawk asked, noticing Shego's pleased expression.
"Prepare, girls, because in ten minutes we're going to play Blackmail against the boys." The girls smiled, as well as Shego. This was going to be great! And our friend in the shadows was just as thrilled. She loved this game.
&&&&&&
Oooh, Ron has quite a lot of secrets about the girls. But they don't help him now that he's all bound up and everything. Shego and Drakken are facing off in a game of Blackmail in ten minutes…but Drakken has no clue how to play! How is that going to affect anything? Guess you'll have to wait until next chapter. I can't say for sure when it will be up but I'm already working on the next chapter and I'm working hard on it. Please review in the meantime.