Disclaimer: I do not own Kim Possible or have any claim to it. I am making no money from this piece of fiction.

Author's Note: Just a quick note regarding the previous chapter. I felt a little cheated when we didn't get to see how Drakken and Shego responded to the news of Kim and Ron being a couple, so I wanted to address it. After Dementor saying he didn't believe it in Ill Suited, I thought that would be sort of a running gag when they faced each villain for the first time in Season 4.

Rest and Realization

"Why do people line up to get on these reality shows?" Drakken asked, watching the television with an almost morbid fascination. "Doesn't everyday life provide enough opportunities for humiliation?" When his companion, who was usually ready with a snarky comment at the drop of a hat, said nothing, he prompted her. "Shego?" Greeted by her continued silence, he turned toward her. "Shego?"

The young woman was curled up on her half of the sofa, lying very still, and some of her hair had fallen forward, obscuring her face. Cautiously, every nerve tensed in case a hasty retreat proved necessary, Drakken reached forward and pulled her hair aside with his delicate fingers. She really was sleeping, and Drakken pulled back, surprised. He couldn't recall ever seeing her sleep before; she usually didn't let her guard down that much. Warmonga had knocked her out during their fight, but that had only lasted a few minutes, most of which was occupied with getting Shego safely restrained. This was different, and he couldn't decide whether to feel pleased or offended that she was comfortable enough with him to relax like that. Dr. Drakken liked to think of himself as a dangerous man, but he was well aware that he was far from it when it came to Shego. She was capable of flattening him in three seconds, and he was okay with that – it was what he paid her for, after all.

As he considered her peaceful form, surprise gave way to concern. It was only early evening, and he couldn't think why she was so tired as to have fallen asleep so easily. He was accustomed to going days without sleep when a project really gripped him, but his injuries had required him to get regular rest, so he didn't think he'd been costing her sleep. Still, he had been more demanding of her than usual lately, thanks to his broken arm, and maybe she wasn't used to it. Now that he had his new cast, he was a little more independent and could afford to give her some time off. Drakken suddenly felt a strange need to take care of her, which he did his best to shrug off.

She was much prettier, he thought, with her features relaxed like this. She was always attractive, of course – Drakken had been known to make use of that fact as part of his plans – but seeing her in so innocent and vulnerable a pose added a new layer of beauty somehow. He noted that she also looked much younger without the veneer of cynicism she habitually wore. Shego carried herself with such confidence that Drakken often forgot about the age difference between them. Now, he recalled that she'd been just an ordinary child when he'd first gone into the villain business, and the thought depressed him more than he expected.

Sighing, he turned off the TV and stood up. He found a spare blanket and gently draped it over his sidekick; he thought he'd noticed her shivering earlier. She barely stirred as he went to the kitchen to make supper, deciding that he could handle a simple spaghetti meal on his own.

Humming softly, Drakken pulled the ingredients together and set a pot of water to boil. While waiting for that, he tore lettuce for a salad. It was a good thing that both he and Shego liked Italian food. Besides the excellent taste, it was simple to make, relatively inexpensive, and filling.

Drakken actually enjoyed cooking, particularly baking. Who didn't like cookies and cupcakes? It was a skill he'd learned at his mother's apron strings, and it had been very useful to him since he'd accepted that he would likely go through the rest of his life as a confirmed bachelor. If only Mother could learn to be content with that.

He also liked that cooking kept the hands busy while the brain was mostly free. Some of his best ideas had hit him in the kitchen. As he worked now, he allowed his mind to wander. He wondered why he seemed much more conscious of Shego's presence in the lair than he ever had been before. Had he spent so long in the men's wing of the prison that he'd forgotten what it was like to have a woman around? Just as a mental exercise, he began cataloguing the things he had learned about Shego through the years of her employment.

She liked the occasional ice cream sundae but rarely indulged because she was almost obsessive about staying in shape. She enjoyed fighting and hated losing. She wasn't crazy about karaoke night but endured it anyway. She got easily bored, especially by board games and listening to him talk about his childhood. She liked being pampered at a good spa now and then and absolutely loved the beach. He would never understand her use of sun lamps; she never got any darker, as far as he could tell. You didn't see him trying to tan his pale blue skin.

Shego treasured her freedom and independence. She enjoyed mocking people in general but appeared to derive special pleasure from goading him. Sometimes he even exaggerated his reactions to her teasing for her enhanced amusement. It didn't cost him anything, and it made her happy, so what was the harm?

She was often self-absorbed and mercenary, fairly typical traits for a villain. She also tended to be secretive and self-contained. He still found it hard to believe that she'd kept the fact of her superhero past from him for so long. She undoubtedly wanted to forget about it, but since Team Go was still out there, that seemed like it would be impossible. Anyway, it had been Drakken's experience that avoiding a topic only made it more deeply ingrained into you.

Then again, that was Shego. Where Drakken was demonstrably emotional, she remained on an even keel most of the time. Her anger would erupt now and then, but even that was carefully controlled. That must have been why the infamous "Day of the Moodulator" had been so difficult for her.

Drakken remembered that day with chagrin. He really should have realized earlier that something was having a strange effect upon Shego, and trying to find and remove the device while she was completely enraged with him was beyond unpleasant; it had been downright dangerous. However, he hadn't known there was such a thing as a Moodulator, so how was he supposed to understand what was going on? She'd avoided him for days afterward, and they'd never spoken about it since.

Not that the entire day had been bad. In fact, she'd been flirting with him outrageously for a large part of it. Admittedly, he'd been rather confused and frankly frightened when she started. He felt that reaction was understandable, considering that she'd been fluctuating between crying uncontrollably and trying to kill him just moments before. He conceded that it had been a pleasant change to have her actually complimenting him instead of mocking, and the kissing…yes, the kissing had been very nice. Still, she hadn't really been Shego, which had unexpectedly put him off a bit. For all her faults, he liked her the way she was….

Drakken's thoughts broke off as he was struck by a blinding revelation so clear and simple that he had no doubts about its validity: he was in love with his sidekick. He could only stand there, stunned, as he attempted to find rationality in the inherently irrational. When had it happened? How? Why?

Naturally, it was while he was working through these weighty questions that Shego made her entrance, probably drawn by the smell of the spaghetti sauce.

"You should have gotten me up to help," she chided gently from behind him. Drakken started, banging the spoon he was using on the edge of the pan. This caused him to lose his grip on it, and it went spinning through the air, spattering tomato sauce across the kitchen. He was grateful that the mishap gave him an excuse to bend down and pick the spoon up, since he intended to use the time to compose himself. This would have worked a lot better, however, if Shego had not hurried to help him out, causing them to bonk heads as they both reached for the utensil.

"Shego!" Drakken snapped, rubbing his forehead and relinquishing the honor of retrieving the spoon. "I've already hit my head once this month! I'm not sure how much more I can take!" At least the event had snapped him out of his stupor and allowed him to return to a semblance of his usual demeanor.

"Sorry," she apologized, actually sounding sincere. Come to think of it, she'd seemed a little different since his injury. She was still essentially herself, but she was quieter and not so insulting. She'd also been far more solicitous of his welfare than she used to be. He must have looked even worse than he thought when she'd scraped him off the canyon floor almost two weeks ago. Either that, or something in their relationship had subtly changed.

She put the spoon in the sink and got a new one while he grabbed a damp rag and wiped up the floor and other affected surfaces, trying to quiet his churning thoughts.

He couldn't even begin to hope that she felt something remotely romantic towards him, of course. As he sneaked glances at her now, he realized the hopelessness of the situation. She was young and vibrant and capable. What could she possibly want with a middle-aged college dropout, even one who firmly believed he was destined to rule the world?

Fortunately, Drakken was very good at compartmentalizing things in his head. He would need to consider his thoughts and feelings about Shego, but it would have to wait.

"You looked like you needed the rest," he answered her initial comment as he returned to the stove to check on the meal. The pasta was nearly done, and he stirred it briefly. "Besides, I wanted to see how well I could function with this new cast."

"It looks like you're doing pretty well," Shego observed. She began to set out dishes and silverware, and soon enough, they were sitting down to eat. Although they rarely drank, Drakken found himself wishing that they had wine to go with the meal. On the other hand, in vino veritas*, as the saying went, and that might not be the best thing right now.

"I'm going to be checking on the construction of the new lair soon," Drakken announced. "That will allow you to have several half-days off over the next couple of weeks." Truly, having the federal government pay for constructing his new lair under the guise of a college had been a stroke of genius, even for him.

"Have I done something wrong?" demanded Shego, looking a little worried.

"What? No!" Her employer was quite surprised at her reaction. "You've been working so hard lately that I wanted to give you a break, that's all. You usually like your alone time."

"My…right." She visibly relaxed, but Drakken remained mystified by her behavior. She was usually out the door before he'd even acknowledged that her vacation had begun, and now she was resisting taking time off? What was the matter with her? "When do I get to see the new place?"

"All in good time, Shego. It's…well, sort of a surprise." Honestly, he didn't know why he was being so secretive about this. Maybe things had been going so well between them that he just wasn't quite ready for her to begin tearing him down yet. After all, his next idea was not, technically speaking, one that would enable him to take over the world. It was really more of an interim step to make the world more manageable when he did take it over. Merging all of the continents into one would make travel and communications so much simpler. He was thinking of leaving out Antarctica, though. Really, what use was it? There was nothing there but snow, ice, a few scientists, and some colonies of penguins. Anyway, it would still be quite close to the tips of Africa and South America when everything was done.

The pair ate in silence for a little while, Shego feeling worried that Drakken didn't trust her, and Drakken trying to figure out how to start a new conversation. He was finding it hard not to be fixated on one thought.

I love you. A part of him wanted very much to say it. He was curious about what it would feel like, for one thing. He'd never said those words to a woman before. Except for his mother, of course, but that didn't count. He wanted to know if the concept would make more sense out loud than it did in his head. He also both wondered and feared what Shego's reaction might be.

He was not, however, either curious or brave enough to find out.

"So, I suppose we should draft up a new contract for you," he said finally.

"Actually, I've been thinking about that, and…I don't want one." Before Drakken could even fully formulate his reaction to this statement, she was plunging on. "It's not what you think," she added quickly. "It's not because I want an easy out or anything. It's sort of the opposite."

"I don't understand."

"Well, this is going to sound crazy." Shego looked down and stirred her food around with her fork. Drakken couldn't help smiling a little self-mockingly at that.

"Go ahead," he urged. "It can't be any crazier than some of the things I've been thinking today." She glanced at him curiously but continued.

"Okay, here goes. I don't want you to think that I'm just hanging around because of a piece of paper and a lawyer. I want you to know that I'm here because I want to be. I want you…" Shego paused and took a deep breath, "…to trust me." At last, she raised her green eyes to meet her employer's. He set down his fork and gaped at her. She seemed absolutely determined to shock him today. Her eyes actually conveyed something very close to pleading, and that was wrong. Shego didn't plead, even non-verbally.

"Are you ill?" he got out finally. He couldn't help it; he began searching her neck. She caught the direction of his gaze and got an irritated expression he was more familiar with.

"There's no behavior modification device on me," she snapped. "And I'm not sick. I've just been doing a lot of thinking lately."

When she didn't seem inclined to elaborate, Drakken decided to take her at her word and took a moment to ponder what she was asking. There was another half of her proposal, which she hadn't mentioned but that he saw clearly and assumed that she also recognized. In addition to him knowing she wanted to be with him, she would also know that he wanted her around. The new arrangement would provide them with more freedom, but it would give them more power over each other as well. On the other hand, without a contract of any kind, it would leave details like vacation or karaoke night completely up in the air. That wasn't like Shego, but he had to admit that she was still generally acting like herself, if a bit subdued.

"Let me see if I've got this straight," said Drakken slowly. "You wish to be an 'at-will' employee? I can dismiss you at any time, with or without cause, with or without notice? Similarly, you can leave at any time?"

"That's about the size of it," she agreed.

"It seems a little unstable," he mused. "Still, I suppose we can give it a try. If you're still here when I come back from my first oversight visit, then it just might work." Shego nodded, and the pair returned to their meal in silence.

"Good spaghetti," she complimented him awkwardly.

"Thank you," he responded, but his mind was already on other things. It was clear that something in their relationship had changed.

If he only knew exactly what it was.

--

*For the younger readers, in vino veritas is Latin for "In wine, there is truth." In other words, alcohol can loosen the tongue and make you speak truths you might otherwise have left unspoken.

Author's Note: Perhaps a little background would be useful at this juncture. My husband is 15 years older than I, approximately the same age difference as between Drakken and Shego, and we were married at about the ages they would have been in the third season, so I have a sort of special connection to this ship. I do use some of my own experiences to flesh out the development of their romance, especially from Drakken's side.

Review responses:

Katsumara: Sounds like something Ron would say.;) I suppose, if I were to write a lengthy, post-Graduation fic, it would also give me an excuse to pull Drakken and Shego in, wouldn't it?

saragil: Well, I'm glad you think so.

shadowgirl416: Thank you; getting into characters' heads is exactly what I try to do.

automaticloveletter: Thank you very much! I'm sorry that I don't have much Kim Possible fanfiction out there, but maybe you have an interest in some of the other fandoms for which I've written.

PoisonousAngel: I'm happy you're enjoying the inventions; I'm having fun coming up with them. I am a scientist (primarily trained in biology, but I also deal a lot with chemistry and geology), but not a mad one. At least, I don't think so.:)