Disclaimer: Kim Possible belongs to Disney. This is a work for fun, not profit. A fan fiction by Alcandre & Six-string Samurai. "Lingering."
Kim just stared, then blinked and stared some more. How? How was this possible? Not only was the cat almost twice as large as she had been, she was…alive, alive and breathing.
"Ripley," Kim whispered letting out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. "Oh, God." Kim's already fragile emotions broke once more. Tears welled up, spilling over before she could stop herself, this time out of happiness and relief. She pulled the cat closer to her chest and buried her face in the black fur on Ripley's back.
The student couldn't explain what she was feeling. She had only found Ripley just two days ago. How could a bond have developed so quickly? Why was she so devastated when she thought the cat was dead?
It could have been that any source of friendship, coming from a human or animal was welcome. It could have been that Kim felt a sort of companionship with the cat, who was also alone and in a new place. Or it might have been that Kim was desperate for some sort of relationship with someone who didn't judge her for who she was and what she had done in the past. That was a precious thing that she didn't feel she could get at the school, or at work.
Too many people never bothered to look past Kim Possible the hero, and expected things that she didn't want, or wasn't able, to fulfill. Andy had been the other side of that coin, seeing her as just another face in the college crowd, albeit a pretty one. But, his want of her had been no less demanding.
More time passed without Kim noticing as she sat there, comforting herself with the continued presence of her cat. It wasn't until she realized that she couldn't feel her left leg that she thought to take a look at the clock. Groaning, she saw that it was getting late, just past midnight. Ripley was still sleeping soundly, despite the redheads fingers idly playing in her glossy black coat.
Kim struggled up, wincing at the pins and needles sensation shooting through her leg. Limping to the bedroom, cat still in her arms, she decided then and there that she was staying home tomorrow; no matter what Mr. Harrison said. She would just call in the morning and explain that she had woken with a bad head cold and couldn't make it in. Kim hadn't used any of her sick days, or really taken any time off yet, so hopefully her boss would just let it go.
She laid the cat gently on the bed and hurried through her nightly routine, not wanting to leave Ripley alone for too long.
When she finally fell into bed a few minutes later, she pulled the cat closer to her with a small sigh. Closing her eyes she let a smile cross her face. "I'm so glad you're okay, Ripley." She gave the cat a scratch on the top of her head.
When she was almost asleep her mind reminded her that her cat, previously kitten sized, was now the size of a full grown cat. But really, it wasn't like she could do something right now. Ripley was alive and that was the important thing. The rest, well, it would have to wait until morning, when she had the presence of mind to worry about it.
Before long, she drifted off into an easy sleep. For the second time in a long while her dreams were free of self-recrimination and doubt.
*****
Chapter 3
*****
Shego jerked awake, bolting upright and twisting around to try and blunt the impact she knew was coming. All she ended up doing was jarring her shoulder against the headboard, and plopping against the side of a large pillow. She lay there for a moment, regaining her bearings and trying to slow the rapid thudding of her heart. Part of her mind slowly came to terms with the fact that she wasn't in the middle of a fight, nor from the look of things, was she still in the living room for that matter.
As she calmed down, her eyes flickered around, picking out obvious details that had escaped her sleep fogged brain. Kimmie's room. Then, the black cat turned and found herself sprawled out next to a large mass of tangled red hair, a shade that she'd recognize anywhere, pumpkin. Thank God, you're all right. Shego-cat found the sudden tension seeping back out of her bones. But, she rolled over onto her feet, wanting to be sure, even if only for her peace of mind.
Like she thought, half-crawling over the sleeping redhead, Shego found the slightly round face still lost in the land of nod. Unmarked and unblemished, Kimmie showed no sign of having been involved in a tussle with that idiot she'd let into the apartment. Not that Shego expected there would be. She knew full well what the girl was capable of. It had only been the sheer idiocy, and gall of the would-be rapist in even attempting to assault Kimmie, which had prompted Shego to fly off the handle and tear into his hide. Her paws tightened, jabbing claws into the slumbering college student.
"Ow," Kim mumbled with a voice thick with sleep. Something sharp was sticking into her arm; in fact, it was a lot of little sharp things. And it hurt. She slowly opened her eyes and tried to focus on the black form hovering over her. She blinked a few times before Ripley finally came into focus.
"Ripley!" She shouted, fully waking up. She sat up and grabbed the cat, pulling her into her arms. "Thank God, you're all right!" She cuddled the cat to her chest. "I was so worried about you." Pulling back a little, she studied Ripley with a critical eye. "You look okay, besides the fact that you've suddenly put on some weight…ugh you're heavy now," Kim sat up and ruffled the fur on the cat's head playfully.
She took a deep breath and smiled at her cat. "Thank you, Ripley," she said softly. "You protected me last night. That was amazing. I really didn't want to get into a fight with that jackass. And you saved me the trouble." She kissed the cat's head. "You totally rock!"
Ripley let out a soft groan that gave Kim the impression that she was hugging the cat a little too tight; even if the cat had put on a few pounds.
"I'm taking the day off today," Kim said as she set the cat back on the bed and stood up. "I'm staying home with you so we can figure out this…growth spurt…thing." She gave Ripley one last pat on the head and went to the kitchen to call Books & Things.
After a rather irritating phone call with Mr. Harrison, mostly consisting of him tearing into her about being sick and how he would never find anyone to come in to work for her at such late notice, she hung up the phone and looked at Ripley, who had followed her into the kitchen.
"Now for breakfast. You hungry? 'Cause I sure am!"
Did princess just call me fat? Growth spurt thing…what's going on here? Shego sat on the bed for a little while, puzzling over the redhead's erratic behavior. At least, until she got it in her head to check herself out and see if it was in fact to do with her, or if pumpkin had been more affected by the attempted assault than Shego figured.
Whoa, holy crap…get a look at this! Shego craned her neck this way and that, eyes wide in surprise at finding her feline body filled out. She was sleeker nowhere near the emaciated kitten she'd appeared the night before. Her black coat shone with a healthy luster, in the places where it hadn't been matted by Kimmie's petting anyway. Come to think of it, now that she had the presence of mind, she felt much better, physically and mentally. Her head wasn't as muddled as it had been over the last few days, and her chest no longer tightened with every other breath. Frankly, it was a wonder she hadn't collapsed from exhaustion just from wandering around the apartment before now.
I think Kimmie mentioned something about food, Shego reminded herself before she got too carried away checking herself out. With a little spring in her step, she leapt from the bed and sauntered out the bedroom and made her way to join the redhead in the kitchen.
Ten minutes later found both cat and Kim at the table, enjoying a more decent than usual breakfast. Well, Kim was seated, and Shego had resigned herself to reclining just beside the next seat over. The cat was in a good mood, and didn't feel like pushing the streak of good luck by trying to sit directly at the table again. Even if she didn't really see a problem with it, it wasn't like she was shedding or anything. Plus, breakfast was pretty good, especially coming from Kim.
The college student had decide that since she wasn't in a rush to get out the door, she would take her time getting herself up and ready to face the day; which meant food a tad better than toasted bagels with cream cheese or jam. She'd busted out the frying pan and whipped up a plate of scrambled eggs, a few slices of bacon, toast and a glass of orange juice, the pulpy kind that she liked. The redhead had given some of her eggs to Ripley, putting them in the new bowl she'd picked up for the cat on the way home from the vet.
Kim finished half of her food before she turned her attention down to Ripley, who she found had pulled the dish away from its place near the wall and was eating her food about two feet away from Kim's chair. "Hey, don't just eat the eggs, that other stuff is good for you too." She good-naturedly scolded the black cat.
Ripley just looked up at her, seemed to roll her eyes, and then went right back to eating her eggs.
Kim finished eating and put her dishes in the sink and watched with a grin as Ripley pulled her dish back over near the wall. "You're a weird cat," Kim said shaking her head. "But I guess it fits. I would need a weird cat. I'm not exactly normal myself."
She scooped the cat up in her arms and carried her to the den, plopping down on the sofa. "Now, let's talk about what happened last night after Andy stormed out of here, cursing up a blue streak."
She placed Ripley in her lap and ran her hand over the cat's body. "You've grown, that much is obvious. But how did you grow so fast?" She sighed and scratched behind the cat's right ear. "And I'm almost positive you died. I mean, you stopped breathing. You were bleeding from the mouth, for God's sake!" She shrugged. "I mean, everyone's heard that cats have nine lives. I guess maybe this means you've just used up one."
Kim studied the cat in her lap, trying to find something that would give a hint to the answer to all her questions. Suddenly, she remembered the stone. She looked around the den, trying to recall what she did with the stone last night.
She spotted it on the coffee table in front of the sofa and reached to pick it up without dislodging Ripley. "What the hell is this?" she muttered when it was finally in her hand. "And where did it come from? You? Did you swallow it at some point? You sure did spit it up…" She let her head rest on the back of the sofa and sighed again. "I keep thinking up more questions. This isn't getting me anywhere."
Her green eyes stared at the ceiling as her mind tried to work through the puzzle that was her cat. Her hand continued to stroke Ripley's back while the stone was rolled around in her other hand almost in sympathy of last night.
As the redhead continued, lost in her thoughts, Shego lay there, weighing the potential of her next few actions. For one, she immediately recognized the stone that Kimmie was laboring over, how could she not, she'd stolen the necklace that it belonged to just days earlier. But, what was this about it having been inside her? Shego didn't know how she was supposed to take that news. I sure as hell didn't swallow a damn necklace, that's for certain. She sat up and batted Kim's hand away so she could get a better look at the tiny jade stone in Kimmie's other palm. Yep. That's too much of a coincidence to be anything else. Shit, does this mean I got eight more of those buggers rolling around in my body? What sick kind of joke is this? I mean, I guess this is better than being dead, but a cat? Come on. Cat food sucks.
Shego looked down at her paws, trying to come to a decision. Lying around all day is a good gig and all, but princess is right, I'm not even a normal cat. Heh, must be fate, can't even catch a break with a cat's life. If it's not a fucking comet, it's a cursed necklace. Out of spite, or the headache she felt coming on, Shego didn't know, but she slapped the stone ring out of Kim's hand and jumped off of the startled redhead's lap. She sighed mentally, Come on princess, let's get this over with. She stared up at Kim from atop the coffee table. Now, what to do…Ah hah!
Spying the remote control, she darted for it and pawed at the power button, getting the TV to turn on after a few tries. Hah, look at that! Cats don't turn on appliances. Kimmie, get with the program, you already know something's up.
Apparently it wasn't good enough of a trick, because the redhead just stared at Shego with a slack expression on her face, probably more perturbed that the cat had knocked the stone out of her hand than the feat of genius.
Erg, what's it gonna take pumpkin? Think think think…can't be a stupid cat trick. Ironically, Shego sat back on her haunches, propping up her chin with a paw as her tail swished back and forth. Maybe I can try and write a note, or something. You can do this…work that brain.
Kim felt her mouth fall open when Ripley knocked the stone out of her hand. What the hell? She thought as she watched the stone roll away. The sudden noise of the TV drew her attention back up and her mouth stayed open when she saw her cat next to the remote control and the TV on when it hadn't been previously.
What the hell, she thought once again. Her mind was frantically trying to catch up with what was going on, but it apparently wasn't working quite fast enough.
Ripley suddenly reared up from her position on the coffee table and seemed to smirk at Kim. Which was weird in itself but when the black cat did a back flip, slightly awkward in execution but still a decent approximation, off the coffee table Kim's eyes bugged out and she heard herself gasp.
"Holy shit, Ripley," she said. "What's gotten into you?"
The cat sighed and rolled her eyes at Kim before jumping back onto the sofa and putting her front paws on Kim's shoulder, bringing her eye level with the college student.
Kim stared into emerald green eyes, searching for whatever it was the cat wanted her to apparently see. At first there was nothing there; just the eyes of a frustrated cat. But Kim looked deeper, desperate to find what was bothering Ripley so much. She thought for a moment that there was something familiar, though it was all too fleeting, gone before the redhead could get a handle on it. Kim blinked and pulled back a little, dislodging the cat from her shoulder. She blinked again and stared at Ripley, who was still looking up at her, seemingly put off.
Shego pushed away from Kim in frustration. This isn't enough; she's just not getting it. Grr, what's it gonna take? Casting about the small apartment, she looked for anything that might help her convince Kimmie that it was her in this cat's body. But, she already knew that the college student was on the frugal side at the moment, and the only real luxury was the TV set, which she'd already tried using as a prop. There's got to be something in this dump I can use.
Shego hopped back down off the couch and padded across the room, swinging her head this way and that, in the hopes of finding anything useful. As she passed by the kitchen, she got a glimmer of an idea, and made for the half-eaten bowl of cat food. Yes, this'll work great. Putting her paw on the rim of the bowl, she pressed down hard and had to jump back when the thing flipped over and nearly clocked her in the forehead.
Kim got up from the couch, curious as to what Ripley was up to, and had to reign herself in when the cat made a giant mess, spilling x's and o's all over the linoleum tile.
It was a bit of a bitch, but after a few minutes of frustration, she managed to arrange the pieces into some semblance of order with her paws. At first she'd started out to write something a little clearer, but the damn food was too slippery on the tile, and the best she could do was spell out her name…even if it looked like it was written by a first grader.
Sitting back on her haunches, she stared up at Kim expectantly, knowing full well the redhead was right behind her, standing watch the entire time she'd been working.
Kim raised an eyebrow as Ripley seemed to play with the food she refused to eat. But when it started to look like a word, her heart started beating faster and her eyes widened.
"She…go…?" Kim just stared at the cat food. "She go where?" Kim asked. A growl was heard from the cat and the college student shrugged. "I don't know what you want, Ripley." Kim rolled her eyes. "God, I feel like I'm talking to Lassie about Little Timmy." Green eyes looked back at the cat food and she studied it again. "She go. She go. Shego." A loud gasp echoed through the apartment as lightening seemed to strike the former hero's brain.
"Shego? Shego! You know Shego?" Kim fell to her knees beside the cat, putting her hands on the floor beside Ripley. "What about Shego? Is she still alive?"
Ripley sighed and stepped closer to Kim. She sat back on her haunches and brought a paw up to Kim's cheek and just laid it there, as if cradling Kim's face. The red head was once again gazing into Ripley's eyes. And she searched again, but couldn't see anything no matter how hard she stared.
"Gah, cat!" Kim pulled her head away. "This is weird! What do you want from me?"
Ripley placed her paw on Kim's face again, her eyes showing her frustration, desperation, and hope. The student could almost see the pleading in the eyes before her. She could almost hear the begging for her to understand.
"I'm trying, Ripley. But what is it about Shego that you know? And how do you know Shego?" Kim ground out, getting more frustrated with her inability to understand just what the cat was trying to tell her. "You know, this would be a whole lot easier if you could just talk."
Shego wanted to cry, or maybe bash her head against a wall. Kimmie wasn't this dense before. Ugh, how am I supposed to make it any clearer? She considered the scattered food. Doy, maybe I'm the stupid one here. She padded back over and began arranging more of the pieces, but already she could tell there wasn't going to be enough. Damn it. Shego huffed and scattered the meow mix that had spelled out her name, and used them to spell out the words, 'I am.' Facing Kim again, Shego meowed, thumping her chest with a paw. If she still doesn't get it, I'll be damned if I'm gonna sit here all day playing charades and twenty questions.
Kim felt her eyes widen once more. "What?" she whispered. "You are…Shego?" she fell to her butt and just blinked. "I'm not a stupid person," she said to out loud to herself, marshalling her thoughts. "In fact, I'm pretty smart, in my honest opinion. So, if my cat is telling me that she is…" she paused and swallowed. "Shego, then I wouldn't believe it. Right? Right. This is ridiculous. People don't just come back to life as cats."
She ran a hand through her hair. "I mean, there is that whole reincarnation thing, but you've got to be kidding me. A cat?" Kim mussed her hair in vexation. She paused to think over the last two days, trying to recall just how Ripley behaved. Sure, there were little things that kind of maybe reminded the redhead of the departed thief, but nothing she could point out and go, that's so totally Shego-like. The concept was just so…out there. This was the sort of thing that happened in movies, not real life. "Yeah, like aliens trying to take over the world…or mad geneticists creating mutant animal hybrids…only happens in 'Island of Dr. Moreau'."
Kim stared down at Ripley, trying to mentally superimpose an image of a noirette in a black and green catsuit. It wasn't hard to do, since the concept was already running around in her head. It also brought to mind a few scenarios as to how such a thing might have happened. As far as she knew, no one had seen Shego's body prior to the burial. The green skinned woman hadn't been in a condition for an open casket, judging by the news report of the crash. That alone had raised a few flags in Kim's opinion at the time.
Her first thoughts had leaned toward the villain having gone into hiding, but Drakken was present at the funeral, which had put a damper on that idea. DNAmy might have been involved, or maybe Shego had enlisted her aid, and this was the result of an experiment to prolong the comet powered woman's life. Erg, with so many possibilities, Kim couldn't outright discount all of them. "So, maybe this cat is Shego," she murmured, admitting that she'd seen enough crazy things to not at least give the concept a chance.
Kim sighed. "But it's still bizarre." She pointed at the cat, who was just sitting there listening to her babble. "Why'd she pick a cat to get stuck in?" The redhead had already discounted the whole reincarnation situation, if just by a bit of simple mathematics. Shego had died less than a week ago, and Ripley was at least a few months old kitten when Kim found her out by the front steps. Grr, but then there was the whole 'get huger in minutes' thing to consider.
"You do act like her. Sorta. I guess it's kinda scary actually. You roll your eyes and glare. It's pretty uncanny how much you resemble her, in a way. If Shego did come back as a cat, you would definitely be the kind of cat she would come back as." She leaned down and got on eye level with the cat. "You are trying to tell me that you're Shego, right?"
The cat seemed to sigh, and shook her head, turning back to the spilt cat food. Kim watched over the cat's shoulder as different letters were painstakingly crafted.
"D…O…" Kim muttered as each letter took shape. "Y…" She paused. "Doy." Her eyes got as big as dinner plates and her breath made a quick exodus from her lungs. "Oh my God! Shego!!"
And we have us a winner folks, Shego closed her eyes for a moment, taking the time to celebrate the fact that Kimmie wasn't in fact brain damaged as she'd first feared. Finally, I can get decent food again. Her eyes jerked open the moment she felt a warm pair of hands grab her around her chest and loft her into the air. What are, Shego's inner dialogue cut out as the apartment suddenly tilt-a-whirled.
The redhead spun around in a circle, lofting the cat above her head, a smile wide on her face. "You're alive! Shego! This is amazing, it's really you…and you're alive!" Kim rotocoptered with the cat for a few more revolutions before pivoting to a stop and mashing the dizzy Shego-cat to her chest. "This is great!"
Yeah, it's great…now put me down, or at least let me breathe princess. Shego wedged her paws up between herself and Kim's breasts, pushing to get a little air. Calm down a little. You'd think I'd died or….oh, yeah, doy.
Kim frowned when Shego pushed away from her. "But why are you a cat? And how did you find me? What happened?"
She stared at the cat, as if expecting an answer. Finally, it dawned on the student…
"Oh,yeah," Kim muttered. "You still can't talk. You're a cat." She chewed on her bottom lip. "So, what now? Where do we go from here?" She gave an exasperated sigh and hugged Shego to her chest again. "Too bad you can't talk; you know, like that one cat in that Japanese cartoon, the one with all the girls and magic powers." She shook her head. "Whatever, that was Ron's thing." She narrowed her eyes and looked back at Shego. "You know, knowing that you're Shego doesn't really help matters much. It just raises more questions."
Kim walked back to the den, Shego still in her arms. "But at least I've got some excitement back in my life." She sat down and placed the cat beside her on the sofa. "So, let's think this out. How can we communicate without cat food all over the floor? You obviously can't speak, and miming everything would be a pain in the ass, I'm sure." She gave Shego's paws a critical stare. "Holding a pen is probably out of the question." Kim turned her attention back to Shego's face. "Got any bright ideas?"
It took some doing, but Shego resisted the sudden urge to plant her face in her palm. Yeah, pumpkin. You see, I've been playing dumb this whole time, and my great plan to reveal my identity went off without a hitch…yeah, right. Instead, the black cat stared pointedly at the spilled food, and then back at Kimmie, with a shake of her head in the negative. Maybe you could buy a can of alphabet soup next time you're at the store. She noticed Kim was getting that look in her eye, the one that told the world if push came to shove, the redhead would roll up her sleeves and push right back. What, what'd I do? The cat tensed involuntarily, trying to figure out what had set pumpkin off.
"You're gonna make me do it, aren't you," Kim's brows knit together.
Shego took a step back, make you do what? I don't think we're on the same page anymore here.
The redhead folded her arms under her breasts, continuing along on her own mental tracks. "I figured I had to do it sooner or later, I was just hoping for later. Like, a couple more years down the road, later." She dropped her arms, and suddenly leaned over toward her old rival. "Do you know how awkward it got when Wade hit puberty? I had to start locking my kimmunicator in a drawer after I caught it on and pointed at me a few times when I was in the middle of getting out of the shower." She looked down and slightly to the side for a moment. "I totally didn't realize what was going on until like the third time. I still don't know to this day if I was more embarrassed or angry with him once I figured it out."
A strange noise pulled Kim's attention back to Shego. At first she thought the catified woman was going to start puking again, as the cat had fallen over onto her side and was twitching, making a dry hacking sound in her throat. This went on for a few more seconds, before Shego covered her face with her paws and started to settle back down. It dawned on Kim that the sound she'd been hearing was what passed for laughter. Shego was laughing at her. "Hey, it wasn't funny. I haven't talked to him in almost two years because of that…and other stuff," Kim turned away again.
That was almost enough to get Shego started again. K-kimmie! You caught your Nerd-in-my-pocket peeping on you a couple of times, so you gave him the cold shoulder…for nearly two years! Do you even know how often I had to deal with Dr. D pulling stunts like that? Well, not so much after I found that he's deathly allergic to pain, but come on. The nerdlinger's gotta be what, fourteen, fifteen? You can't blacklist a teenager just because his hormones decide to kick in. She got another half a chuckle out when a sudden impact bowled her off the couch and send her rolling to a stop on the carpet. Shaking her head to clear it, she looked up to find the redhead brandishing one of the throw pillows from the couch. Oh, that's it. You wanna play princess? We can do that. Shego bunched up and sprang; clearing the distance faster than the redhead could try and bop her with the pillow a second time.
Kim's eyes widened and she tried to move out of the way of the rapidly approaching furry missile, but she wasn't fast enough. Shego caught her in the chest, her weight causing Kim to fall back on the sofa with a soft "oof". The black cat then proceeded to bite Kim's fingers on the one hand that she managed to raise fast enough to guard her face.
"Ow," Kim cried out half in pain and half in amusement. It didn't hurt…much. It was obvious that Shego was holding back a good deal. The student struggled to get the upper hand and finally succeeded in sitting up. Shego fell off Kim, landing on the sofa, and Kim took the opening to resume her offensive. Her right hand went straight for Shego's stomach with fingers hooked into a decent approximation of claws. And she started to tickle. But she wasn't aiming to make Shego laugh. It was the type of tickle one used on a cat while wrestling with them. Kim dropped the pillow to free up her other hand to fend off Shego's swiping paws. "You are so gonna get it, Shego."
Shego batted at the offending hand, claws only slightly extended and teeth snapping in desperation. Small scratches started to appear on Kim's hand and arm, though fairly shallow and drawing little if any blood. With a deft twisting of her whole body, Shego maneuvered herself out from under Kim's hand and scrambled backward, eyes watching Kim for the next move.
"Whatcha gonna do now?" Kim asked with a smirk. "Attack me again? Cause we see how well that went last time."
Shego's eyes narrowed and she pounced, forcing all her weight on Kim's shoulder.
"Ack!" Kim yelped as she fell once more, but this time she landed on the floor instead of the cushioned sofa. She watched as the black cat shifted to get a better position and pressed one paw against her throat to hold her in place, and bent forward lightly nipping her ear. "Stop that!" Kim said, pushing Shego up and off of her. "You don't have to get all cocky about knocking me off the sofa. This isn't king of the hill."
Oh, don't start complaining now; you're the one that started this. I just so happened to finish it. Face it, just because I'm a cat doesn't mean I don't still have the stuff. Shego padded away, swishing her tail victoriously. Getting beaten by a kitty, that's gotta burn, right pumpkin? She stopped to regard the redhead who was getting back to her feet. Lifting one of her paws, she scuffed it against her chest, as if she were buffing her nails. So, you going to stand there all day like a sore loser, or you gonna give dial-a-nerd a call?
"God, you're still kind of a jerk, aren't you."
Calling me names just because I ruffled your feathers Kimmie? Copying me isn't the way to go, trust me. Besides, I thought your parents raised you better than that…, the cat paused her preening, a little uncomfortable mentioning the redhead's folks given what she knew of the situation back in Middleton; even if it was just to herself, as Kimmie couldn't hear her thoughts any more than she could understand it when Shego's attempt at speech came out as mewling and yowling sounds, nonsense even to the former human's ears.
Even still, Kim wasn't wholly unaware of the abrupt shift in Shego's mood. Actually, it was almost easier to judge by the cat body language, as Shego's ears had drooped, and her tail had stilled. She knew it wasn't because they'd just been messing around. Since when had that ever bothered the villain one way or the other…never in Kim's experience, and if it had the woman had never let it show. "Shego? What is it? What's up?" The cat blinked, and Kim felt strangely relieved when Shego seemed to perk back up.
It's nothing Kimmie. Nothing that's any of my business anyway, Shego told herself, and regarded Kim with a slight tilt of her head. So, about getting us some two way communication going on… The cat made her way over to her sole source of wordage and got to work.
Kim followed along, a little excited about being able to see what was going on in Shego's head. The feeling lasted all of the time it took the single word to form. Kim spat it out as if she'd had a taste of the cat food herself, "Wade."
Got it in one, princess. Now, go get your little doohickey. The sooner you deal with your problem, the faster super nerd can get my problem taken care of. Hell, maybe he can figure out what happened to me while he's at it. Shego sat there and gave Kim the most commanding stare she could muster.
"Please don't make me do this, Shego," Kim pleaded with the cat. "It's been two years. I really don't want to call him." She knelt down in front of Shego and looked her in the eyes. "It didn't end well, last time we spoke," she rubbed at her temple with one hand. "I think this isn't as difficult as we're making it out to be. It doesn't have to be something crazy." Kim looked down at the cat. "Keep it simple, right?"
The cat just stared at her, as if Shego was trying to bend Kim into compliance with the sheer force of her will.
"Damn it, Shego!" Kim started to get angry; about what, she wasn't sure. Maybe it was left over anger from her last meeting with Wade and Ron. "I can't do this! I'm not strong enough to face them yet!" She sucked in a breath at her last sentence, not meaning to blurt that out to her former rival. She sighed and sat down on the floor, rubbing a hand over her face. "Maybe my brothers could think of something," she whispered desperately. "I could give them a call."
The only sound for a few seconds was the click of the refrigerator and the dripping of the faucet for the kitchen sink.
Kim looked back at Shego and groaned at the steely determination in the cat's eyes. With another sigh she played her last card, though unconsciously, her eyes shifted to the side as she spoke. "Besides, I don't exactly have my Kimmunicator anymore." She looked at the floor, her face coloring. "I kinda threw it out a window the last time I talked to Wade," she admitted. "I use regular phones now like a regular person." She stood up and nodded, gathering herself up. "So, we need to think of something else. Wade is a no go," that said, Kim walked out of the kitchen without looking back.
Did you just ignore me, again? I'm the one stuck like this and you want to ask those little monsters to help out? Who knows what they'll think is a good plan. Probably something that involves copious amounts of fuel and a blackened crater in the end. I'm so not down with that. Shego felt her hackles rise along with her irritation. Damn it, princess! I always thought you were a little tenacious, but I didn't realize you were this bull-headed. So what if you showed the roly-poly a bit of skin? You were probably all wrapped up in a towel at the time anyway! The cat started to get so beside herself that she was gnashing her teeth and stalking back and forth across the kitchen tile, scattering the meow-mix all over. Quit being such a baby!
Kim had little to no warning before the Shego struck her upper back with a yowl, sending the redhead staggering toward the coffee table.
I don't believe that crap about you not having your blue doodad! That thing was practically fused to your hip for years. Even if you're not talking to Nerdlinger, you expect me to swallow that you didn't hold onto it for old times' sake, just in case something came up? I was a freaking villain Kimmie…Evil! And you think I can't tell when you're lying to my face? Shego continued to cling on the redhead's back, despite nearly getting crushed when Kim tripped on her own feet and sent them crashing into the small table.
"Shit!" Kim screamed as she hit the table on her side. A soft creaking was heard before the table collapsed under Kim's weight, slight though it might be. As she fell through the remains of the table, she hit the ground with a groan muffled by a mouthful of her own hair.
Springing out of the mess, Shego pushed off of Kim and watched warily as the college student rolled off the tabletop muttering something under her breath. Then those green eyes were fixed on the black cat's own narrowed orbs. Pure, unadulterated anger was rolling off Kim in waves.
"What is wrong with you?" The red head yelled. "Seriously, Shego! What was that?" She pulled herself into a sitting position, favoring her side a little. "You just attack me out of the blue, for no freaking reason! Are you upset that I don't have my Kimmunicator ready and waiting at your beck and call? Is that it? Look what happened to my coffee table! I'm not made of money…I can't just go out and buy another one of those," she slapped the top of the table with a scowl forming on her face. "You better be glad nothing else got broken," She stumbled up and rubbed her side, a gasp leaving her lips when pain shot through her body. "You were always so quick to fight. And as much as I loved tearing it up with you back then, this…this is ridiculous. Fighting with a damn cat," She pulled up her shirt and gave herself a once over, particularly just above her hip where she'd nailed the edge of the table. "Great, there's gonna be a huge bruise there, I can feel it. I just had to be scheduled for inventory tomorrow, didn't I."
Anger was welling up inside Kim like a flooded river. And for once, she didn't want to hold it in. "Damn it all to Hell!!" She screamed as she kicked a table leg across the room. "It's not my fault you're in this situation, Shego!" She turned, furious, facing the cat once more. "Don't hate me because you look like a cat. I didn't do it. I thought you were dead. I was the one that took you into my home and took care of you. You can take whatever bit you in the ass and shove it. God, for once…just get over yourself." She ran a hand through her hair and stormed out of the room, still muttering under her breath.
Remaining where she stood, Shego watched Kimmie disappear around the corner, presumably to hole up in her room. Not thirty seconds later the sound of the shower running proved her wrong. She took in the mess in the kitchen, the cracked table, and the crappy décor of the apartment as a whole. A hollow feeling sunk into her gut, and Shego shook her head, moving to leap up onto the couch. I don't need this right now.
Stretching her back she lay out across one of the cushions, staring out blankly at the empty television screen. I can't believe she told me to 'get over myself,' maybe that pumpkin head of hers is starting to go bad. Not that I wouldn't be pissed if some crazy cat jumped me from behind. Yeah, smooth going there blackie, got the whole 'pet' thing nailed down.
With a small huff of annoyance, she rolled onto her side and put a paw across her face, blocking her view of the room. Who would've thought that not being able to talk would be such a bitch…or suck all the fun out of wiping the floor with Kimmie? Yeah, I so don't want to deal with this crap right now. Maybe I can get Kimmie to turn on the bath for me when she gets done. When was the last time I had a good soak anyway?
Shego thought about that, as it was preferable to wondering what she was supposed to do with Kim now. God, back in St. Louis? No…before that. Ew, that means I haven't even showered in more than a week. She tried to sniff herself, but all she got was a nose full of cat and meow-mix, the latter being the more prevalent smell, much to her dismay. Whoa, that cinches it. I don't care what Kim says, I'm getting myself a damn bath.
Kim leaned against the shower wall, letting the hot water run over her body, wincing as it pounded her bruised hip. Damn Shego. Had to start something that I really didn't want to finish, didn't you. She pushed off the wall and grabbed the shampoo. As she washed her hair she forced herself to calm down. She knew she had overreacted. She knew that. But it didn't make what happened any less irritating.
She hung her head. Damn it. The water ran over her hair and into her face, washing away the grime from the day but not doing much for the memories of years past.
"You were spying on me, Wade?"
"I-I just…I-"
"Spit it out, Wade!"
"It wasn't anything serious!"
Kim winced at the play of memories shifting through her head. She had been hard on Wade. But his spying on her couldn't have come at a worse time. She had been stressed with work and taking care of her dad and then *bam* she suddenly realizes that one of her closest friends had been using her trust to peep on her.
That had hurt; a lot. So much so that she flew to Wade's house, burst into his room, and confronted him. But what hurt the most was seeing the fear and pain in Wade's eyes right before she stormed out of his room, vowing never to talk to him again. Of course, she didn't really care at that point in time about what Wade had been feeling, but weeks later, after she had finally been in a reasonable state of mind, she realized how hard she had been on the younger boy. Nevertheless, her stupid pride hadn't allowed her to apologize. Like always, it was her way, or the highway. Only, she'd been the one to go, leaving everything behind.
And now, two years down the road, she was too embarrassed and ashamed to apologize. Ron had told her right before he left for college to get over it and move on, talk to Wade and listen to what he had to say. But she had been mad at Ron at that point as well, just for different reasons. He was leaving her, going off to pursue his own dreams. And she wasn't. She was at home, taking care of a paralyzed father instead of chasing her dream. It hadn't seemed fair. Not one bit.
Her self-confidence took a real beating back then. She felt lower than dirt. She wasn't saving the world, she didn't have any friends, and she was still at home, doing something that she knew was right but ultimately didn't make her happy.
The water starting to turn cold shook Kim from her thoughts. She sighed, turned off the rapidly cooling water, and just stood in the shower, staring at the wall.
"Damn it," she whispered. "I need to apologize to Shego." She opened the shower curtain and grabbed her towel. "And while I'm at it I should probably swallow even more of my pride and call Wade."
In the living room, Shego lounged on the couch, waiting for Kim to finish her shower. After the first two minutes of listening to the water running through the wall, she eventually went for the remote, fiddling with it for a bit until she found something mildly entertaining to pass the time.
She settled for a channel that was airing an episode of "Young and Beautiful." While she wasn't an avid Soap fan, the antics of the various leads had been a reliable source of distraction in the past, when Drakken had been in what she privately referred to as his, 'hibernation phase,' when he got mopey after a particularly nasty plan had suffered a Team Possible intervention.
The cat ended up engrossed in the love quadrangle that had been on a slow burn for the past season, and was staring rapt at the screen when Kim eventually finished in the bathroom, and came back out from getting dressed. The redhead did her level best to ignore the sight of the ruined table, and instead found herself staring between the drama on the screen and Shego, who was completely glued to the set. Stepping around the slab of wood in the middle of the carpet, she sat down on the end of the couch opposite the green eyed feline.
The moment Kim's weight settled on the cushion, Shego tore her eyes from the unfolding melodrama to stare up at the college student. They locked gazes for a moment, until the cat let out a faint meow, and turned back to the show resting her head on her front paws. Kim wasn't quite sure what to make of that; the snarky thief had always been a little hard to read back when she was human, this change wasn't making things easier, that was for sure. The redhead picked absently at a piece of lint on the arm of the couch, while she deliberated just what she was supposed to say to Shego, let alone still gathering herself to face a certain computer-savvy old friend.
There was a good five minutes of silence between them, while on the screen, Carrie demanded that John tell her who he was sleeping with. Words were bandied; things better left unsaid, spoken…the whole thing hit a little too close to home for comfort. As the scene devolved into a drawn out verbal war, Kim finally looked back at Shego. "I'm sorry," she said softly but just loud enough for the cat to hear.
Shego looked over at her, emerald eyes not giving away any hints about what she was feeling.
Kim sighed. "You're not gonna make this easy for me, are you?" She closed her eyes. "I shouldn't have gone off on you like that and I definitely shouldn't have just dismissed your idea to call Wade." She looked back at the TV, not wanting to meet that unwavering gaze anymore. It was a little unnerving, apologizing to a cat.
"My pride has always been a fault of mine but it never really clicked, until I moved here. And just knowing that doesn't make it better. I've been trying to work on it, but obviously, I haven't gotten much better."
"Tell me who it is, John!" Carrie shouted from the TV.
"I can't, Carrie. Your sister would kill me."
"It's my SISTER?"
Kim mentally rolled her eyes at the soap then looked at the floor. "When you brought up Wade, my mind blasted back to when all that…shit happened. And I couldn't handle it. I'm sorry."
She sat there for a second then sighed as she rubbed her palms on her jeans. "And I sort of lied; I still have my Kimmunicator. I did throw it out the window after my talk with Wade but…it was such a part of me. I couldn't bear to part with it." She shook her head. "I'm so OCD," she muttered before continuing in a louder voice. "I went back to get it, fixed it up, replaced the batteries, and kept it in a drawer, vowing never to use it but it felt right to hang onto it, you know, 'just in case.' Whatever that means."
She finally looked back at the cat. "So, once more…I'm sorry. For everything. I'd like to consider us friends and I'll do whatever I can to help you out, even if that means contacting someone I thought I'd never to speak to again."
Great, this was what I didn't want to get into. Shego meowed, frustrated with the decidedly inconvenient lack of wordage. It made her feel more like a heel than she already did for getting all worked up at the younger woman earlier. Actually, it was even worse now, since it took so long to get anything she wanted to say across, she had way too much time to think about what exactly she was spitting out in the first place. The black cat could curse up a storm in her head, vent all she wanted mentally, and the only one who could hear her bitching was herself. It sucked the fun right out of her usual vitriol. In fact, it sucked the big one. God damn this.
The cat ruminated for a few more seconds before she realized that Kim was still waiting for some kind of response from her. So, you're gonna give the nerd some face to face time finally? Good. Gotta start somewhere. If he can rig something up for me, I guess that's a bonus. Shego turned toward the mess on the floor and the scattered cat food she'd been using as an impromptu message board. No, screw that tic-tac-toe crap. It takes too freakin' long to mess with…
Even like this, she knew full well that wasn't the reason she didn't get up from the couch. Kim wasn't the only one who had an apology to make, and words didn't always cut to the heart of the matter. There were certain things that you could never put into writing, and Shego had always hated the thought of writing feelings down. It was never quite what you really meant. And therein, lay the crux of the problem.