Chapter 9

Kim Possible got into her car, alone. She felt she'd been almost successful in persuading Shego to come with her, but in the end she had decided to stay at her hostel. Why did she have to be so proper? She hadn't even consented to give her the address.

Kim knew she should just drive home. She'd see Shego again on Tuesday. She definitely shouldn't follow her; she'd be caught immediately. She wished she knew the hostel Shego was staying at, but she didn't know much about such places in Middleton. Why would she? If it was something Shego had chosen for laying low, it probably didn't have a website, either. She did, however, know where she'd dropped Shego off a few weeks ago.

Kim abandoned her car. It was much too conspicuous. She cautiously retraced the route Shego had taken after she'd left her off the last time. She suspected Shego hadn't walked straight to her destination, and it probably wasn't around the next corner, but she wasn't sure what else to do. She didn't know this part of Middleton very well, and she was reluctant to contact Wade for help. Anything regarding Shego was private for Kim. She just hoped the place would be obvious enough to spot.

Kim had walked down four blocks when a loud sound, like an explosion, caught her attention. Scanning her surroundings, she spotted a plume of dust billowing out of a construction site two blocks ahead. Shego momentarily forgotten, she sprinted towards it. Somebody needed help.

As Kim neared the construction site, she heard unmistakeable sounds of a fight in progress. A tall, solid fence surrounding the yard obscured her vision, and she started to slow down to make a cautious approach to assess the situation. Then she saw familiar glowing green projectiles hurtling into the sky and sped up again. She used a stack of empty pallets as a springboard to vault the fence. As she crested the top she spared a quick glance to make sure she had a clear landing, then started scanning the yard while still in air.

It didn't take her long to identify the party attacking Shego. Wego copies swarmed the site like a red tide, with the tall form of blue-clad Hego towering among them. Shego was trying to ward off the attack, but losing ground. Beyond the sea of Wego she spotted Adrena Lynn standing on a stack of metal beams, shouting orders and encouragement to Team Go. She looked out of place in her civilian clothes, though her hands were lit up in orange.

It was immediately obvious to Kim that Shego was in trouble. She seemed unwilling to go all out against her brothers, and they were quickly hemming her in towards the corner of the lot. Wego seemed intent on just dogpiling her, while Hego worked from range, trying to limit her movement by throwing things at her. It spoke to her skill that she had escaped being overwhelmed so far. Mego occasionally popped up for a second among the Wego, probably attempting to find a route through the shifting maze of legs to ambush Shego.

None of the combatants had spotted Kim yet; it had only taken her seconds to identify the situation and decide on a plan. She drew her trusty grapple gun and aimed at the upper floors of the skeleton of a building taking shape on the lot, even as she sprang up the side of a construction vehicle to gain elevation. She jumped wide as the grapple found purchase, to give herself a trajectory that would swing around the corner of the building and towards where Shego was maneuvering. When her outstretched arm made contact with surprised Shego, she activated the mechanism to retract the cable to pull them higher, where the unfinished floors would limit movement and make it harder for Team Go to box them in.

Shego clung to her as she'd hoped, but the electric motor wasn't strong enough to lift their combined weight, and the added inertia of Shego shortened the arc of her swing. They barely cleared the corner of the building, only gaining a couple of dozen feet on Wego.

"Right, time for a plan B."

"And what is that?"

"Run."

"It's what I've been trying to do."

Kim turned to flee, dragging Shego with her. She was slower than Kim expected, and it took her a while to realize that Shego wasn't dressed for the occasion. Her skirt was too tight to allow much freedom of movement, and she was wearing heels.

"Don't just gawk like idiots, get them." Lynn gestured towards the women, urging Team Go on.

Kim had known that Hego, at least, was involved in Lynn's escape, but it was still surreal to see them working together. Lynn gave Kim the same gleefully triumphant look as she had on last two occasion they'd met. Kim had ultimately come on top both times, and she intended to win this one, too.

Lynn launched her orbs at the pair. Kim was mindful of the fact that although she couldn't control Shego, the orange glow still appeared to hurt her, so she placed herself to shield Shego with her body. The spheres swerved outward to avoid Kim, then followed curved trajectories towards Shego from two directions. Kim lunged to swat one away, then grabbed Shego and spun them around to block the other sphere with her back. The orbs bounced erratically away, then stabilized and streaked towards them once more. Shego sent a barrage of green bolts at Lynn, who ducked behind the stack of beams. The orbs veered away.

The distraction had given Team Go enough time to catch up to them and over a dozen copies of Wego surrounded them, though they held off for the moment. Hego strolled towards them, grabbing a large bag of cement from a pile on his way like it didn't weigh anything. Kim wasn't sure if he intended to throw it at them, or if he was just demonstrating his strength to intimidate them. In either event, it proved a lucky break.

"Shego."

"I've got it."

A green projectile ruptured the sack and filled the air with cement dust. Shego followed with more blasts, further agitating the cloud. Wego coughed and tried to protect their eyes. Kim and Shego took advantage of the opportunity by concentrating on the better part of valor. Kim gave Shego a boost over the fence surrounding the yard, and quickly followed her. A last look behind her showed Kim that Team Go was in disarray and Lynn was giving her a vengeful stare.

Kim slid into the driver's seat and started the car as Shego was getting seated beside her.

"Thank you, Kimmie. I don't think I could have gotten away on my own."

"No big, I'm just glad I was around to help." And there was no need to dwell on the reason why she was.

"Yeah, it was good timing."

Kim focused on putting distance between them and Team Go.

"How did they find you?"

"I don't know. I was just walking past the lot when they ambushed me. I really didn't think they'd guess to look for me here."

"You probably can't go back to your lodgings. Did you leave anything valuable there?"

"Not really, no, just some clothes and other necessities. I pretty much got here with just the clothes on my back."

"Doesn't sound like it would be worth the risk to go back for them."

"No. I can just buy new ones."

"We'll stop by the mall on the way home."

"Kimmie..."

"Shego, you don't have anywhere else to stay, do you? And if they try something, we'll both be there to handle it."

"I don't want to put your family in danger."

"Like I said, Lynn already has a grudge on me, so they're already in danger. You being there can only help."

"And you definitely think your parents will be okay with it?"

"We can at least ask. I'm sure they won't turn down a person in need of aid." Kim chewed her lip for a while. "Uh, it would probably be best if we didn't mention our past, um... you know."

"Uh, yeah, that's... that's best."

From the corner of her eye Kim noticed that Shego was blushing more than her. This nice Shego didn't quite have the raw sex appeal of the original, but she was very charming in her own way. Kim looked forward to getting to know her better. She was sure she'd be able to overcome her hesitance eventually. After all, anything was possible for a Possible.

Kim sat on the couch, next to Shego, feeling nervous. Her parents sat opposite them, wearing sombre expressions.

"Let me see if I understood this correctly," Dr. Possible said. "Shego, one of your greatest enemies, got attacked by another villain and turned good. Now she's hunted by her formerly heroic brothers, turned evil, and you offered to put her up on our behalf."

"Uh, more or less, Mom."

"As a neurosurgeon I have a hard time believing someone can just be zapped good. Do we have anything to go on apart from her word?"

"Mom, you remember what happened to Ron that one time? When he became villainous for a while. The device that was used on Shego and her brothers was based on the thing that did that to him."

"I... yes, I remember." Dr. Possible sighed. "Maybe I should be more open-minded when it comes to mad science."

"And I just rescued her from Team Go. They definitely weren't acting like heroes should. Oh, and they were working with Adrena Lynn. Wade warned you, right?"

"Yes." Dr. Possible's face hardened. "When I think about what she did to Tim and Jim I can't but wish you'd dealt with her once and for all."

"Mom! You don't mean that."

"Now, now, honey. The boys are safe and sound in the lab, and I'm sure our Kimmie-Cub will send Lynn back to prison soon enough."

"I will. And having Shego here helps. She's immune to Lynn's power, too. And if Lynn managed to control one of you, Shego can knock you out before you do anything bad, safe and sound."

"Uhh, Kimmie, I'm afraid it's not really that safe. The knockout pulse I use is pretty much a concussion on demand. I really don't want to do that to anyone, especially to your family."

"I support that sentiment."

"Oh, I didn't realize. You... the old you used it so freely I thought it was okay."

"She was a villain, Kimmie. She didn't really care how much she hurt other people, as long as it got her what she wanted, and didn't get her into too much trouble." Shego's expression clouded with pain.

"You think of yourself as a different person since you were reprogrammed?"

"I... I remember everything she did, but I don't really understand her reasons. I'd never make those choices myself. I'm not the same person anymore; I don't want to be that person."

"I guess I can understand that." Dr. Possible looked at the two of them. "Very well, Kim. I will trust you on this. She can stay here."

"Thank you, Mom."

"Thank you very much, Dr. Possible. And you, Dr. Possible."

"Don't mention it. You seem like a very nice young lady. I'm sure you'll be a good influence on Kim."

Kim seriously hoped she wouldn't be too good an influence. She did seem rather uptight, but Kim remembered her mentioning that college had been a wild time for her; and that that was where she'd discovered girls. Perhaps the upstanding Ms. Go wasn't completely incorruptible.

"Shego." There was steel in Dr. Possible's voice and in her gaze. "I'm trusting you with the safety of my family. Don't betray that trust."

Shego swallowed and nodded.