I do not own Kim Possible, any of the other characters in that series, or those from other media I may reference.
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Kim barely managed to keep her jaw from dropping at Motor Ed's announcement, and she failed to even glance at Shego to see how she was reacting, which was certainly unusual. Instead she focused on Drakken's face, which had frozen in a deep frown, eyes unfocused. And she remembered not to hold her breath, of course.
Shego had felt a surge of anger in point of fact at the mention of Drakken's father, which actually caused her a moment's consternation as she tried to analyze it. She only knew the basic story, and little of that due to Drakken's understandable reluctance to bring it up. Though it was the first time she'd heard that her boss had been two before his father abandoned him, she'd assumed that it was earlier. And now she, too, was focused on the man's face.
Ed was the only one showing anxiety as he awaited his cousin's reaction. His mind was whirring away, pointing out a hundred better ways he could have handled this! But the sudden unexpected appearance by Drew had caused him to rush right into it, and not just to explain how he ended up working for Timothy North. Then Drakken's eyes zeroed in on his cousin.
"You are referring to the man who sired me, and subsequently had almost nothing whatsoever to do with raising me?" The mild tone of those words actually made Ed frown, and Shego tense up. Which Kim noted, and followed suit.
After a moment's silence, Drakken turned away. "I'm not the least bit interested." He said, still in a subdued manner. He then proceeded to walk to the door, which had been left open, and exit without a look back.
And behind him, Kim and Shego echoed each other. "That's not good!" Ed just winced. Then Shego beat Kim to the door.
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Bernadette Barr was trying her best not to show her immense frustration as she redonned her prosthetic foot. She'd had to strip completely, even the foot, and balance on her flesh and blood foot for the alien to do his scan.
Which took five seconds.
Ten, tops!
They were in the 'common' room of one of the suites. They had been told it was the 'green' suite, and that was the dominant color in the décor and furnishings. There was a bedroom on either side, each with two double beds and it's own bath. It compared well with the Hotel she and Shego had been staying at...just that morning?
She'd already put her underwear back on, and as she finished with her foot she studied her companion. Who was apparently back in contact with at least some of his colleagues! And the idea that they were probably studying the scan themselves was causing some angry thoughts to whirl about in Bernie's head. The noises that were coming from the alien's shell were varying considerable in volume and tone, not to mention cadences!
Foot in place, she shot to her feet and grabbed her top. But before donning it, she went to the curtain concealing the sliding glass double door leading out to the pool area. She hadn't seen any details, but there had been movement outside, and she decided to indulge her curiosity to avoid saying anything untoward...toward the alien.
So she was briefly disappointed to find no sign of life in the pool area, though the open door of the pool house drew her attention. And her full focus when Drew Lipsky emerged from it, head down, eyes focused on the ground in front of him, and striding purposefully around the pool, possibly bound for the main house.
"Something bad has happened." Bernie thought, even as Shego emerged from the pool house as well and began to move after Drakken as if undecided about whether to catch him or not. And then Kim popped out behind her and also started to follow.
Bernie promptly opened the door and stepped out. She hesitated briefly, then headed to intercept Drew. Everything important was covered, her underwear wasn't skimpy at all, and besides...and then she stopped dead in her tracks.
Shego had just noticed her friend's appearance and was starting to make a mildly sarcastic remark(Mild being all she could manage due to her concern for Drew) when Bernie stopped short and glanced sharply to her right, gaze elevating towards something beyond the depression the pool sat in.
Shego immediately spun to look the same way, instantly alert. She quickly focused on some movement on top of the wall on the north side of the North residence, and quickly analyzed it as someone ducking out of sight behind the wall. It was too far and too quick for her to catch any details.
"Miss Barr?" Drew's mild query brought Shego's attention back to her friend, who was frowning mightily at the distant wall. Then Bernie, who was already a little flushed, reddened even more as she refocused on Drew, as well as Shego and Kim behind him. She immediately began pulling on the top she held in her hand.
"Sorry." She got out before her head disappeared briefly, then continued as it reemerged. "Should have covered up sooner..." Then she frowned, "But maybe I wouldn't have felt..." A seriously displeased look appeared on her face as she spun back towards the door she'd emerged from. The alien had actually followed her out, and now stood stock-still as her eyes fell on it.
"I-I felt what that kid was feeling, when he saw me like this-that, whatever!" Bernie exclaimed, "And-and I knew where he was, and that he's just a teenage kid! Would you care to explain all that, or do you actually need to?"
The alien visibly fidgeted, both due to Bernie's glare and Drakken's curious gaze. The latter's previous mood had fled entirely upon meeting his first verified alien. But even as his eyes remained locked on the alien, his question was directed at Bernie. "You say you sensed the attention directed towards you, and were able to...lock in, for lack of a better phrase, on his location, while also being aware of his level of maturity?"
Bernie's glare diminished as her eyes became unfocused. Then she nodded. "That's pretty much it. No thoughts, just immature...hell, lust!" She hesitated, then shook her head slightly. "Except...no, I didn't feel...lust exactly, but knew...oh, HELL!" Her glare shifted back to the alien. "And this happens after this guy gives me something to 'cure' a concussion...which it did, as a matter of fact! All symptoms gone now, entirely!"
"But they added something extra, just like they did with me, didn't they?" Kim queried, but then she frowned, "Though in my case it wasn't something extra, it was just..." Then her eyes widened and she clamped her mouth shut as she realized Drew Lipsky was now looking at her! "Doh! I didn't think Shego had told him about that, and the look on his face pretty much confirms it! Smooth, Possible!"
Shego didn't even notice the slip, focusing on the alien. "What's with you guys? First you had this plan to deliberately choose and create heroes, now you're passing out powers for free? Without the consent of the recipients!?"
The target of her outburst drew himself up in an outraged posture. "Do NOT blame any of this on me! I gave Miss Barr that medicine in good faith, I had no idea one of my colleagues had added anything extra! I for one would never give such a thing away for free! Miss Barr deserved the medical benefit, I won't argue that, but the rest..."
"Nevermind who's to blame, what have you done to me?" Bernie was torn between getting the answer or getting her jeans. Especially when her audience abruptly increased by two, though she was probably the last to notice it.
"Let me guess, something in your concussion cure?" Betty Director's voice made Bernie jump, as she hadn't seen the woman and Fredrick Lipsky emerge from the house, actually from the same suite she and the alien had been in. Obviously the pair had come looking for one of them, and not receiving a response to a knock, had come through. And they definitely added to the alien's tension, based on his increased fidgeting.
"It-it was not emotion you felt exactly, Miss Barr!" The alien spoke nervously, "It was actually more like intent, actually. You were in his sight for long enough for him to feel initial-err, lust, but that didn't register itself. It was when it evolved, if you will, to intent that you actually felt it! At least, that is what the-fool who concocted the mixture says! It will work similarly if anyone focuses on you with some sort of defined intent of any sort. Or focuses on someone in close proximity to you, especially someone of emotional significance to you!"
One or two mouths opened to respond to that announcement, but closed almost immediately as all present digested the information. The alien actually stopped fidgeting, though a couple of buzzes indicating conversation emanated from him.
Frederick spoke first. "So, if you were standing next to someone, you could sense anger directed..." He broke off as the alien began waving his arms.
"No, no emotion is necessary! The person could be completely dispassionate about what they intended to do, but you would sense and interpret their intent! I mean, a completely emotionless...assassin, shall we say, would still have his 'lethal' intent detectable by you." He hesitated, "And I haven't a clue how that actually works, to be honest!"
Bernie's face distorted almost comically for a moment. "So if I go to the beach in that swimsuit Shego bought me, I wouldn't feel every guy...or girl, who felt lust towards me, just the ones who developed definite intentions on the subject?" She rolled her eyes. "Well, that' s a small improvement! But sensing intent, I can't really think how that would work either!"
"Not to mention it's a useful, but kinda lame power. As far as being a hero goes, that is!" Shego remarked. She had a suspicion about it that the alien promptly confirmed.
"It's only part of a package, actually!" The alien's attitude had suddenly lost all signs of nervousness. "There were more powers bundled with it, but obviously we can't give that sort of thing away..." He trailed off expectantly.
"For free, you mean!" Betty responded acidly. "Now that people in authority know about you guys, it's time to do business, right?"
"Hey, we have to do something to get back in our boss's good graces, right?" The alien shot back. "I mean, the house we got from...it's nice, but we did intend to go home again one day, right?" Shego and Kim both got the impression that those last emphasized words were directed at his colleagues more then those present.
Drakken now stepped up. "I've heard a little about you people, mostly from Shego of course, but I believe this is the first I've heard about you being in trouble with your people. Was the fiasco you had with Team Go the primary reason?"
"Primary? Yes!" Some buzzing occurred at that point, indicating the involvement of others. "Be Quiet!" The alien snapped, sharply enough to make Kim jump, "Again I remind you, you stuck me here with this mess, so I'm handling it MY way!" There then followed a low, sharp whistle and what sounded almost like a rattle, but wasn't quite. "There! That's settled tha...WHAT THE #*% $ IS HE DOING HERE!" He pointed up at one of the ground floor windows overhead, where a short, dark figure was peering out at them.
Betty groaned when she saw the indicated individual. Bernie rolled her eyes. "Well, the addition of a looser cannon is just what we need!" She turned to Shego. "You should have handled the ticket sales, you could have had a spa day on the proceeds!"
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Treyvan Coke did have a certain facial resemblance to a famous actor with the initials SLJ, with a currently shaven head...but lacked about eight inches in height by comparison. Nevertheless, he had mastered an excellent 'no-nonsense' expression which he currently was directing at the resident alien. His two colleagues standing behind him were having a hard time either keeping a straight face(Female with well developed muscles) or not looking bored out of their mind(Fellow with a strong resemblance to a young Daniel Stern).
During the trip up from the pool area, it had been hastily and unanimously decided not to tell Coke about Bernie's situation. Though Fred Lipsky said that Quentin Grade would have to be informed...later.
Bernie herself was feeling more composed now that she was fully dressed again. But she stayed well back as the duo from Global Justice brought Coke up to speed...with some slight shading of the truth.
Rather then telling him that another alien was consorting with villains, they informed him that the villains were hunting their alien, and certain highly classified reasons prevented them from moving him anywhere else. This fabrication actually had Grade's approval, for what that was worth.
Kim and Drew Lipsky were not present, having remained downstairs, with Brenda Core and Will Du making sure they didn't discuss the business that had originally brought them to LA, even though by this point only the most anal retentive of personalities would consider it worth the effort.
"So this is basically a defensive situation?" Coke asked with exaggerated incredulity, "Then I am the WRONG person for this job! When Mister Grade assigned m-" He suddenly winced as the falseness of his own declaration hit him, but recovered swiftly, "This matter came to my attention, it seemed to be a matter more suited for my talents, which are wholly offen-I mean proactive!"
"So, you're not a very well-rounded agent?" Betty's and Frederick's mouths snapped shut over whatever they had intended to say as Bernie's voice sounded from behind them. "Only suitable for a limited range of assignments?"
Coke immediately began to maneuver to bring the speaker into view as he responded with a condescending smile on his face, "I prefer to think of myself as a specialist, miss, and just who do YOU repre..." At this point he gained a clear view of the nurse's face and completely blew any claims on having a great 'poker face' as his jaw dropped alarmingly and his eyes bulged almost comically. Almost. Now his head swiveled around to apparently count the number of witnesses present. His two colleagues regarded him with concerned puzzlement.
Finally he stopped with a frown on his face. After a moment's apparently intense thought, the frown abruptly changed to a sly smile as he turned to face Bernie(Who barely suppressed an eyeroll as her new 'power' gave her a sense of what was coming.)
"Well, isn't it strange to run into you again, with aliens about?" Coke queried with a mild hint of accusation. "I never did believe you were what you pretended to be, you know, just a Navy nurse, not the way you handled that situation!" Bernie now became the focus of all but Frederick Lipsky, who continued to focus on Coke.
Now Bernie rolled her eyes. "'Strange' just about sums up this whole day! And Thank You for letting me know that thing last time was actually alien, not some mad scientist's creation!" Then she winced, "Or something dreamed up by some Techy Frat! I mean, it looked like something from a sixties Science Fiction movie, the Italian kind! Oh, and I was just a Hospital Corpsman, Third Class, at the time! I was actually on leave because of something bad that happened aboard my first ship..." She trailed off while Kim and Shego winced, knowing what she referred to.
Coke underwent a variety or changes of facial expression as Bernie spoke, and ended up with a truly bemused expression. But then he rallied, a smug expression becoming dominant. "That's okay, if you want to maintain your cover..." And then he discovered why people avoided earning Frederick Lipsky's disapproval.
"Miss Barr has no cover to 'maintain', Agent Coke!" Though mild, the tone of his voice actually caused Coke to snap to attention, and look confused a moment later, "She was exactly what she claimed to be in Italy, where you dragged her into your case, according to friends of mine at JIPCORET. And now, she actually knows what was going on then, Thanks to you."
Coke started to stammer a reply, but was cut off. "Which is hardly the first time you managed to make a public spectacle of an assignment, forcing a major effort to cover up for you. If you were in Global Justice, Agent Coke, you'd be in a nice, quiet filing room where you couldn't risk the exposure of your Agency. Which is, after all, chartered by the United States Government, not the Italian, Spanish, or Japanese Governments." Despite the emphasis of some of these words, the tone they were delivered in might have seemed quite mild, yet somehow carried a great weight. And from the expression on Treyvan Coke's face, he felt that weight!
"So, Agent Coke, you had best accept that not everyone accepts your opinion on where you should be employed, nor have any reason to indulge you. You are here as a liaison with us, not as an independent operative, and had better behave accordingly, am I quite clear?"
Bernie would have bet that both of Coke's companions were literally holding their breaths. Coke himself seemed to be manfully struggling to keep a certain expression off his face, which Shego would have bet was a pout.
Finally collecting himself, Coke assumed a neutral expression. "Of course Sir, I fully under stand my brief on this situation!" His companions unobtrusively released their breaths. "I assume we have had quarters assigned?" He was then surprised when the first response, such as it was, came from Timothy North.
"Err...just how many people are staying? We have four suites on the lower level as well as two rooms, but they have no windows..." He trailed off expectantly.
Betty responded briskly. "Mr. Lipsky, Miss Barr and Miss Possible, along with Agents Du and Core will definitely be staying. I have no idea what arrangements Miss Black would like to make, but I suspect she'd like to stay as well."
Treyvan Coke frowned. Frederick Lipsky was staying here? And Miss Possible? What was he not being told? Then Roy spoke from just behind Shego's shoulder, causing her to grimace as she tried not to jump from surprise.
"Mr. Lipsky has chosen to take one of the lower rooms, Sir! He says the lack of windows is no problem at all for him as he's quite used to it. Miss Possible chose the blue suite, and expects Miss Barr will be staying there..." He looked at Bernie, who smiled and nodded, "And that leaves Agents Du and Core, as well as our newest arrivals." He looked expectantly at Coke.
"How many beds are there in each suite, Roy?" Betty asked before Coke could respond. Roy described the accommodations and Betty nodded. "Agent Core will stay with Miss Possible, then, since she is her responsibility. I expect Miss Black will share that suite as well. Did Mr. Lipsky take the room in the same wing?" Roy nodded. "Well, then, Agent Du can occupy the other suite at that end."
"I have no need for a full 'suite', Doctor Director, I can be quite comfortable in the other single room, the lack of windows..." And then Treyvan Coke cut him off.
"No! I want him..." pointing at the alien, "...in that room, with the three of us in the suite opposite!" He crossed his arms and assumed a stern expression.
Which Betty would have loved to wipe off his face if she could have thought of a good reason, but couldn't and conceded with a nod.
"Score One!" Coke thought triumphantly, then turned to Frederick. "Why are you staying here, sir? And Miss Possible?"
Frederick shook his head. "Not I, Agent Coke, my nephew is the one staying here, Doctor Director and I will probably not be getting much sleep tonight, I'm afraid."
"Oho! Do I detect a little nepotism on the part of the Great Frederick Lipsky?" Coke barely restrained a sly grin as he responded, "I see, so your nephew is also a member of Global Justice? Uh..what? WHAT'S SO DAMNED FUNNY?!"
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Bernadette Barr sat on the side of one of her bed for the night, glaring at her own luggage. Her eyes were drooping, she didn't have the energy to unpack, shower, which Shego was doing, or maybe even undress!
Today had been the day off for Mr. North's chef, so dinner had been ordered in from three different places, and not even Treyvan Coke could find a complaint! Or probably voice one, Bernie mused, since he had eaten heartily.
But at the moment Bernie wished Timothy North didn't run a decaffeinated household. With a loud grumble she undid her jeans and managed to stand up long enough to get them partially down her legs, then plopped back down on the bed. She managed to remove her prosthesis and jeans, but ran out of steam while pulling her top off. It hung up somehow and after a moment's struggle she just quit and fell back on the bed, groaning with her head still inside it.
She could faintly hear Kim and Brenda talking out in the common room, then suddenly realized she couldn't hear the shower anymore, and the idea of Shego seeing her in her current state suddenly energized her! Too late.
"Well, that's a fine picture! In fact, maybe I should take one..." Shego cut off abruptly as Bernie tugged her top free and glared at her, before blinking at the thief's bemused expression. She noticed Shego almost absently tightening the towel she wore around her.
Which was probably fortunate because she next flung her arms upwards. "Isn't that how we ended up here in the first place!" Her tone wasn't loud, but was clearly exasperated. Then Shego shook her head and circled around towards her own bed, the farthest from the bathroom.
Bernie shook her head. "Yep, that's how!" Her head dropped back on the pillows with a moan. "God, I feel so wrung out! I'm not going to say I've never been this tired, because I have, but not recently! I'm too tired to even unpack, which is ridiculous!"
"I hear ya...ah, why bother? We're not strangers, after all, and I don't think Kimmie will come in...Oh, she might want to talk to you..." Shego finished with a ferocious yawn that seemed to startle even her.
Bernie shook her head. "No, I could tell she was concerned with how tired I was, she won't bother us tonight."
"Well, then." Bernie turned just in time to prevent Shego's bunched up towel from hitting her in the face. "Toss that back in the bathroom, will ya?" By that time Bernie was already glaring at her, but Shego was already under the covers and facing away from her.
She frowned, tempted to throw the towel back, but couldn't. She wanted to take it back in the bathroom and hang it up properly, but that would involve getting her prosthesis back in place...and her other dirty clothes were still...she just wadded the towel up and tossed it in the bathroom, finished disrobing herself, and slid under the covers after extinguishing the light.
And was out like the light before a minute had passed.
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World Wide Evil Empire Agent Iota 4, a stocky individual about five seven, strolled into the the 'Security and Defense Suite' of Frau Hildegarde Demenz-Director's temporary headquarters and regarded Agent Zeta 12, who he was about to relieve, in disbelief. "What are you watching that for!"
The sudden outburst caused Zeta 12 to almost fall out of his seat. 'That' was a video of a number a young ladies little or no swimwear cavorting in a pool. "You're supposed to be scanning the area for threats, not watching videos!" Iota 4 continued.
"That IS in this neighborhood!" Zeta 12 retorted, "Jimmy Blamhammer's place, two doors away! Which by local standards is a fair distance, but still in 'this' area!"
"And what kind of threat do you thinks those girl...Is that Trish Delacocco? I didn't...never mind that! How long have you been focusing on that 'non' threat, hmmm?"
"Where?" How popped out of Zeta 12's mouth before Iota 4 had finished speaking, as he focused completely on the video image searching for the actress named then his commonsense arranged for a chill to go down his spine, and his head snapped around. "Only spotted it a couple of minutes before you came in, I hon-I swear!"
Iota 4 rolled his eyes and let it drop. Even without the threat of sending a fellow agent 'down the tube' he was still reluctant to cause trouble for one. Turnabout being fair play, after all. "All right, forget it! Anything at all happen out of the ordinary during your watch? Anything on a Parlington Estate, for instance?" "Man, we could make a killing if we could clean out that place!"
"Nah, just the kid playing Peeping Tom. Was looking at something around the pool of the North Estate, then got scared somehow and stayed away from the wall the rest of the day. Naturally I couldn't see what he was perving on, since 'Almighty WWEE' can't get a 'Fly-on-the-wall' cam in their due to some 'unknown' interference!" He had risen from his chair, massaging his lower back as he did so while speaking.
"Too many 'Air Quotes', guy!" Iota 4 admonished him. "Besides, old man North doesn't have exciting visitors these days, just some old time actors like him, no point wasting time watching there!" Then he frowned. "Really wish I knew where he got the glass for his windows, can't get any video image through them. Hey!" He held up the wate basket from under the table, "Dump that and bring it back, right?"
"Yeah, whatever!" Zeta 12 yawned mightily as he took the basket and left the room.
Iota 4 settled in, but decided to wait until after Zeta 12 had returned and departed again before checking the feed from the Blamhammer Estate. He switched rapidly through all the others as he heard Frau Hildy's voice raised in the distance, "Those snacks are totally inappropriate for someone on monitor duty! They have been medically proven to reduce alertness! Look online for information regarding much more beneficial foods to snack on!"
Iota 4 winced. It looked as if it might be some time before Zeta 12 returned! He sighed and switched the images, skipping over the North Estate to reach the Parlington Estate. "There's where MY interest lies!"
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Apologizing once again for long delay in posting. Should really include it on my default page I always start with!
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