Shego Wobakoff

         truth be told, shego was a little surprised by the stranger’s intentions. she hadn’t expected an actual purpose, maybe a lack of other free tables or the supposed kindness of someone trying to fill another’s lack of company but a survey?     “ grimm’s fairy tales, “     she responded in the blink of an eye, not even having to think about it,    “ the goose girl, to be exact. it’s probably been– “    she paused, eyes dirfting off as she calculated,   “ –about three months ago? plus / minus a week or two. “    it was one of the few things she didn’t feel the need to play close attention to; the last remainders of her work with children nowadays who she had refused to let go off.    “ why? what’s the survey for? “

          mocking was written onto every prominent feature of her face and laced into all the subtleties, managing even to change the blink of her eyes into one which was taunting as her gaze moved back to flynn. was this supposed to be the lion approaching his prey? the infinite serenity of the king of rome pines’s jungle having accepted a challenge he knew he would win? a smirk began to grow on her lips at the sheer ludicrousness.     “ it seems more like you don’t believe in mine, “    she replied,    “ if you think all it takes is a smile and a bat of your eyes. “     she had no doubt others fell for his charm; attention deprived individuals perhaps with a hint of too little confidence who wanted to believe he had found greater interests in them than the figurative dollar sign they wore in a chic rose-golden tone around their neck that day. some people just looked money.    “ i won’t bore you with details, “    her shoulders lifted into a shrug, having no intention to hold a long villainous monologue to explain her plans and find them being crossed by the end of it. the fact that he was actually audacious enough to lean down to her and attempt his trickery on her far more amusing anyway. looking him straight in the eyes, her expression gave no sign of anything; unimpressed by him even when she found herself reaching for ear to take the truthfully expensive studs out of them to let them fall into his waiting hand.    “ that’s not the challenge, “     she pointed out, allowing the arrogance of smart-assery to cover her own dumbfoundedness —– why had she just done that? could it be an actual trick of mindgame?     “ but sure, take them !!  if you use them wisely, they can pay your bail out of here. “

         if karma ever came for her, she would undoubtedly not live to see the end of it with all the dirty deeds shego had done in her life —– but the luck seemed to be on her side, still and shamelessly so, as he voiced his perception. at least, it came across right rather than a certain sense of recklessness leading her steps. her head fell into a gentle shake, confirming she was not scared, although she had a feeling she did not need to. he didn’t sound like he doubted it. the question of true evil surprised her, at least a little bit, not quite having expected him to be so bold considering how wary he had been, but it would be a lie to say she didn’t like it.     “ i used to work with children who came from broken homes, “    she explained, not even lying as she did. although, it wasn’t the direction she had ended up in, it was a path she had once travelled.    “ our goal always was to get them out, to give them a chance of salvation and a fresh start with caretakers who actually cared for them. that? to witness what the human race is capable of, to children no less who are utterly defenceless and impressionable. i’ve looked many of their parents in the eyes, that’s how i know. the look in your eyes doesn’t begin to match theirs. “     she shrugged.    “ whatever the reason was which made you break that bench, it’s not evil. “

            she had been watching sceptically to say the very least, eyes narrowed in clear judgment at the guy who failed and failed again at a task as simple as throwing a ring around a bottleneck.     “ yeah, “    shego scoffed,    “ that is probably because it isn’t that hard. “    her hand reached out, snapping her fingers impatiently to tell the person who ran the booth she wanted a ring as well. if anyone ever asked her, she would speak of natural talent or perhaps your own severe lack of any sort of coordination. in reality, it must’ve been the infinite competition with her brothers which had had her practice even the dumbest of tricks to win each fight; no matter how meaningless.    “ you hold, “    the ring tugged between middle and pointing finger, she aligned it with one of the bottles.     “ you aim and you throw. “    letting go with one quick flick of her wrist, the small ring was dangling around the bottle just a moment later.     “ see? ” 

          shego’s mind was trying to work a mile a minute in an attempt to figure out what the perfect answer was to the question being thrown at her. there had always been rumours and stereotypes when it came to pastoral city, and she would be surprised to find if they didn’t happen to have just as many about rome pines. either option seemed less than ideal; to tell the truth or to lie.    “ born and... grown up here, “    she explained, shoulders lifting into the indication of a shrug as if it did not say much. her gaze locked with his, trying to figure out what was going on in his mind and whether she could find a way inside of it.     " i don’t think they have to, “     she replied sincerely; like she rarely had the intention to be, but it was the truth. she would stake her life on it —– and in a way, she had, hadn’t she?      “ i think if you wanted to hurt anyone, you would not have aimed for the bench, and if you were only afraid of not getting away with it– “     it was a bold move, his reaction not something shego could quite calculate considering even the punch at the bench must’ve been a lack of impulse control, but the quickest way to get someone’s trust was, metaphorically or literally spoken, to take a bullet for them. walking further into the alley, shego deliberately crossed the line of sight where everyone could’ve easily seen her just walking by the entrance of the alleyway and came closer to chris instead.     “  –you would do it now. “     her voice rose ever so slightly at the end; almost a question or an invitation even to apply the same strength to her if that’s who he was.     “ i know true evil, but i don’t see it in you. “

          there was a discussion waiting to be held behind his choice of words —– what was evil made of? a single simple ingredient to split the world in black or white or were there, truly, enough shades of it to speak of one being worse than the other? was a thief just a thief or were they to be defined by the things they stole? her head turned to flynn, watching him as she pondered his claim, except not the one where he’d described her to be worse than him – she was happy to accept that, thrilled even, to have such blissfully bad reputation – but the last sentence. it was an interesting idea, to say the least.    “ do you reckon you could? ”    she asked, mischief glinting in her eyes,    “ steal something from me? “    although their encounters were mainly behind bars, shego would – despite all mocking and the superior smiles – not dare to make the mistake of underestimating him. clearly she was suspected of crime just as many a time. the fact that they always got out spoke much louder about each of their skills. their slates were undoubtedly not the cleanest, but being able to appear as such was the most vital of abilities when it came to stealth. she hummed, neither agreeing nor disagreeing whether it was her brain behind it all or someone else’s. in reality it was probably both; her brain behind someone else who gave her orders she was happy to fulfill; for now.    “ i like the scale you’re thinking in, “    she admitted. the whole cosmos seemed just large enough for her ambition.    “ but not quite. if i was interested in anything– “    her gaze flickered to the window behind where one could see officers sitting at tables, working their boring desk jobs. she knew better than to admit to anything, plus it made way more fun to balance along the fine lines.     " –i couldn’t care less about the stars in the sky, outer life... i’d be interested in satellites. “    the only thing which could actually be useful even from down here.

           shego’s eyebrows furrowed into a look of strong scepticism; letting it be known, loud and clear despite all silence, that she was not amused by any of it.     “ think perspectives, “    she replied. it might’ve not been a fist per se, but in relation to the size of a fish it only seemed appropriate – not to mention more satisfying –  to smack her whole fist against the  glass cage she had threatened to trap the other in.     “ you would know? “    the wording had not gone missing on her and a silent sigh pushed past her lips,    “ ugh, don’t tell me that’s your ‘ thing ‘. “ 

        a smile stretched across shego’s lips at the mere simplicity of tina’s question which yet carried so much weight when you were friends with her. it wasn’t always the smartest option to know what she was up to; it had already been like that when they were young. although, back then it had been measured on a different scale, she supposed.     “ do you remember how i wanted to become the students representative in high school? “    not because she had had an extraordinary care for her peers or the idea to meet with the school’s council had sounded like so much fune, but because she had realised it was the most powerful position a student could find themself in and she had wanted to be just that. no matter the cost.    “ and they wouldn’t even allow me to be nominated because i was– “    her hands lifted to add the matching quotation marks into the air.     “ –too young. it’s a little bit like that. “    not quite her body refusing, but she had been held back by it still and now it was somewhat familiar. she was still missing something.    “ —– it’s not half bad to have to wait, though. “     in school, she had taken the chance to find herself some voters. now, there was something else.     “ with the new magic in our town? i think there are enough new things to unpack, for now. “

         her gaze lifted, flickering up from her coffee in an instance at the sound of a voice. she had never considered herself as someone who made an approachable appearance. she was too irritated; even just by the presence of air around her. for someone to step willingly into that? shego’s head tilted ever so slightly to the side and he nodded to the seat opposite from her.    “ sit. “     her hands wrapped around her coffee mug, taking a long sip of the steaming liquid.      “ what do you want? “

         the smile which flickered just in the corners of her lips could only be described as one of pure delight. although, it was far from difficult to stand out with one’s happiness in an office where tragedies and crimes involving children passed the workers’ desks on the daily, the mere fact that she did always seemed to bring even more phonily feigned joy to shego’s features. perhaps it was the faces she recognised —– former fellow students who took the righteous turn, realising too late that it was but the wrong one, while she had done the exact opposite. walking past the many offices, she finally reached the one of the person she had wanted to see – not pleased, but if her presence was any indication certainly not surprised to see him still working either – and she carefully pushed the metal cap of her boot against the door to swing it open with just a hint of dramatic effect.    “ i’ve been thinking, “     she spoke the words like a statement; a decision which had already been made,    “ it’s about time you’re spending some time with adults, don’t you agree? “      pushing herself away from the door frame, she moved to let herself fall into the chair opposite from jules.    “ how about some drinks? “     she offered as leaned her head ever so slightly to, obviously and shamelessly, peak at the papers in front of him.    “ who’s that? a magical case? “    and the glint in her eyes flared ever so slightly at the possibilities.. 

           a glimmer of exaltation edged in the corner of her smile; all too easy to be confused with a breath of relief as the stranger seemed almost stunned by her question. maybe no one had ever cared to ask about him before – it did not take a degree to understand the impact of constant neglect could have on someone, and even if it did she had one – but the way he looked at his hand left her to draw another conclusion: he was not used to getting hurt. shego had experienced many things in her life; drakken himself always trying to go beyond the unimaginable, but this was truly incredible.      “ you’re probably right, “    she admitted, shoulders rising into a casual shrug,    “ it’s rome pines; likely made by a fraud of some kind. “     if it was the explanation he was happiest with, she was fine to accept it as such as well —– for now.    “ you’re not from here, “     it wasn’t a question, as much as it was a statement; a realisation which wasn’t unordinary to have after the presentation of powers she’d just witnessed.      “ i’m shego, “      and she allowed her lips to stretch into the smile which had been simmering this whole time,     “ it’s no excuse for the others – the people onn the street out there – but they’re afraid. “     not of him, per se, but of what he was capable of and as far as shego was concerned it would be rightfully so. not that she could tell him that.      “ of change, of new people in our same old town... of constructive criticism regarding our benches. “ 

          the sound of his begging was music to her ears; an exquisite concatenation of tones playing together so harmonically, that her smile only managed widen; growing sharper in the edges, at the genuine glee she was feeling. he was being dramatic, of course, and shego would barely have been surprised to find the police man’s name was but yet another impromptu invention of creative freedom – truth be told, she had no idea. it would’ve meant having to waste more than just a second of her breath on him – but she knew as well there was an ounce, or a ton, of truth to each theatrical stunt .    “ and a break from what is that? “    she asked, feigned curiosity ringing in her voice as her eyebrows rose in accordance with it,     “ trying to get people’s pocket change? steal an elderly woman’s purse, maybe? “     or the failing attempt to get hold of an apple, she supposed. it was a lie, it had to be. even in all mockery she would not dream to have expectation quite as low as he was setting them out to be —– she certainly did not mind to take it for granted either.     “ you are just pure evil aren’t you? you’re but one step away from stealing someone’s floss and you know what they say: there’s no turning back after that. “     as the question was flipped back to her, one of her hands lifting, turning it in one swift movement to show of both sides.    “ i wash my hands clean of their accusations. i don’t know either why they keep thinking i’m involved in someone else’s dirt. “    she shrugged and in the same uninterested manner, her attention was drawn to one of her pitch black nails. how much she would give for a nail file right now.     “ i believe someone stole something from the observatory..? a telescope or something? maybe the rifast eight hundred / three thousand and fourty cgc– “    her head turned to look at flynn,    “ –but that’s just my wild guess. “ 

             “ argh !! “     the frustration was audible in shego’s voice as she ripped the fencing headgear off of her, throwing it with the same aggravation across the room. she wasn’t bad at fencing – in fact, she had always had a talent when it came to fights and the different techniques which came with all varities of it – but she wasn’t good enough yet, if you asked her. the arc of the trainee becoming the trainer still felt too far from completed.    “ what is it?! “    she demanded, arms coming to cross in front of her chest so the épée was sticking out, only missing the red flag to depict her anger. it often reached a point like that for her; the fire inside she liked to refer to as ‘ passion ‘  spreading, quickly and instantly, with the flick of a switch or so it seemed, into hellfire.    “ there’s got to be some secret strategy to why you always seem to win !! “      in truth, she was probably exaggerating. she had won a couple of times. of course, shego had. if not she’d likely have set something on fire by now —– and while pastoral city certainly had burned to the ground, there was – for the record – no correlation there.     

             handcuffs snapped tightly around her wrists were almost more of an accessory at this point in shego’s life, worn with a casualness only the habit could cause. she had long stopped counting how many times she had been arrested in her life. what mattered most was that she always got out, one way or another. a certain sense of tediousness to her step – when would they learn it made no sense to lock her up? – she strolled through the police department, the officer who’d picked her up following behind to bring her to one of their temporary cells. it wasn’t until she noticed a familiar face already behind bars himself that her fell out of its leisureliness and into her usual strut instead.    “ you know, considering how often we are visiting, one would think they’d allow us to spice up these cells a little bit, “    she said with a smile, ending up being shoved rather than led into her cell for that remark, but without even the hint of sway in her smirk or way, it might as well had been planned.     “ though, i guess you’re always staying a little longer, so if that privilege was to go to anyone– “    her gaze flickered across flynn, nose scrunching in a mock of aversion,    “ –yeah, nevermind. maybe not the best idea. “    letting herself drop onto a bench, she immediately put her feet up as well, legs crossing at the heeled black boots.     “ —– so what are you in for this time, rider? “

           the aesthetic of any place as positively colourful as mccrea’s was always at least slightly tainted with shego’s presence. it was, blatantly and palpably, not  her kind of ‘ bar ' and if it had been her choice, certainly not the one she’d have picked. however, to find but a single moment of shared free time between tiana and her had become increasingly more difficult over the years, so this had to suffice.     “ you mean something you physically cannot do, altough you’d like to..? “    her head fell into a slow nod of understanding as she pondered the question.    “ i guess– “    piercing the nail of her pinky finger into the cherry they had added, quite literally, on top of her milkshake, she eyed the small globe for a short moment,    “ –there are a few things i have in mind which i can’t quite do, yet. but doesn’t mean things can’t change does it? “    and she popped the cherry into her mouth, smiling at tiana with the ever lingering hint of wickedness.

            some might say her regular visits to the pet shop were shego’s attempt to cleanse her karma, leaving donations with a good cause to feel less bad about the way she had obtained it — except, some people were wrong. for as long as she could remember, she had snuck inside the store, small hands barely able to reach the counter, to leave a few crunched up dollar bills for the animals she had always adored. she had only been lucky that in due time, she had for one eventually grown much taller than the cashier’s counter, and her paychecks had grown in size as well to leave more than just a child’s pocket change. she was on her way out when she noticed the other customer inside talk with a fish – which truth be told, she didn’t find that unusual – but more irritatingly tap the glass.     “ you know, if you’d like me to trap you into a glass cage and pound my fist against it to see whether it’s something you would like, you only have to say a word and i will find some time. “