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Kim slumped onto a bench at the mall, rubbing her sore feet. Her daughter slept in the stroller beside her, wrapped in a soft blanket. Kim sipped her coffee and enjoyed a rare moment of quiet.
Motherhood was exhausting. Nothing like heroics—but just as intense.
Life had changed so much. Ever since graduating from Harrington University as the top student, Kim had moved into a quieter, safer life.
After college, she’d run into Josh, her old high school crush. Reconnecting with him had been… easy, natural. Comfortable. A life that didn’t revolve around danger or villainy.
Ron had drifted away years ago. No fights. No drama. Life just pulled them apart. By the time she reconnected with Josh, Kim hadn’t swung into battle for years. She was done.
Finally.
The mall lights flickered. Once. Twice.
Kim frowned. “Oh, no. No, no, no.”
Static filled the overhead screens. Drakken’s blue face appeared everywhere.
“Attention, Middleton Mall shoppers! Fear not — well, panic a little! Evil is BACK!”
The crowd groaned. Kim pinched the bridge of her nose.
“You have got to be kidding me,” she muttered.
A platform dropped from the ceiling in a cloud of smoke. Drakken stepped forward, arms wide.
“This marks the triumphant return of the greatest rivalry of all time—”
A green blast slammed into the floor beside him.
“NO, IT DOES NOT.”
Shego landed next to him, glowing with barely contained fury.
“I told you I was DONE!” she shouted. “I had a faculty luncheon today! I am not doing this!”
Drakken waved dismissively. “Minor scheduling conflict!”
“I LEFT evil,” Shego shot back. “I have a job. I have meetings. I have a parking space with my name on it! And I am DONE. Do NOT drag me back into this nonsense!”
Kim stayed put, one hand on the stroller. Her daughter slept through the chaos.
Shego’s eyes landed on her. “…You.”
Kim raised her coffee. “Hey.”
“You better not be getting any ideas,” Shego warned.
“Relax,” Kim said. “I’m retired.”
Drakken spun. “RETIREMENT IS TEMPORARY!”
Before anyone could react, he slammed a hand down on a console. The machine behind him powered up, humming with energy.
“WAIT—” Shego shouted.
FLASH.
Kim blinked. Her balance felt off. Her feet didn’t hurt anymore.
She looked at her hands. Smaller.
“…Oh, you’ve got to be kidding me.”
Teenaged Kim stared back at her from a storefront reflection.
“Yes!” Drakken cheered. “Classic Kim Possible! No responsibilities! No distractions!”
Kim spun. “I HAVE A CHILD!”
“She’s fine,” Drakken said. “I didn’t rewind her.”
Kim checked the stroller. Relief hit… then anger.
Shego stalked toward Kim, eyes blazing.
“You know,” she said, “I quit evil. You quit heroing. We were both out. And HE dragged us back because he misses the ‘glory days.’”
“They were good days!” Drakken protested.
Kim cracked her neck. “Okay. We’re done here.”
Drakken scoffed. “You can’t just walk away!”
Kim moved. Fast. Flip over the railing. Kick to the console. Sparks flew. A falling beam snapped loose. Shego blasted it aside automatically. “…I hate that I still do that,” she muttered.
Kim ripped a glowing component from the machine.
FLASH.
The ache returned first. Kim inhaled sharply as her adult body returned. Feet immediately protesting.
“…Yep. Don’t miss that part.”
“My brilliant invention! Do you know how long it took to build it?!”
Shego glared at Drakken. “Longer than her maternity leave.”
Drakken slumped. “You were supposed to want this,” he muttered.
Kim adjusted the blanket around her daughter. “I don’t.”
Shego crossed her arms. “Seriously. Next time you think nostalgia is worth dragging people out of their lives… think again. If you ever pull something like that again? I am NOT coming alone.”
Mall security swarmed. Kim pushed the stroller toward the exit.
Outside, Ron jogged up. Older, unchanged.
“KP! Heard there was—whoa. Baby.”
Kim nodded. “Hey, Ron.”
He glanced between her, the stroller, and the chaos behind them. “…Wow.”
“Yeah.”
No tension. Just distance where years used to be.
“You look happy,” Ron said.
“I am.”
He smiled. “Good.”
They shared a brief nod. Ron headed back toward the mall. Kim kept walking, phone buzzing with a text from Josh. She didn’t look back.
Later, in the wrecked lair, sparks fell from the ceiling. Drakken poked at the ruined machine with a screwdriver.
“It was a solid concept,” he muttered. “Very nostalgic—”
A green blast vaporized the screwdriver.
He froze. Slowly turned.
Shego stood behind him, arms glowing.
“You dragged me out of a faculty luncheon. I had crab puffs. You said it’d be quick. Five minutes. And instead, you rewound her, forced me to relive a life I LEFT.
Do you even hear yourself? For your nostalgia trip! You want a hobby? Get a life! Knit! Take pottery! Start a podcast! DO SOMETHING besides dragging people back into your obsession with the past! And yes—I know lawyers now.”
Drakken gulped. “I… I thought it would feel the same.”
Shego’s glow dimmed. “It doesn’t. It feels sad.”
She fired one last blast into the machine. Sparks rained down.
Drakken stared at the wreckage. “…Evil knitting,” he muttered.
From outside— “DON’T.”
