#amyy06

"You see..." The hero suddenly looked... nervous? Villain shook their head. Impossible. But the way their enemy smiled, looked away, clapped their hands together just to unclasp them a moment later seemed... Well, like they were nervous.

"See what."

"See... I didn't really have where to go..." They put on an apologetic smile. "So I temporarily followed you, so I had something to do."

The criminal still couldn't get over the fact that they hadn't even noticed being followed. They just stood, in their doorway, pushing a single shoe away with their foot so it wasn't in the way.

"But now..?"

"I'd like to stay," the hero said. "Only for a little while."

"And in return I get..?" The villain tilted their head. They would let the hero into their messy home, but they were not doing it without getting anything in return.

"Pardon?"

"What do I get out of it?"

The heros smile dropped and their brows furrowed. Of course, they had thought about what the villain could be given in return, they weren't dumb. Money, a day where the hero let them get away with a crime (as if they weren't doing it already).

But seeing villain now, in the comfort of their home sparked someone in them. They grinned. "What would you like?"

Now it was villains turn to stay silent. What did they want? They didn't know, but they couldn't keep standing in the doorway like this. They could think of something later.

"I'm... Not sure yet, but I definitely want something in return! Now, get in before one of my neighbors sees you."

"Thank you," the hero smiled as they politely made their way into villains messy apartment.

Footsteps, then barking, not far away. The Villain's head turned to the noise. Somewhere in the darkness a pair of shiny orbs appeared. As the steps got louder, the orbs grew.

They weren't ready to fight. They couldn’t fight. They needed to leave, to get away, to-

“Villain?”

Oh no, no no no no no-

The orbs, green and shiny, were right in front of them now. Something touched their hand, rough, cold and damp. Villain jumped, but something heavy and warm landed on their shoulder, accompanied by heros familiar voice. “Hey, Villain, it's alright. You hear? Calm down, no need to panic. It’s just me. I’m not here to fight.”

Villain shook their head, turning away from the piercing green things. They wanted to say something, but all that came out was a slightly breathless whimper.

“Hey, Villain,” hero tried again, and the warmth from their shoulder touched their cheek. Heros hands were rough, but soft at the same time. “Look at me.”

“I can’t,” they squeaked. “I- I can’t.”

“You can’t?”

“No.” It was quiet. Both Villains answer and the forest around them. No birds were chirping. It had probably gotten dark by now.

After another beat of silence, the warmth disappeared. “Can you stand?”

“No.”

“Are you hurt?” Hero’s voice was just as warm as the hand they put on the villain's back.

Villain leaned back into the warmth, head hanging low as they whispered: “I don’t know.”

Something clinked behind them, and villain turned their head to see the hero do something behind the bed.

They looked back into the long corridor, pushing their cheeks against the cold bars, but pulling away a second later. Who knew what these bars had gone through. By the look of the cell they weren’t the first ones here.

“Everything clear?,” hero asked from behind them. They pushed the bed aside, pulling the plate in front of the vent and resting it against the wall. Of course there was a grit. Hero gripped their half broken knife harder.

Villain rubbed their sleeve over their cheek. “Yep.”

“Good. Keep looking.”

After a few seconds of almost silence villain could make out something like footsteps in the distance. It was faint, but it was there. “Someone’s coming.”

“Come here and help!,” hero whispered as they put the plate back on the vent and went on to lift the bed. Villain helped push it back against the wall as quietly as possible.

The footsteps stopped and the sound of keys twisting in a rusted lock filled the silence.

“Are they still there?,” hero asked, quiet enough that only villain with their enhanced hearing could understand.

“Yeah.”

Some clinking, then a barely audible “Get out!” along with the shuffling of clothing and rattling of chains. Then two pairs of steps started back down the hall, getting quieter and quieter.

“They’re gone,” villain whispered. “And now?”

Hero stepped back and shifted the bed back, pulling the plate away and screwing out the last screw of the grit. Carefully, they put the grit on the other side and made some space. “Get through.”

Villain got down on their knees and slipped through, wondering for a second how Hero would squeeze through the hole with their massive frame, but the crime fighter seemed to barely have any problems with that. Villain waited as they pulled the bed back against the wall and put the plate up as best as possible.

The air smelled horrible. The sewers were uncomfortably warm. Villain looked around, trying their best to not look around the water. Then, they turned their gaze to hero.

“How-“

“I broke out of prison once. Don’t ask.” Hero started walking down the sewers as if it was the most normal thing to do. “Come on, let’s get out of here. Unless you wanna get caught?”