#media.warning.kidnapped

Villain’s henchmen had informed them that the kid was being a little difficult and that assistance was required.

Villain sighed as they walked over to the bedroom where they’d stationed...Marcus? Michael? No, it was Micah. They couldn’t blame him for being a little rowdy—after all, they’d literally just kidnapped him from his family.

“What is going on—,” Villain cut off as they entered the room and nearly ran right into the kid.

Micah yelped in surprise before tripping over himself in an attempt to turn around to face his captor. He fell butt-first onto the carpet before scrambling to his feet, backing away from Villain.

Villain rolled their eyes and titled their head at the befuddled henchmen still the room, motioning them to get out. Once the door was shut behind them, Villain took a seat in one of the cushioned chairs by the bed and crossing their arms.

“Th-they wouldn’t let me keep the door opened,” Micah explained, talking so fast his words slurred together.

Villain raised a brow.

After a beat of silence, Micah said very quietly, “Can...can I?”

Villain blinked at the odd request. “So you can bolt out and run away? Absolutely not.”

“I promise I-I won’t.”

Villain eyed them suspiciously before getting up and slowly turning the doorknob, cracking the door open just a little.

Micah shifted themselves closer to it but stopped a safe distance away. Their loose body language already told Villain they had no intention to run.

“So...why am I here?” Micah asked.

“Money,” Villain said simply. “You’ve got a rich family, kid. Might as well go ahead and steal some.”

Micah perked up at that. “My parents’ money? Is that why you took me? How long am I going to be—,”

“Stop asking questions,” Villain snapped, then immediately regretted it as Micah recoiled in apparent fear. They cleared their throat. “You’re being held for ransom for the weekend.”

“Oh. Okay.”

Just okay? Villain raised a brow at the obscurity of Micah’s answer before walking around him to grab a set of clean clothes for him. “Do you—,”

“Could...could you not stand behind me?” Micah interrupted, voice low.

Villain frowned in annoyance as they glanced over their shoulder. “Are you all right?”

“Yeah! Y-yeah I’m okay I just...” Micah swallowed uneasily. “Sorry I don’t...uh...”

Villain rolled their eyes. “Forget it. Why don’t you get dressed and meet me downstairs in a few minutes for lunch?” They tossed Micah the black shirt and grey sweatpants they’d picked out, who caught them and nodded.

“Second door to the left of the hallway. See you there.” Villain then slipped out of the room, making sure to keep the door open to Micah’s liking.

..

Micah, surprisingly, didn’t attempt a single escape throughout his stay with Villain. If anything, the kid seemed pretty at ease.

Villain, through careful observation learned that Micah hated corridors, refused to close his door under any circumstances, and for some odd reason avoided any talk about his family. Either case, Villain did their best to be hospitable and treated Micah with the utmost kindness they could muster.

Damn them and their soft heart.

The ransom of one million dollars was paid late afternoon of Sunday.

Villain received the money in the mail and counted it before letting Micah know he was being released.

“Already?” The kid almost looked disappointed to go.

Villain nodded, trying to not show their own disappointment. “C’mon now.”

Micah’s parents were waiting in an alleyway a couple of blocks away from Villain’s headquarters. The couple looked unbelievably pissed and immediately reached for their child once they saw him.

Villain tilted their head as Micah shied away for a second, as if he unsure if he wanted to take his mother’s hand.

“Micah,” his mom barked harshly. “I’m late for my meeting. Let’s go.”

Micah glanced back at Villain once.

That was all it took for Villain to see the pleading in his eyes.

It took them the half mile walk back to headquarters and a long shower for them to realize just exactly what Micah was begging for. The open door. The no-person-behind him policy. The fear of open corridors.

Oh fucking hell.

Villain was back out the door two hours later, but this time, they had a knife on them.

.

“I’m...not telling you...anything.”

Villain smirked and grabbed Hero’s chin to yank them close, pulling them taut against the chains holding their arms to either side of them. 

“So confident.” Villain brushed a thumb over their bloodied cheek, expression deceptively soft. “Perhaps I haven’t been pushing you hard enough.”

“It’s been five days since you got me and you’re just now realizing that?” Hero rasped, trying to salvage some of their bravado underneath the pulsing fear and pain in their veins.

Villain let go of their face to let them sag in the chains and walked to the back to grab a new torture tool. “Well, you assassins typically aren’t the strongest type from my experience, but it looks like the guild finally decided to hire someone good enough to withstand my work.”

Hero swallowed and ducked their head as Villain sauntered back over and held up a wicked-looking knife with a curved blade. 

“I’ll ask again, where are the headquarters located?” They walked behind Hero. “What is your leader’s name?” The cold bite of the knife pressed in between Hero’s shoulder blades. “And finally, what are the plans to take down my team?”

Hero clenched their jaw and said nothing, heart pounding traitorously in their chest.

The first cut was fast and shallow--supposed to be tolerable, but then came a horrible, horrible burning sensation that traveled through their shoulders and up their arms, a literal fire under their skin. They couldn’t help the cry of pain that hissed through their teeth.

Knives weren’t supposed to do that.

“Wh-what--?”

“Poison. Engineered by one of my top lab scientists,” Villain explained. “Pretty painful, huh?”

Hero could barely shake their head before Villain made another swipe, this time on a barely healed cut from a few days ago.

It was pure, fiery agony from that point on.

Hero held on as long as they could, forcing screams back down their throat, telling themselves they could withstand the pain, the blaze of the caustic poison running through their blood and over their body. But their resistance didn’t last.

“O-okay!” Hero blurted, squeezing their eyes shut. “S-stop...hngg...please, I’ll t-tell you what you want...what you want to k-know.”

Villain walked in front of them, a smile on their face. “Oh darling, that’s all I needed to hear.” They pulled a small syringe from their pocket and stuck the needle into a vein in Hero’s neck before pressing down on the plunger.

The flame went out.

Hero gasped in relief, gulping lungfuls of cold air, sweat running down their face and soaking their torn shirt. Two cuts. That was all it had taken from Villain to get them to talk. A burn of shame almost akin to the poison colored their cheeks red.

“I didn’t think it’d be that easy, to be honest.” Villain tilted their head, that knife still in their palm. “Stamina running low?”

Hero snarled, tears pricking their eyes. “It’s been almost a whole fucking week, Villain.”

“Precisely why it was the perfect time for me to use this beauty. Probably wouldn’t have worked three days ago.” Villain put the silver blade down on a nearby desk. “Guards!”

Hero blinked, snapping their head up at the order from Villain, who only raised a brow at them. Two henchmen came into the room and unhooked Hero from their restraints, hands on either arm to keep them steady.

“Take them back to their cell and give them some water and food,” Villain said, watching Hero with a refined interest at the way they had slumped against the guards, barely able to keep themselves up from exhaustion, or pain.

“I’ll ask you tomorrow for the information that I need,” Villain clarified to Hero, stepping closer and carding a hand through their hair. “And you’ll give it to me. Just like you promised.”

Just before Hero was led out of the room, the assassin twisted in the guards’ grip and managed a small but effective grin. 

“I never promised anything, Villain.”

.

Villain was dragged into a large cell by the group of heroes, thrashing as their wrists were locked above their head into cuffs.

“Let go of me!” Villain snarled, yanking at the restraints futilely.Their struggles were instantly hindered by a swift kick to the stomach and they doubled over, coughing.

Superhero made their way to the front of the band, chin infuriatingly high and their expression spiteful. “You know the drill,” they said to Villain as they sucked in a ragged breath. “We can either do this the easy way or the hard way.”

Villain grunted, hands twisting in the cuffs. “I told you, I didn’t do it. The bomb was—,”

Superhero slammed their knee into Villain’s ribs before grabbing their chin roughly. “You are always the source of trouble around here. Don’t think you can get away with lying to me or anyone else here,” they spat. They shoved Villain away and walked to the back of the room to grab something.

“I’m...” they wheezed, “I’m not lying. I swear...” They abruptly cut off as Superhero walked back with a horrid looking whip in their hands, the tip glistening with something sharp.

“No, nononono!” Villain shouted, jerking against the shackles again. “No!! I-I’m not lying!! I didn’t do it! I didn’t set off the bomb!!”

Superhero walked behind them and cut their shirt off, exposing their back. “Then who would’ve done it, Villain?” The whip uncoiled, hitting the ground with a loud slap.

“I-I don’t know! Supervillain? Rival? It wasn’t m-me, I swear!” Villain thrashed, panting hard.

“Do you have any proof?” Superhero’s voice was much too gentle for the pain they were about to bring to Villain.

The captive swallowed, falling still for a minute. Then they whipped their head around to lock on the familiar eyes of Hero, who was standing near the back of the group. “Hero, Hero please. You have to believe me. I didn’t do it,” they rasped. “Please.”

The room fell silent. Hero stepped forward after a minute and looked up.

The disappointment was all too clear to see in their usually tender gaze.

“I’m sorry, Villain,” Hero said softly, then turned to Superhero and nodded. “Whip them.”

“No—!”

Villain’s outcry soon became a plea for mercy.

.

.

part one

It had been a few days since their whipping, but Villain was stil writhing in pain at every little movement.

Their back was etched with deep, jagged cuts, some of which were still bleeding through the poor bandaging job that had been performed on them after they passed out.

They could still feel the stinging lash of the leather, immediately followed by the scrape of the metal tip dragging through their skin, tearing up their flesh—

I didn’t do it!

Villain gagged and doubled over, nearly crying out at the sheer agony the movement brought them. They took a deep breath, another, then straightened back into their original sitting position once the urge to vomit had passed.

The lock on the door clicked.

They stiffened, eyes darting towards the entrance to their cell—waiting, watching to see who would be there.

The door swung open and the room was bathed in light, momentarily blinding them. They blinked several times and squinted, just making out the face of...

Hero.

Villain’s lip curled instantly and they snarled. Loudly.

Hero walked into to the cell and closed the door behind them. After a long moment, they finally said, “Villain.”

“Get the fuck out of here,” Villain seethed, hot and angry.

Hero didn’t budge.

Villain stifled a groan as they got to their feet, leaning heavily on the wall for support. “If you came here to pity me—,”

“You didn’t do it, did you.”

Villain blinked, a stunned silence ensuing for a moment. “No,” they snapped. “I said that probably four thousand times back upstairs, and no one believed me.” They paused. “Not even you.”

Hero visibly flinched.

“You were supposed to be my friend, Hero.”

Hero took a breath. “I know, Villain.” They closed their eyes. “I’m sorry.”

Villain felt the injuries on their back shift and they gritted their teeth. “Sorry,” they sneered. “Sorry is not enough to mend these wounds.”

Hero reached into their pocket and tossed them something. “Then maybe this is.” Their voice was bitter. “We don’t have to be friends anymore, Villain. But I just want you to know, I believe you, and I am truly, really sorry.”

They left.

Villain grabbed whatever Hero had thrown them, realizing that it was a key. They laughed in disbelief before unlocking their chains and then the door.

Hero had just made the biggest mistake of their sorry little life.

.

Hero had only heard the horrid stories of what Villain’s prisoners had to endure in captivity. Or what they could endure, before they broke. Or died.

They never thought they’d become one to experience it.

They sat in the small cell they’d been tossed into a day or so ago, back against the stone wall, wrists in tight shackles that left deep red marks against their skin. Tear marks from their quiet sobs streaked their cheeks, brushing off grime and dirt from their recent scuffle with Villain.

It had been a day or so since they were caught, but they were already flinching at every noise outside their door, cowering at the distant screams down the hallway, shuddering at Villain’s unintelligible murmurs through the walls. They couldn’t block it out, couldn’t ignore it. They curled in on themselves, shivering as they buried their hands in their hair.

A few hours later, the sound of footsteps outside their doorway ensued a nauseating wave of sheer panic.

Please not me. Not today. Please—

All hope drained wholly from their soul when the squeak of rusty hinges filled their ears and the room was suddenly bathed in light.

Hero whimpered, pressing themselves into the corner, too afraid to look up and see Villain’s face. Tears were already spilling from their eyes and their breathing was ragged, choppy. They were going to die here in this hellhole. Villain was going to kill them. They weren’t going to make it back—

“What a sorry sight you are,” Villain’s smooth voice broke through their haze of terror. “The brave Hero reduced to a trembling little ball of patheticness.” They walked closer and fit a cool hand on Hero’s chin and tilted their head up, who in turn flinched so hard at the unexpected touch they nearly whacked their head against the wall.

Villain laughed in disbelief. “Aw, what’s wrong? Scared of me?” They used their free hand to reach into their pocket and bring out a small knife, dangling it in front of Hero mockingly. “Scared of this thing?”

Hero sobbed, unable to form words. They were shivering violently, eyes wide and tearful as they stared up at the face that haunted their dreams.

“Aww.” Villain clicked their tongue, grinning. “How sweet. Too terrified to even talk to me.” They brushed a thumb over their cheek. “That’s all right, dear. After all, screams are so much more lovely than words.”

All Hero could whisper was “Please,” before Villain began to work.

.

.

part one

Villain didn’t have to do much before Hero broke.

It hurt. It hurt too much. The cuts were long, methodical—settling on as much exposed skin as possible. Their mouth only moved to loose a sob of utter terror or to scream at another burning slice of Villain’s blade. They couldn’t form the words that they needed in order to tell—no, to beg Villain to stop.

After another simple slash across Hero’s collarbone and a hoarse cry of pain, Villain finally sheathed their knife and smiled lazily. “You seem like you’ve had enough, darling.”

Hero only nodded, all tears and hiccuping breaths as blood slid down their body and limbs.

Villain cupped Hero’s face in their hands, using their thumbs to brush away their tears. Hero sucked in a sharp breath, trembling so hard they could swear they their bones rattled along with them.

“Why don’t you go ahead and tell me what I want to know then, hm?”

It took them a few minutes to stop shivering and crying so that they could work up the courage to talk, but Hero didn’t need to be asked twice.

Anything to stop the pain. Anything to make Villain leave. Even if it was at the expense of their friends. They could take care of themselves, couldn’t they? They weren’t stuck in a cell with Villain, getting tortured for information.

When they finished letting blurting the location of the Hero Headquarters, all the passcodes, traps to watch out for, and the names of each member on the team, Villain promptly stood up with a satisfied expression, sliding their hands into their pockets.

“I wonder, just how cowardly can someone like you get?” they said, the mocking in their tone all too clear.

Hero winced, eyes shuttering.

“You just betrayed each and every person that could’ve ever cared about you, all because you couldn’t handle a little fear.” Villain sneered. “The brave Hero who can’t handle a little fear.”

Hero absentmindedly touched a cut on their arm, fingers becoming sticky with their own blood.

The blood they shed, all for nothing. All because they were a coward. Completely pathetic.

When Villain walked out of their cell to put Hero’s spilled information to use, Hero shattered.