#twkart

Cold, shivering and drenched to the bone- Monarch looked absolutely pitiful. The hero was leaning up against a wall for support, shaking legs hardly supporting their weight as the storm soaked them. One hand was clamped desperately around their bleeding shoulder, a useless attempt at stemming the flow of blood from the cut there.

This was one instance where the hero had been sent running from a fight. As their legs buckled, they realized they wouldn't even be able to make it back to base in this state. Injured shoulder, sprained ankle and a badly bruised torso- injuries were adding up faster than Monarch could deal with. No one was going to find them here in the factory district, not in the maze of alleys that they'd thrown themselves into to lose their pursuers.

Eyes stubbornly slipping shut, they were sure they imagined the soft splashing of someone approaching, until the rain above them suddenly stopped. An umbrella had been thrust out and over their head by the most unlikely of people.

"Having a rough time tonight, kleinen Monarchen?"

Danger; A super villain with some horrid powers, as well as the leader of a large gang. The Austrian didn't seem to mind getting drenched, despite the fancy clothing he tended to wear, and seemed downright pleased to see Monarch- though it was likely the pitiful state Monarch was in that was so entertaining to him.

Silence was the response the villain got, and he leaned closer to get a better look at the battered hero. Those injuries would need to be patched up, and they'd need somewhere dry to rest until the storm swept out of the city; unless Monarch was truly determined to die of hypothermia. "Looks like I'll have to take you back with me," Danger sighed, clearly not put out by Monarch's silence in the least as he closed the umbrella.

"Don't touch me," Monarch spat, bristling. It would've been more intimidating had they not been curled against a dilapidated wall while bleeding from the shoulder. Danger simply looked pleased at the comment, shoved the folded umbrella into his belt and abruptly scooped the hero off of the ground and into his arms. "I have a safe-house nearby, try not to struggle too much, kleinen Monarchen."

Naturally Monarch started to struggle immediately, albeit weakly in their injured and freezing state. There was no way they could justify being carried about by a villain, not even the mellow, sleepy-looking Danger. He was not someone Monarch wanted to be near in this state, not that they really had much of a choice. Struggling only tired them out that much faster, and it wasn't long before they went limp in the Austrian's arms.

Monarch was truly in bad shape, Danger noted once the hero had stopped squirming and allowed him to adjust his grip.  He could feel the smaller hero shaking in his arms from the cold, and exhaustion was steadily consuming them despite their valiant attempts to clutch onto consciousness.  Even that damnable blond cowlick was plastered to their forehead, making them look more like a drenched stray than a super hero.  

If only the press could see them now.

Twisting alleys eventually led them to a dead end with a thick wall of chipped bricks. A quick tap sent the fake wall swinging inward, allowing the two some shelter from the rain at last. The simple building was decorated in various shades of blue and grey, and was far more put together than the outer exterior would lead someone to believe.

The click of the door locking behind them was what roused Monarch into struggling once more, despite the futility of it all. While Danger was generally a fan of the hero's stubborn attitude, it was quickly becoming grating when he was simply trying to assist them. In retaliation they dumped Monarch out of their arms and onto the couch, deciding the bloodstains were worth it to see the surprised look on their face.

"I didn't ask for your help," Monarch grumbled once they had regained their senses, glaring weakly up at Danger. Their life wasn't at risk hopefully- they were currently the subject of a bet between Haunt and Danger, which meant that murder was likely not on the villains mind- not that the fact made them feel any more comfortable about suffering through Danger's company.

Any further complaints were quickly silenced by a towel, which was dropped onto Monarch's face. They tensed, clearly thinking that Danger was trying to pull something, only to have their hair roughly dried. He refused to let up until Monarch's cowlick was damp, but standing once more. The hero looked more like themselves once they had been dried off a little, though also a little lost.

Danger relished their unfamiliarity with the situation, not that they had any more experience helping heroes than Monarch had being helped by villains. He left again, only to return with an old set of clothing- a button up shirt and some boxers. There was no way the slender Monarch would fit into any of their pants, not unless they wanted to trip every step they took. The height difference between them was simply too great. "I'm going to dry off and grab the first aid kit, sitzen bleiben."

"I don't need your help," Monarch hissed, and Danger only laughed as he walked off. Unhappy with the fact that they truly did need his help, the hero glared at the small pile of dry clothing, trying to take their frustrations out on those instead of Danger. Eventually their waterlogged clothing became uncomfortable enough for them to consider changing, even if it meant handing a small victory to Danger in the process. They were going to get hypothermia otherwise, they assumed, as they were still shaking like a leaf.

Stripping out of the bloodied tunic was a challenge, considering they couldn't reach the concealed zipper along the back. This suit was essentially ruined, so Monarch was not very careful when wriggling out of it. The rest of their sopping uniform quickly followed before they speedily dried themselves and tugged on the clothing that Danger had left them- sans the shirt, as they were in dire need of that first aid kit first. The large boxers reached down to about their knees, which was a small mercy.

The situation wasn't ideal, but Monarch was already tired from the simple act of changing clothes- there was no way they could escape a rested and alert Danger in this state. They were simply going to have to put up with him until they were patched up.

Without their costume the full extent of their injuries was revealed: A badly bruised and scratched torso, a deep cut on the shoulder and a bruised and swollen ankle. The cut was going to need stitches, which was unfortunate as Monarch didn't want Danger anywhere near them with anything that could be used as a weapon. A bandage would probably suffice until they could return to their own base and patch it up for themselves, but one look at Danger as he walked back into the room dashed any hope of that.

"Nasty cut, it's going to need stitches kleinen Monarchen," Danger declared, setting the kit down on the edge of the couch and starting to hunt through it for the proper supplies.

"You are not coming anywhere near me with a weapon."

Danger had the audacity to look surprised at the remark, and raised his gloved hands in a gesture of mock surrender. "I'm flattered you think so highly of me, but I'm not going to try to strangle you with the suture."

Suspicion filled Monarch's gaze and Danger sighed, pulling out the antiseptic along with the needle and medical thread. The hero narrowed their eyes as Danger stepped closer, and seemed ready to try escape. "Sich verhalten, if you struggle this is only going to hurt more." Danger toyed with one of his gloves, as if making a move to pull it off. Monarch went stock still at the threat of Danger's powers and the Austrian tugged his glove back into place.

The hero didn't make a sound when the antiseptic was applied to their shoulder, but they did wince when Danger started to stitch their wound back together. Sutures were not a pleasant experience, especially without the help of any sort of numbing cream. They did their best to hold in the rest of the winces, and it wasn't too long before Danger smeared some disinfectant cream over the finished sutures and secured a bandage pad to the wound.

"Sehen, no strangling," the villain said, wiping away the blood that had dribbled from the injury with a spare bandage pad. He quickly moved to start patching up the rest of the hero, and worked quickly to avoid another argument with the acrobat, who was momentarily quieted by the aching pain from the sutures and their other injuries.

The only place left to check for injuries was under their mask- and honestly, it didn't look like Monarch would remove the flimsy bit of fabric without a fight.  With the hero's rosy vitiligo, it was too difficult to guess if they were injured or if it was simply a part of their skin tone.  "Are you going to remove the mask, or am I going to have to?"

It was amusing to Danger that such a simple statement could rile Monarch up so quickly- the hero weakly shoved them away and curled in on themselves, as if that would help them fend the man off. "Not happening," they growled, glaring fiercely despite their injuries. It looked like they really would try to fight Danger if he tried to pull off their mask. Such an extreme reaction.

"I've already seen you without it, you know," He pointed out.

"I am not taking it off," was Monarch's stubborn response, and the look in their eyes dared Danger to try to take the bit of fabric from them. There was a pause as the two considered each other, and Danger was the one to back down with a short, placating smile. It was better to let Monarch have their way in this instance than to have them pull their stitches- the hero wouldn't sit as still a second time, he was certain.

"As you wish, kleinen Monarchen." The hero examined him for a moment, as if to gauge the truth of his words, before huffing and turning away to tug on the button up shirt. It was far larger than their own shirts, but it would do. Still shaking, both from the dulled pain and the cold, their fingers fumbled uselessly with the buttons. Danger leaned over, wordlessly for once, and expertly did up the buttons for Monarch.

At last it was time to deal with the shivering- it took only a moment for Danger to leave and locate some blankets, which he tossed onto the couch without much care for how they landed. Looking up questioningly, Monarch only had time to glance at the blankets before Danger sat down and tugged them snug to his side. They quickly found themselves cocooned in blankets and unable to escape- though it was difficult to tell if they were trying to wriggle away, or if the movement was simply the violent shivering.

"The faster you get some rest, the faster this'll be over," He reminded Monarch, who hated to see the reason of his words. Shaking, they turned their grey eyes on him and glared as fiercely as they could muster, which caused a slight snort to escape Danger. "I'm not going to try anything, calm down, you look like a Wildkatze."

"You know this doesn't count towards that stupid bet." That damned bet between Haunt and Danger had been a source of trouble for Monarch. For whatever reason, the villains seemed to think it would be fun to try to score a date with the little acrobat- which was never going to happen. Ever. Heroes and Villains didn't mix, this whole incident was some strange, villainous exception to that rule.

"Ja, I am aware."

"Then why even bother?"

"I've told you before," Danger responded with an amused sigh and a slight smile. "I think it would be fun to have a hero do something for themselves for once, and maybe that something could be the decision to associate with me."

"It's not happening," they warned Danger, eyes starting to slip shut as their shivers began to die down.

"Ja, whatever you say Monarch."

The acrobat managed one last weak glare before unconsciousness finally claimed them, causing them to lean over onto Danger and rest their head on his shoulder. Holding very still, Danger dared to wrap an arm around the sleeping hero, relaxing when they didn't stir in the slightest. Pulling Monarch closer, the man grinned when they snuggled closer to him, obviously trying to get closer to a source of warmth, even when unconscious. The shivering had died down to a bearable level, and Danger had no trouble holding still and allowing the acrobat to sleep on him until morning.

There was just one last thing he needed to do. Carefully pulling his phone from the pocket of his slacks, Danger took his time working his arm free from the blankets to expose the device. One last, quick check ensured that Monarch was still asleep, and he tapped the device with a gloved thumb.

A quiet snap from his phone's camera pierced the silence in the room, and after a quick caption the photo was on it's way. Slipping the phone back into his pocket was much easier than freeing it, and he was soon dozing off alongside Monarch.

- - - - -

On the other side of the city, a man paused before heading out the door to check his phone- who was texting him at this hour of the night? A swipe of his finger revealed a picture of a heavily bandaged Monarch, who just so happened to be sleeping on the pale Danger. The villain had an arm draped comfortably over the heroes shoulder and was winking at the camera.