Please do more M/M Villain x Hero writing! Maybe the villain saving the hero but manipulating them in the process?
cw: this one is a lil whumpy, mainly themes of captivity and isolation
Pain is a concept synonymous with the lifestyle of a superhero. About half of the agency's training modules consisted of talks and exercises around all the physical harm that this job would eventually put the new recruits through. Hero had not gone into this job clueless, they knew that deep down, this day would surely come. But, as the restraints around their arms dug deeper the more the hero writhed, they struggled to bite back a whimper.
For the first time in their career, they were scared.
Helpless. Completely at the mercy of whoever it was shuffling around outside their cell door. The first few hours were nothing, Hero had taken worse injuries from regular battles than they had from the initial interrogation. Unluckily, Supervillain seemed to recognise that too. So they left, with no promise of when they'd return. And in the harrowing silence, blood drying on their scalp, the terror had swept in. This was it, their view for the remainder of their miserable days.
The days began to blend together until Hero truly had no idea how long they'd been held captive. A blur of utter solitude and gloom. Supervillain rarely appeared too, dropping off the bare minimum for survival whenever Hero had passed out from exhaustion, just to make sure the isolation was complete. It was after an eternity of this routine that Hero finally realised they weren't here for information. They were here so that the final, agonising moments of their life would stretch on towards the horizon. One foot always in the grave.
The first sign of a change came when they heard a muffled voice from outside the dark confines of their chamber. People were talking, frantically, and soon the sound of rushed footsteps followed. The guards had somewhere else to be, that was unusual. Hero didn't question it, initially, too dazed to imagine where they could be headed. Somewhere nicer than this, that's all they knew. In fact, it took until they could hear someone speaking clearly â the first non distant voice in eons â before it registered in their dulled brain that a plan was afoot.
"You look even shittier than usual."
At the sound, blunt but lacking aggression, Hero strained to raise their lulling head, vision blurred by time. The figure before them was almost entirely obscured by the unforgiving shadows in the corners of their cell. If it wasn't for that all-too-familiar voice, Hero wouldn't have recognised their visitor, mostly due to their monochromatic outfit that hid their discerning features.
"Vil?" was all Hero could croak out, voice raspier than they had expected; the consequence of it only being used to sob into an abyss that never responded back. Understandably, Hero wasn't fully coherent, running at less than minimum capacity from exhaustion and sheer pain. It was a fact that was smothered all over their face, eyes unfocused. The man in front of them, almost undoubtably Villain, crossed the fathomless room in a few mere strides, and crouched down to where the pair were almost at eye level.
"To think your friends would just leave you to rot here, decomposing inside of yourself," Villain's tone shifted, soft and pitying. It would have felt patronising if not for the utterly horrific state of the hero, who was struggling to stay conscious throughout the encounter. As their head drifted to the side from weariness, the villain grabbed their chin firmly, ensuring that they had no choice but to make weak eye contact.
"Such a shame that, after all that pleading, they still decided you weren't worth saving."
Villain's words stung, hitting what felt like their already weathered heartstrings. Uncharacteristically, they felt an onslaught of tears ready themselves, a minefield about to erupt. If you go on this mission, we won't be able to save you. That's what Leader had said. Supervillain was perhaps the most fearsome adversary the team had met thus far. If they confronted them, desperate to save their friend, the odds of a total team annihilation were too high, according to them. The city needs its heroes. If we all drowned trying to save a dead man swimming, the people would have no one. Yet, Villain had come. They appeared almost unscathed, though Hero was far from the ideal state of mind for analytics.
"It's the one thing I've always despised most about that agency of yours. So-called martyrs who are far too concerned with saving their own skin, always leaving people to choke on their own blood. If an ally of mine was hanging on by a thread, I don't think I could possibly leave them to suffer alone," Villain soothed, their expression imperceptible. Scrutinising, almost. Were they implying what Hero (barely) thought they were? "It's ok though, it'll all be ok. You'll be out of this place soon enough, I promise. It's safe at my place, I can take you there if you'd like."
Hero grit their teeth. Every muscle in they body wanted to melt into the villain's soft touch, wanted them to soothe them asleep with comforting murmurs. However, they didn't need coherence to understand the villain. It was as though muscle memory had kicked in, like their body had adapted to their nemesis' presence. This is a trick, don't fall for it.
When Hero had cussed out Supervillain, doubling down and refusing to cave under any type of interrogation, the latter had lashed out. Yanked their face with a much less kind grip, and spewed every threat in the book. If they weren't so terrifyingly powerful, it would have seemed pathetic. Villain, however, grinned widely in response, no tidbit of agitation to be seen. They pulled away from Hero slightly, allowing them some space to breathe, and beamed as though their companion had just won an award.
"Glad to see you're still here with us, Hero." Villain's hands were still cupping the Hero's malnourished cheeks, though it felt much less infantilising. Just the usual amount of twisted affection for the criminal, Hero recognised, even half delirious. Was that some sort of test? A sick, sick way to see how far the hero had fallen? Something twisted in their stomach, something more than hunger.
"Stop playing around, asshole," Hero groaned, their voice raspy enough to cause their throat to ache with each slurred syllable. Villain laughed quietly at the term of far-from-endearment, eyes still gleaming slightly.
"You're awfully resilient, Hero. Never been one to back down for the sake of a kinder life. Even if it means.. this," Villain hesitated slightly at that last part, face darkening for a moment, though Hero was far too disjointed to pick up on it. "Pretending like you'd fall for flattery and buttery praise would be demeaning to both of us, so I'll skip the honey-drizzled sympathy:
Your team aren't coming. Those incompetents would never try and stand against Supervillain, they know they'd never stand a chance. Yet, I stand by what I said earlier. You're far too brilliant of a hero to be left to decay like a corpse. A waste of talent, so to say. I'm here to make sure that doesn't happen. And, since you just so happen to be my dearest enemy, I plan to do it join-me-and-get-vengeance-speech free. No need to belittle you when you're already, well.." Villain trailed off, not losing the cunning in their tone that always made them seem a million leagues ahead.
"But?" Hero questioned, still not able to mutter more than five words at a time. As much as they despised the villain usually, something intrinsic inside of them longed for some company. Isolation had clawed at their insides like a rapid animal, unaware of their own frenzy. Still, this was Villain. A criminal. Criminals don't break their enemies out of captivity without a cost. Villain's smile widened.
"But, Supervillain is still Supervillain. Everyone's petrified of even saying their name. Even if they don't kill me for this, odds are I'll be losing a lot of my resources over this. I'm really sticking my neck under the guillotine for you here."
"So why save me? You couldâ you could leave."
"You, my favourite little hero, are more valuable than any alliance I could dream of having. So, I'd prefer it if you stayed a little while longer under my care. No torture, no bindings. I'm told I'm a rather welcoming host. Besides, it isn't like you have any friends waiting eagerly for your arrival."
At that, Hero choked on a wail, feeling as though they were on the verge of bursting. Their eyes blurred with tears, vision obscured to the point that they couldn't see Villain's brow furrowing at their change in demeanour. Hero didn't cry. They didn't. They also didn't accept help from morally dubious criminals who were no doubt lying and scheming. Sure, Villain had sworn to a little sliver of sincerity, but through their almost-heartfelt grin, they could see the specks of silver that was their tongue.
It didn't matter that this was their only way out. It didn't matter that they spent what felt like centuries suffering as far away from the sunlight as they're certain they could be. Sure, Villain's touch was painkiller enough, easing the pain and reigniting their nervous system that had long forgotten what gentle touch was. But they couldn't just fold under this promise. They were Hero, for fuck's sake. But, they didn't feel like it anymore. A shell of themself, almost. A mewling, sobbing imitation of what had once been mighty and powerful. They didn't know how much longer they could last.
Hero didn't need to speak. Didn't need to beg or plead for Villain's help. Instead, they leaned in, nuzzling their head into the criminal's shoulder as their body quivered from both relief and sorrow. In return, Villain pulled them into a hug, shockingly mindful of their restraints, and softly petted their hair. The hero was so exhausted from it all that they truly couldn't differentiate between the villain's manipulation, and genuine comfort anymore. They welcomed it nonetheless.
Swiftly, Villain cut their restraints as though they were made of silk, and swept them up into a carry, more than aware that the hero's legs had begun to waste away. Before they headed for the cell exit, guards still seemingly unaware, Villain uttered one last reassurance.
"You made the right choice, Hero, so stick with me now. I can make this all better for you soon."
Skip the honey-drizzled sympathy my ass.
