Curate, connect, and discover
part 1 here
part 2 here
Ash tried their best not to show their disinterest that threatened to seep beyond their poker face. They really didn't want to be here, but supervillain had decided to gather their team because apparently the hero had been captured successfully, at long last.
In the few run ins that Ash had had with the hero, if there's one thing that they knew, it was that the hero was a really competent fighter and was almost unbeatable in battle. Ash would go as far as saying that they even respected the hero's dedication to their work. So that's why it was really weird to them that that hero could be captured so easily. They even felt bad for them, because they had nothing against them really. If life was kinder to them, then they wouldn't even be here, they might have even stood at the opposite side of all of this mess, and maybe could have even been an ally to justice.
They shake their head, ridding it of thoughts about a past that was now impossible to change. Right now, all Ash wanted to do was go home, back to that apartment where Adrian and Alex were waiting for them. Alex did say that they were going to go all out preparing dinner and Ash would be lying if they said that they weren't looking forward to it.
Just then the door to the hide out banged open, and two figures were thrown haphazardly onto the floor. Ash felt their stomach twist and turn when they got a good look at their faces- they began wiping their eyes multiple times, pinched themselves, did about anything that people generally did to check if this was some twisted dream. They wanted someone to tell them that this wasn't real- that this was all just a bad dream, a nightmare caused by over stress. Ash tried pinching a little harder but they still felt pain. Maybe if I pinch a bit more, I won't feel anything?
They wanted to scream their lungs out, because why did the two people that they cared about the most end up here, in the supervillain's hideout. Why?!
This made no sense. Nothing made any sense.
"Well well, looks like you've knocked the hero out cold." Supervillain's the first one to speak, eyes glistening with such mirth it made Ash want to recoil into themselves.
But hero? One of them was the hero all along? But who?
Their question was answered when supervillain stepped forward, bending down and grabbing Adrian's chin roughly with one hand. Ash had to hold themselves back before they ended up twisting that hand in a moment of fury.
Don't touch them! Ash wanted to scream.
Alex was the first one who regained consciousness, squirming around uncomfortably with the binds on their wrists. Ash wanted to rush forward and immediately shield them from supervillain's piercing gaze, but they held themselves back. Neither Ash nor their friends would make it out of there alive if they made a move now.
"Oh, good morning to you civilian. How unfortunate that you happened to tag along with hero when we had planned to kidnap them."
Ash watched as Alex stared at the unconscious form of Adrian in utter shock, clearly struggling to take in that piece of information. Alex's eyes darted, flustered, from the supervillain, back to Adrian, and Ash could literally see the cogs turning in their brain, Alex grappling with the piece of information thrown at them, not knowing what to do with it. So Alex didn't know either, Ash thought. They understood though, after getting to know the both of them better, Ash could confidently say now that Adrian didn't tell Alex because they wanted to keep them away from this world, and who could blame them? Ash definitely wouldn't. They looked at Alex's stunned figure sadly- watching Adrian's effort break down in front of them was heartbreaking.
Plus, the identity of a hero when compared to a villain was especially that of top priority. They've heard that the supervillain had spent years trying to uncover hero's identity- and that was finally revealed today.
Without any warning, supervillain wedged their foot right into Adrian's stomach, making them flinch awake with pain, only to scream. Alex tried to lunge forward but was held back by the henchmen. Ash almost lurched forward, again as Alex started struggling, screaming to get the henchmen to let them go, and Adrian was still out of it, clearly in pain. The entire situation screamed despair at Ash and tore their heart into tiny, pathetic pieces.
"Oh Villain, what's wrong?" Supervillain's attention turned for a meager second away from Adrian and Alex, and that made Ash more happy than they were willing to admit, " you just froze all of a sudden."
"I'm sorry, I'm a bit unsteady on my legs. I'm alright now."
Don't lose your cool. If you play this out nicely enough, you can still get them out. They don't know who you are, this is the perfect opportunity.
Having made up their mind, Ash wobbled forward, stopping right in between Adrian and Alex.
"What's wrong Villain? Do you want to go back home today after all?"
Ash wanted to puke at the fake concern in their voice. "No supervillain, that won't be necessary. I just wanted to make a suggestion, if you would let me."
Supervillain nods their head, signaling Ash to continue.
"We only need the hero right? If a civilian was to go missing, it would cause unnecessary issues and the police will begin to investigate-
The sound of skin against skin could be heard reverberating throughout the entire room. Supervillain had just slapped Ash so hard, that the force caused their head to fall sideways. From the corner of their eyes, Ash could see worry swimming in Adrian's eyes and they heard Alex gasp. Even in such a situation, even without knowing their true identity, these two still cared. That simple fact made Ash's heart warm.
"A-are you okay?"
Ash looked over to Alex and simply smiled, hoping that was enough of a response to the question. It hurt a little too much to talk right now. That slap had messed up Ash's disguise, their mask out of place, just enough to show their hair and eyes.
" Now now villain, you know better than to question my plans hmm?" Supervillain spoke with a voice that could cut.
Ash took a shaky step back, visibly flinching at the tone. This was the first time they'd seen the supervillain face to face and they were as cruel and heartless as the rumors said that they were.
"Your answer Villain?"
"Y-yes, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that."
Adrian's breath hitched in their throat as they took in the Villain's appearance- raven tresses that stood on the thin line between wavy and curly, those honey orbs, and that silky voice- there's no mistake. Even though the villain was only showing their back to them, Adrian knew. But Alex beat them to it.
"Ash, is that you?"
Shit. Ash visibly tensed, realizing that their voice changer was knocked out of position by that cursed slap.
"Ash, it's you isn't it?"
Alex called out again, sounding surer this time and Ash just stood there, like a deer caught in headlights, unable to decide whether to lie or tell the truth. If they said the truth, they would be killed by supervillain, and if they lied, they would have to fight but in the end still be killed by supervillain. It really didn't matter either way.
Ash looked back at Adrian for a small second and the recognition in their eyes was the final straw.
If they've already figured it out, then there's no point in keeping secrets anymore.
Ash stepped forward, taking off their mask completely. Alex gasped, the same shock crossing their facial features once again, looking like a fish out of water, completely lost and desperate. Adrian just looked at them and sighed. Ash couldn't decide if they sounded relieved or disappointed- they desperately hoped that it wasn't the latter.
Supervillain cackled, clapping their hands together almost maniacally, their rough voice echoing inside the tiny room. They looked like someone who was having the time of their life, enjoying an unexpected plot twist to their favorite TV drama.
While supervillain was distracted, Adrian struggled to get back up on their feet, only to be kicked harder this time, right where they'd been kicked earlier. They fell to their side, coughing sharply, a copper like taste springing to life in their mouth. Everything ached and there was just so much pain-
And then a gentle touch, slowly pushing away sweat slicked blond locks, and then a strong arm holding them close. Another arm clutched onto their shoulder, spreading warmth everywhere. Adrian opened their eyes to see Alex and Ash by their side, both of them looking like it was the end of the world.
And for the first time in a long time Adrian didn't feel scared. They had the two people that they trusted their life with by their side. And that wasn't going to change now, knowing that Ash is a villain. All of that didn't matter. At the end of the day, Adrian is Adrian and Ash is Ash, they're just two college students struggling to complete their degree in peace, forced into hero and villain costumes.
"This is all just so touching, isn't it?" Supervillain drawled, a hand coming up to wipe fake tears as the other villains and henchmen all nodded their heads, like petty little puppets. "A villain, hero and a civilian, all trying to have their happy ending."
Supervillain sneered and Villain felt a chill run down their spine.
"But I'll be damned if I let you have it that easily!"
A blast shot out from Supervillain's hand and Adrian had just enough time to push Alex away to the opposite side, clutching Ash in their arms and rolling over to the other side, missing the blast by a hair's breadth.
Ash felt Adrian groan against them and their blood froze. Adrian is hurt, and I have to get them out of here.
"Take Alex and leave Adrian, I'll take care of this." Ash said in the most menacing voice that they could muster.
But Adrian wasn't backing down, giving them a death stare and Ash thinks that they have never seen them this angry before.
"You're dreaming if you think that I would abandon you and save just myself and Alex." Their voice threatened, like pines and needles.
"But I'm a villain, I don't deserve any of this!" Ash wailed, their voice a mix of anger, sadness and desperation and it hurt Adrian's ears to hear Ash's sweet voice sound like that.
"Adrian, Ash, look out!"
This time it was Ash who saw the blast coming first, pulling Adrian flush to their chest and rolling away to shield them from the blast. It scraped away a little bit of their costume on the back and they flinched at the sharp, burning feeling on their spine.
Adrian tensed in their arms, eyes darting up to scan Ash's body for any more injuries. Upon finding no new ones, they sighed in relief, pulling themselves up and then Ash. They hid behind a wall for a moment of rest and looked into Ash's eyes softly.
"I'm a hero and I protect people, so let me do my job okay?"
"You'll protect me, even though I'm a villain?" Ash sounded so unsure of themselves and it made Adrian's heart tug painfully. They slowly brought their hand up to Ash's cheek, fingers gently circling the bruise that was forming there. Ash sighed unconsciously, feeling safe and content, all in one moment. They didn't know it was even possible to feel that way.
"I don't know what you're talking about, you are only Ash to me. Besides, I'm sure you had your reasons, just like I have mine." Adrian smirked.
And suddenly, Ash could breathe more easily. They at least had enough fight in them to roll their eyes at Adrian's antics, "Way to ruin the moment, idiot."
They moved together, movements in perfect sync as they made it across the room to reach Alex, while dodging the supervillain's attacks. Alex looked like they were just about done with everything. Ash couldn't really blame them. Adrian chuckled playfully at the sight.
"So it takes a hero, a villain and a supervillain to finally shut you up huh Alex?"
But Alex wasn't an idiot, they knew that while Ash showed their emotions more freely, Adrian would hide them and begin to joke away their worries. So Alex stared back at Adrian resolutely, with a determined gaze.
Adrian let out a knowing sigh and ruffled their hair a little, glad that Alex was safe more than anything. Being a normal civilian in a room filled with humans who possessed superpowers was dangerous as it is. Adrian never wanted to feel so helpless again, just thinking about how they couldn't do anything when Alex was threatened with a knife to their throat made their skin scrawl.
Ash bent down, gently bopping their nose with Alex. They definitely preferred the noisy version, seeing them quiet was just unsettling. Alex smiled up at them.
"I'm going to protect you two, no matter what." Adrian said suddenly, putting an arm around each of them, giving them a slight squeeze. They were met back with the brightest smiles they'd ever seen. Adrian felt like they could win this battle with just that encouragement. Being a hero was a lonely job and you always had to look tough on the surface, no matter what you were feeling on the inside.
And that's why Adrian treasured Ash and Alex so much, because they knew that they would stand by their side, no matter what.
"Ahem" Supervillain coughed obnoxiously, "It would be nice if you three didn't forget that I exist."
-
It was a tough battle, and by the end of it Adrian and Ash sported many bruises and many more scars, a few of them bleeding more than the rest. But supervillain was defeated, and Alex felt like crying out tears of relief at that fact alone. Because that meant that Adrian and Ash won't be in harm's way anymore.
They ran up to a staggering Adrian, being supported by Ash, holding them both as gently as they could. The other two chuckled softly, returning the hug. The three just stood like that for who knows how long, just basking in the fact that they were all safe, alive and warm, and their hearts were still beating, just like they're supposed to and didn't just give up halfway. Alex was the first one to break the embrace, looking up and down at Adrian and Alex as if they were deciding on what wedding attire to pick.
"I'm definitely going to need a lot of first aid kits tonight."
Adrian and Ash laughed together as Alex pulled them both forward, one hand in each of theirs.
All of them stepped inside their apartment with warm smiles on their faces, knowing that they belonged with each other and they weren't going anywhere.
Okay this is the final part / this snippet is finally over / and this became long as usual / hope you all enjoyed this!! / I think it's fun to think that supervillain secretly shipped all of them so I'll leave this here