𝘋𝘠𝘕𝘈𝘔𝘌𝘛𝘐𝘒𝘈//𝘒.𝘉𝘢𝘬𝘶𝘨𝘰𝘶 𝘹 𝘯𝘳.1 𝘙𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳

33. 𝘈 𝘝𝘐𝘓𝘓𝘈𝘐𝘕, 𝘈 𝘏𝘌𝘙𝘖 & 𝘈 𝘒𝘌𝘠

THE VILLAINS

It's been four days since Y/n had talked to Chain and twelve days in total under the HRS' roof. During those four days Y/n planned escape routes with Phantom, discussing timing and strategizing what cameras the young girl will have to disable. Chain however was trying to figure out a way to steal the only key that can unlock the cuffs on Y/n, and that key was safely stored in Maneater's office which of course made it significantly trickier to get. But he could manage. Or that's what Y/n prayed for.

They hadn't set an exact date for the escape, the plan was reliant on Chain getting the key, the date didn't matter (even though Y/n hoped it'd be soon). When Chain would get the key, he'd stash it in the hiding spot that they agreed. He would then go one to alert Y/n and Phantom who would then officially begin the operation. Y/n would escape her cell, find the key and run off. This way the two villain accomplices wouldn't directly be involved and would guarantee their safety after Maneater discovers that Y/n is gone. Given that Maneater vowed to not read his inner circle's minds, it would be impossible for him to find out about their hand in this. Unless he read Y/n's mind. But she won't be here for him to do that anyway.

When Y/n didn't have the company of her accomplices, she spent her time tracing the path that she'd take on the wall to lock it in her memory. She also thought about how her friends were. Phantom had told her that the public was unaware of her disappearance. She also told her that Pro-Hero Patriot– Y/n cringed at the mention of his name– was sent to Japan to 'update Y/n personally on the state of her country'. Why personally? They excused it with 'there has been an uprising of bugged calls'. So with number two gone, and number three on parental leave, the states were left in Pro-Hero Kat's hands. Well you might know her as Mona.

The door to her cell creaked and it caught her attention. In a split second, she jumped up defensively. When she saw the flinching underling, she let her guard down slightly. He didn't look a day over 16, and under his cap was hair that resembled Midoriya's. The boy held out her lunch tray with his eyes shut tightly and his face all scrunched up. Y/n laughed loudly. "I don't bite y'know.." "Please don't hit my face.." They said simultaneously, making Y/n laugh even harder. "Calm down kid I won't!" She assured, grabbing the tray from him.

"Oh. Yeah of course. Just trying to stay safe. I have a date tonight and I really need to look my best.." He muttered, rubbing the back of his neck nervously. "I see.. Well you're not directly my abductor so I don't really have a grudge to hold against you. Now scurry.." She sighed, plopping on her bed with the food. "Yes ma'am!" He nodded before hurrying out. Y/n frowned when she noticed a small slip of paper under her plate. She lifted the plate and opened the folded paper. There she saw the path that she'd been tracing on the walls, and there was a small dot drawn inside the square that was supposed to represent an unused meeting room. The key.

"Oh shit." She muttered. Y/n stuffed as much rice and chicken as she could into her mouth and gulped it all down, uncertain when her next chance to eat would come. "I'm done!" She shouted out to the green haired boy who brought the food in. She knew he was still outside because it's usually always her scheduled guard that brings her food. Y/n hid behind the door and waited for him to re-enter the room. "Eh-" He managed to let out before he collapsed due to Y/n hitting the back of his neck.

"There we go.. Sorry about that, I hope you enjoy your date tonight.." She whispered while hauling him to lay on her bed instead of the floor. The hero grabbed the cap off his head and placed it on her own, along with his jersey jacket. "I have a date with fate to attend to myself." Y/n said before shutting the door behind her and leaving that torturous cell for good. Her head was held low and she paced quickly through the halls. In her mind she was reciting the path she was supposed to take, getting lost means losing her– possibly only– chance of escape.

She needed to get to the meeting room, find the key, open her cuffs, and get the fuck out of there.

Her breath hitched in her throat when she felt sheer muscle bump into her shoulder. Y/n's eyes locked with Chain's red ones and he snuck her a smile that said 'just stay calm'. They both kept walking as if nothing happened. She quickly collected herself and scolded herself for not paying enough attention, even though she was fairly certain that Chain did that on purpose just to freak out. He was a pain in the ass like that.

'Right. This should be the one.' Y/n thought, standing in front of the room that held the key to her escape. Literally. After taking a deep breath, she slipped into the room quietly. It was dim, the golden chandelier in the middle was visibly old and the lights were slowly flickering out. There was a long worn out mahogany table right under the chandelier, with only two matching chairs on each end. Y/n took a few steps forwards, the key was nowhere to be seen.

"Looking for this?"

Y/n's face scrunched up with an expression of frustration mixed with disappointment before she slowly turned around. There she saw Venom hanging face down from the ceiling using her webs. The key was attached to a thin web as well. "Good afternoon Tsuchigumo." Y/n said with a small smile. Venom gave her an impressed smirk before she flipped herself and landed onto her feet. "Impressive." She said, taking a seat at one end of the table. The one in front of the door. Smart.

Y/n took the other seat and looked into Venom's slitted red eyes. "Not as impressive as this. How'd you bust us?" Y/n responded to Venom's remark. The key now laid in the middle of the table, too far for Y/n to reach and grab. "Chain was too busy being worried about the boss to worry about our Squad's greatest spy. Me." She answered. Y/n hummed. "I see. That's how you got the job right? You got caught while spying and Maneater hired you?"

Venom tapped her sharp and long nails on the wood, they matched the colour of her glaring eyes. "How do you know that? And my name?" She asked, the hero shrugged. "I have my people. Just like you. But my people don't kill for the info. Unlike you." Y/n crossed her legs and rested her back on the cushion behind her. Her right hand rested under her chin while her left was tracing the design on the chair's armrest. Venom's glare dropped and the corner of her lips twitched with a smile.

"You're good. Now what do you want?" "Freedom obviously." The two women's gazes never left each other. The tension was incredibly thick, and none of them wanted to start a fight. They knew that they were both incredibly strong in their respective fields and that a fight would solve nothing. "And why should I give it to you? Give me a reason to betray the man who gave me shelter. And not any of the hope bullshit that the others bought." Venom hissed, her eyes narrowing.

"Because I'll give you what you want." Y/n hummed, a relaxed smile on her face. "And what do I want? Revenge? I've already ripped the bastards who hurt me to shreds." "Reform." The hero leaned forwards, resting both of her elbows on the table and her legs under her chair. Her words piqued the villain's interest. "How are you planning to do that?" "How are you planning to get reform under Maneater? You're a smart woman. We both are. And we both know what he's doing isn't right and won't get you anywhere."

Venom didn't respond to Y/n's remarks concerning Maneater and pressed on. "So what's your plan then?" She asked again, making Y/n smile and lean back into the position she sat in before.

"What better way than humiliation?"

Y/n wasn't stupid. She knew that to convince the people closest to Maneater she'd have to use different methods and approaches. She'd filled Phantom with hope for a better future for herself and her so-called family, she explained the best way to get people to listen to Chain and convinced him she'd do a better job than Maneater, and now she'd have to sway Venom by promising to fulfil her desires. She doesn't like to think that what she's doing is manipulation, because truly, it's not. It's just persuasion.

"I'm intrigued. Go on, hero."