“You do everything for Hero, don’t you?” Villain patronized them, an unsettling grin rising on their face. Hero’s sidekick felt adrenaline course through them, already not liking the turn the conversation had taken. They kept silent, adamant not to give Villain the attention they so clearly wanted.
“You’re their soldier. You do anything and everything for Hero- you live and breathe for them.” Villain continued. Sidekick bit the inside of their cheek hard, restraining themselves from rising to the bait.
“If only they knew, how you feel about them.” Villain mocked, a deceivingly sympathetic expression on their face. Sidekick gulped, clenching their shaking fists.
“You know, Hero cares about me far more than they ever cared about you.” Villain continued. Sidekick rubbed their face, feeling the familiar burn of tears lingering at the back of their eyes. “You’ll never have a chance with them, and you know it.” Sidekick immediately felt what little self-preservation they had left disappear, and they launched themselves at Villain in a rage.
“Shut up. Just shut up!” Sidekick screamed, fists flying at Villain before they could even register what they were doing. Villain fell to the ground, but Sidekick didn’t care. They didn’t think, just punched and punched and punched-
“Sidekick?”
Sidekick froze, their fist only a couple inches from Villain’s beaten and bloody face. They turned around, heart pounding, and they met Hero’s shocked eyes. They glanced at Hero, at Villain’s barely conscious form behind them, and tried to come up with an explanation. Sidekick tried to talk but their mouth felt sewn shut. Their lips wouldn’t move, and all they could hear was the sharp ringing sound reverberating in their ears.
“Sidekick, what have you done?” Hero’s eyes were blown wide, a frightful expression on their face.
“No, wait, Hero, I-” Sidekick tried to justify, walking up to Hero and looking up at them.
“I don’t want to hear it.” Hero said with an icy tone, shoving them aside and walking over to Villain. Sidekick reeled back, the disappointment in Hero’s voice hurting more than any punch or blow could. They watched as Hero knelt down and touched Villain’s cheek in an intimate gesture that made Sidekick feel sick to their stomach. Villain was right. Shaking their head, Sidekick turned around and bolted, tears blurring their vision as their shoes slapped against the pavement.
Undertale drawing https://www.instagram.com/p/B26doD-hxbd/?igshid=n7ozsiljibqq
I really want to make a game someday featuring them. #oc #originalcharacter #sellartonline #sketchbooktour #sketchbook #characterdesign #artistsoninstagram #art #drawing https://www.instagram.com/p/B7OoGphBbn0/?igshid=1musyqkzcghmn
trigger warning: swords, blood
The villain’s sword was slightly uncomfortable against their chin, the hero decided, as they knelt in front of them, the tip of it digging into their throat just enough to cause pain but not enough to draw blood. Their hands were bound behind them, and the angle of the sword forced their eyes up, to the villain’s. They were dripping blood and bruised and tired and on the business end of the sword, but they still managed a smile.
“Why are you smiling, little hero?” The villain’s cool voice washed over them. “I have you on the ground, defeated. There is nothing for you to smile about anymore.”
Their face was stone-cold; expressionless. The hero’s smile only grew and as they closed their eyes for a fraction of a second, memories speed ran through their mind—the delicate kisses, beautiful sunrises, the scent of orange blossoms, surprise hugs from behind, driving on the highway with all the time in the world—before they snapped back to reality.
“Oh, darling.” Their voice was almost considerate. “You’re not going to run me through with a sword. You love me still.”
The villain’s façade crumbled pretty quickly, after that.
Holy shit it came out great #originalcharacter #oc #OC #digital_art #digitalart #drawingtablet #drawing #sellartonline #artoninstagram #art https://www.instagram.com/p/B8hReglBTv2/?igshid=hug36be9um1n
“You shouldn’t trust me. I’ll make sutures out of your heartstrings and I won’t apologise when I use them to stitch myself back together.”
prompt from @gingerly-writing, which inspired this snippet!
The hero, seated in the chair before the villain’s desk, blinked. Neither said anything for a few, long seconds, then the hero cleared their throat. “That was dramatic. How long did it take you to come up with that?”
The villain’s lips thinned. Trust the hero not to take them seriously.
“I am warning you,” they said tersely. “Stop asking me for help.”
“We’ve worked together before, and it’s turned out.”
“Not for the long-term. Not the way you’re describing.”
The hero leaned forward in their chair, their gaze too calm and steady and unafraid. “I never said I trusted you. I just need your assistance.”
“You never said you liked me either,” the villain said. “Yet I don’t see you denying that you do.”
This time, that got a reaction out of the hero. They leaned back, gaze flickering away from the villain. They cleared their throat again. “Yeah, so?”
“I have concluded that your mental processes are compromised. Very much so.”
A smile just barely tugged at the corner of the hero’s mouth as they glanced back at the villain, but the amusement was clear in their voice. “You have ‘concluded’? I would certainly be interested in seeing your research paper. How many pages is it? A hundred?”
The villain slammed their hands down on their desk and stood. Discomfort grew in their stomach as the hero didn’t flinch, just kept watching them as if they were no threat. As if they had never brought powerful men to their knees, as if they hadn’t overwhelmed the city’s police system for an entire month, as if they hadn’t fought the last menace who had resided here and won.
Two years ago, the hero would have had their weapons drawn in a blink of time. Today, the hero sat unarmed in their base.
“Let me make this clear to you,” the villain snapped. “This isn’t funny. Just because we don’t fight anymore, because I don’t send you home limping—”
“I think I sent you home limping—”
“Shut up.”
Slowly, the hero rose to their feet.
The villain continued, picking up momentum. “Lack of fights between us, this ‘peace’ you refer to, is all in your head. We are not allies. When you let down your guard you are giving me the opportunity to use you however I wish. I don’t know what you use to think, but it isn’t your brain. You’ve claimed I’m not as bad as the others, but do you think I won’t use the opportunity to claim more power?
“You give me your trust, your heart, and I’ll rip it to shreds. Do you know what I could do with you? What I could gain? Your body in my control could buy me a place within the Blood Stars. I could hand you off to a dozen different organizations and reap millions in benefit.”
“You could,” the hero said softly. They moved smoothly towards the villain, around the edge of their desk to stand before them. “But you won’t.”
The villain opened their mouth, and the hero pressed a finger to their lips.
Keep reading
Just a little longer
Hero took it step by step. Trying to ignore the pain in her leg. Trying to ignore the dread of being weaponless.
Sleep. You will sleep soon
She could already see the campus dorms.
You just need to get in and not get caught or get followed.
Everything was dark. Too dark to tell if she left blood on the floor. Signing, she started taking the steps to the common rooms.
When she reached the top, ever closer to her heaven, she saw a light.
Someone sat on one of the dusty chairs, reading by a lamplight. She doesn’t know how well she’d handle another bout with Villain right now. “Nice of you to come, Hero.”
Never mind. I prefer Villain
“Civilian.”
“Are you limping to your dorm at midnight?”
“Are you sitting alone in the common room?”
“One of these questions is more urgent.”
Hero tried to walk slower, hoping to hide her injury.
“Just go to sleep. We have a morning class.”
But Rival stood up and walked to her.
“Morning class is the least of my worries now.”
Both of them were almost completely in the dark, but she could tell he was sincere. His voice was rarely devoid of any cynicism or playfulness. He took her silence as a breakthrough.
“You don’t need to tell me anything, but if you’re hurt, I can help.”
“R-”
“Look, I know you’re tough. Everyone knows. That’s why I hate you. You have nothing to prove. So if…”
He cleared his throat, and turned his look from her. Despite hardly even seeing her face.
“If some bastard needs to learn a lesson, I can help you. I won’t tell anyone.”
Just barely, she could see his honey eyes shining. But the aching pain that constantly throbbed her leg reminded her of the dangers that follow.
Why can no one else know of Villain
“Hero?”
Rival asked, she could imagine the anticipation in his features.
“I’m fine, Rival.”
“H-”
“This is none of your business.”
Her tone wasn’t as harsh as it could be, but rather heavy-hearted.
But he didn’t push it longer, just stood as she at last continued walking towards her room.
She didn’t hear him move or speak until she almost closed her dorm door, his voice barely audible.
“I’m here if you need me, Hero.”
There were about three more seconds of silence.
Rival’s heavy footsteps filled the silence. And following them, much quieter, slier steps. These steps were coming towards her dorm.
“Wh- HERO RUN”
She heard Rival spurt back to her dorm’s way.
Cursing, she hastily thrust her door open, fearing there was no time even for getting her hidden gun. Disastrously, she was right.
Villain held a dagger.
He held a dagger above Rival’s throat.
“Leave him.”
Villain smirked at her.
His grip on Rival’s arms and the dagger he kept on his throat remained indifferent, both to her threat and to Rival’s struggles.
“Care much?”
“You know this will be a fight to the death, Villain.”
Hero answered, unleashing her own hidden blade. “And you know I will slit his throat way before you limp one step,”
She did her best to not show her dread. Not to imagine the light leaving the honey, radiant eyes she knew.
“But there’s a way to make this less bloody, is it?”
His message was clear. Hero glanced at Rival, his message was clear too. Ever so slightly, he shook his head.
“You are going to leave him, and we will take this outside, civilly.”
“H-”
Villain gripped Rival’s chin.
“Perfect.”
He threw Rival to the floor, almost cutting his jaw in the process.
“YOU PIECE O-”
Villain caught his face again.
“Shhh… we don’t want to make this harder for your girlfriend, do we?”
Rival seemed enraged, like he would murder Villain right here if he could, but before he tried to fight again, Hero got to him.
She pushed him away, hugging him, burying her head in her neck. Just below his ear.
Bewildered, Rival froze.
“under the bed”
She whispered, and let him go.
“Oh ~ it almost makes me regret I’ll kill you ~”
Grinning, Villain moved aside and gestured to the stairs. “Ladies first.”
Hero signed, giving one last look at Rival, who seemed disturbed, but determined as well.
As she walked down the stairs, feeling Villain creeping ever closer behind her, loudly thinking of just pushing her down, she hoped she heard Rival searching her room.
Soon later, when she could feel Villain breathing at her neck, a bang was heard. Villain’s grin froze on his face as he fell. Hero moved aside and looked up, meeting with radiant brown eyes.
I might prefer him over Villain
The next day, after dealing with the police, and after the noise from the tired yet curious students died down, Hero slept like a rock.
When she did wake up, slowly realizing that her morning class is long over.
Signing, she got dressed and tried to calculate how many library search hours she’d have to go through.
But when she stepped towards the door, she saw something that was sled to her dorm.
They seemed to be, neatly written, detailed lecture notes.
Above them, rested a small sticky note, reading “I’m here if you need me”
This is truly truly truly incredible!
In the Bible, we learned that because of righteous women, the Jews were redeemed from Egypt.
Listen to this story!
Meet Inbal Rabin-Lieberman.
She’s 25. And she is superwoman. No, I’m not joking. She’s an actual super hero.
Inbal single handedly saved Kibbutz Nir Am from terrorists. It is practically the only village in the Gaza border strip that was not seriously damaged by the Hamas attack.
On Shabbat morning, Inbal was one of the first in the country to realize what was happening. How? No one knows!
Let’s rewind.
In December 2022, the kibbutz appointed her to the position of military security coordinator. Inbal was born and raised in Kibbutz Nir Am, served in IDF combat units, and studied at the Women's Leadership School.
The Military Security Coordinator is responsible for the security of the community in normal and emergency situations until IDF or police forces arrive.
She made history in Sha'ar ha-Negev - first female security coordinator in a kibbutz!
Inbal, replacing her uncle Ami Rabin. “I am filled with pride at this choice. There is no 'glass ceiling' at Sha'ar ha-Negev - we have equality in all positions," Liebstein wrote at the time.
So this last Shabbat, on that dreadful morning of October 7th, a date that will never be forgotten, she correctly assessed the threat and quickly distributed weapons to a "rapid response team" ("kitat konenut") of the settlement's residents.
"She was the first in the entire State of Israel to realize what was happening. She ran like crazy from house to house, organised a self-defence unit, prepared a plan to defend the kibbutz and arranged men in ambushes at the kibbutz fence," the southern Israel kibbutz website wrote about Inbal.
Terrorists who came to kill civilians were met with fire. All Hamas militants who tried to break into the kibbutz were killed. Twenty-five militants' bodies were later counted at the fence.
After the kibbutz residents managed to fight off the terrorists, Inbal and her family, like many other kibbutz residents, evacuated. The heroine stayed in a hotel in Tel Aviv. On October 9, she was celebrating her birthday. The mayor of Tel Aviv came to meet her and congratulate her.
"Inbal is a heroine," he wrote on Facebook. "Her story leaves no one indifferent - for her coolness, courage and bravery.
Thanks to Inbal, dozens of lives have been saved.
Thanks to her, Kibbutz Nir Am was saved.
Today, Inbal arrived with her family at one of the hotels where we host border residents. I was honoured to meet her."
Thank you for your heroism, Inbal! I hope to meet you one day. No, scratch that. I must meet you one day!
@HilzFuld