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Chapter Text

“Yeah Ray. I got it.”

It had been a long walk from the Man Cave to the abandoned factory on the edge of town and Henry was growing rather tired of the one-sided conversation with the brunette man on the other side of his phone. He had been worried about sending Henry alone to capture Doctor Minyak and it was very obvious when he refused to hang up the phone and kept calling the sidekick back whenever the boy hung up.

Quickly, Henry attempted to break up the call, creating fake static and making it sound like he was cutting out.

“What… that?” he asked before hanging up and switching his pear phone off, knowing that silence was the key in capturing the crazy villain. Silence and stealth. Silently, he snuck into the factory, the scent of rust and iron strong in the abandoned building. Chains rattled down on the ground floor, a sound that rang rather loudly through the large dilapidated factory.

“Not here, you idiots! I wanted it over there!” the sharp, nasally voice yelled, belonging to none other than Doctor Minyak himself, and Henry peeked over the railing of the old staircase he was standing on, trying to locate the villain.

Doctor Minyak stood towards the middle of the bottom floor, hands on his hips in an aggravated and annoyed stance. Two of his goons were moving a crate across the floor, many “toxic” warning symbols placed on the sides of the goons.

“What are you doing, Minyak?” Henry murmured quietly, his eyebrows scrunched together as he concentrated on the man below, trying to figure out his plan.

He was so engrossed in what was happening below that, before he knew it, he was falling to the floor. A startled yelp escaped his lips as he landed hard on his back, the wind knocked out of him, and his blurring vision relayed to him that he had been pushed, a large man standing at the top of the stairs where he had just been crouching.

“Kid Danger,” Minyak crowed as he strutted over to the still semi-conscious teen, a look of victory and pride on his face. “Welcome, to the end of your career as a meddling sidekick!”

“End of my career?” he mumbled, trying to figure out exactly what the villain meant as the whole world slipped out of his control and he was thrown into a pool of pitch black unconsciousness.

~~~

The first thing he felt as he slowly stirred was pain in his back, starting at his shoulders and ending at his hips. It wasn’t the “it’s killing me!” type of pain but more like just a “eh, I can live with this” achy pain. Still, it was enough to drag him out of his comfortable sleep and back into a world lit with white lights that had no heat to them.

As Henry slowly became more aware of his surroundings, he realized, a lump forming in his throat, that he was currently stuck in a (1) pillory. Panic set in as he gave his hands quick, sharp jerks, the chains keeping the two wooden slabs locked together rattling loudly as he did so.

After a couple minutes of attempting to free his hands, Henry gave up, instead looking around to study his surroundings. Maybe there would be something to save him? As his brown gaze swept around, though, his heart sank as realization hit him; he wouldn’t be able to get out of there by himself. The room he was in was a simple four-wall room, coated in white paint. The floors were a plain hardwood floor that looked like it hadn’t been swept in years. Across from him was a plain door and there were no windows anywhere in the room.

As his gaze settled on the door, it swung open, causing him to jump in surprise.

“Well, well, well ,” a familiar and unnerving voice called out, sending shivers up and down the young sidekick’s spine. His frenzied struggles resumed as his eyes followed the owner of the voice; a small, dwarfish man wearing child-styled clothing. “Look what the cat brought in. It’s Kid Dumbger,” the man announced, his voice annoyingly high pitched. “You look a little scared, Kid Danger. What’s the matter? Not so big and tough without your big brother, Captain Man, huh?”

“Where am I, Toddler?” Henry demanded, skipping straight to the important questions.

“Tell me, Kid Dork, what’s the last thing you remember?” the villain asked as he walked around Henry, disappearing from his limited vision. The teen boy wracked his brain, bits and pieces coming back to him slowly, but surely.

“I was watching Minyak. And…” he started, hesitating as he tried to figure out exactly what had happened.

“Go on,” Toddler pushing, suddenly appearing by his shoulder.

“I-I-I don’t know. I guess I fell or something? I just remember standing on this platform pretty high up and then I was on the ground on my back.”

The villain moved to stand in front of the boy, smirking at him as he crossed his arms victoriously.

“Well, allow me to help you fill in the blanks. It was all a trap for you , Kid Danger . We knew you’d come for Minyak so we set up this whole thing to lure you in. While you were standing on that platform, one of my goons crept up on you and threw you over the bars. You landed on your back on the floor and passed out. You owe us a lot already for having someone come in and fix your back. Had you been any higher, you’d be paralyzed from the waist down.”

“Oh, so I’m supposed to say thank you after you had someone throw me down a couple flights of stairs?” the boy asked sarcastically and Toddler’s lips thinned as he pressed them tightly together.

“Not very grateful, are you, Kid Dumpster? Don’t worry. We’ll teach you how to be grateful in no time. For now, just rest.”

“What? Are you kidding? I can’t rest? I’m stuck in this stupid device standing up.”

Henry was instantly cut off as the villain revealed a needle full of clear liquid, moving to the boy’s neck. The sidekick instantly reacted, struggling to stay out of reach of the needle and the villain, but was unsuccessful as he felt a rather sharp pinch in the skin of his lower neck, just above his collar bone. His limbs grew heavy, his mind filling with fog, and his vision swayed as the effects of the liquid took hold of his mind and body.

“I want my mom,” he whimpered slightly, unable to think clearly through the fog of his mind, and the Toddler once again pressed his lips together, this time in thought.

“Too late, Kid Danger. Sleep now. I’ll be back later to check up on you.”

With that, the teen’s head dropped down, his dirty blond hair falling into his face, as he passed out, unable to fight the drug’s effects any longer.

As the Toddler stepped out of the room, thoughts began to roam uncontrollably through his mind. Sure, they all knew that Kid Danger was just a teen. They all could still remember the day the fifteen year old appeared as Captain Man’s sidekick, thwarting the Toddler’s plans on his very first day. He had been an annoying little twerp, gradually growing into the seventeen year old he was now but with the same sarcastic and smart-ass attitude. Still, just now, the words the boy had whimpered echoed in his mind, reminding him that the boy was still, in fact, just a young boy.

Shaking his head, the villain made his way out into a larger room filled with various other villains that held a vendetta against Kid Danger for getting in the way.

“Well? Can we go in?” an extravagantly dressed man asked quickly, raising his head slightly, yet elegantly, and the Toddler shook his head slowly.

“Not yet. I gave him some anesthesia to knock him out for a bit. He wasn’t quite aware of anything when I went in so, give him some time to sleep everything off and then someone can go in,” he responded confidently, knowing that the villains would probably eat him up alive if he showed any weakness or unsuredness in his decisions.

“Fine,” Frankini responded before motioning to his goon, Goomer, to follow him over to a plush-looking couch. They plopped down and the other villains continued to walk around, discussing their various payback techniques to each other.

~~~

Definitions:

(1) Pillory - a wooden framework with holes for the head and hands, in which an offender was imprisoned and exposed to public abuse

What a pillory looks like:

Chapter Text

“Wakey wakey!”

Henry stirred slowly to the voice, loud and surprisingly feminine . He groaned as he peeled his eyes open, everything still foggy and heavy, his tongue tasting like cotton had been shoved into his mouth. He blinked a couple times as his eyes adjusted to the harsh white light of the room and a movement near his side caused the boy to jump in surprise.

“Long time no see, Kid Danger,” the girl greeted as she moved into eyesight, a large blaster clutched tightly in her hands.

“Heather?” he murmured, confusion and shock coursing through his veins. “What?”

“Let me stop you there, sweetheart. I’m simply here to get my revenge after you kept me away from my Neal Diamond. And yeah, I’m not a gymnast. So, just get over yourself and quit being an ass about it.”

“That was never yours to steal,” the boy responded, attempting to sound tough and strong despite his current circumstances.

In response, the blond girl came up to him and gently slid a finger under his chin, tilting his head upwards.

“I’m going to enjoy this so much,” she cooed softly before moving backwards and grabbing a pair of goggles from her back. She slid them on before aiming the gun at Henry’s face.

“Say cheese, Kid Danger,” she sang before pressing a button on the gun. Bright light exploded throughout the room, so bright that he flinched, squeezing his eyes shut. Still, the light penetrated his eyelids and burned his eyes while a scream tore its way out of his mouth.

The girl made a sound similar to turning off a blaster and the boy tentatively opened his eyes before blinking them harshly, trying to clear the white that completely covered his vision.

“I-I can’t see! What’d you do!” he yelled as the amount of fear he’d never felt before washed over him.

“Oh, just a little special something for you. Don’t worry, Kid Danger. It’s not permanent…” she paused for a second, “... I think.”

“You think?!” Henry yelled before something hard slapped against his cheek, silencing him.

“And that was for meddling in the first place and ruining my date that night. Good luck with your eye-sight. I hope you’re blind for the rest of your fucking life.”

Heels clicked against the floor and away from the restrained boy before he heard the door open and shut. Henry waited in tense silence for a couple moments, making sure she had truly gone, before he allowed himself to shed a couple tears, his emotions completely distressed and all over the place.

What the hell was happening? The sidekick couldn’t understand any of this. After all, these villains were supposed to be behind bars! The boy hadn’t heard of any of them breaking out; Ray had never told him otherwise.

As he got a grip of his emotions, he tried to think up a plan. If he could just get his hands free, then he could either dial Ray’s emergency line or even break himself free. Even though the second option seemed less likely to happen, it was the option he liked the most. The thought of punching his thoughts into any villain here appealed to him.

Slowly, the tears dried on his face and he bit his lip, attempting to twist his right hand free of the hole it was currently trapped in. He turned it left and right, pulling on it each time to see if he could get any leeway on freeing his hand. Impatience got the best of him, though, and he gave his wrist a rather sharp yank. A pop rang out and pain radiated through his wrist and up his arm, telling him that something wrong had happened. Something very wrong. Just as he was about to cry out from the pain, the door slammed open and the boy’s body stiffened, his lips pressing together as he swallowed down the whimper threatening to escape.

“Hello, Kid Danger,” the familiar, stuck-up voice called and the boy swiveled his head towards the voice, nervous energy practically radiating off the young teen.

“Doctor Minyak?” he guessed quietly and the man grunted in response, obviously not in the mood to carry a conversation.

“What are you going to do? Bore me to death with one of your long speeches?”

That got a reaction from the villain; a sharp pain began to burn in his left cheek just seconds after he heard the snap of something. Tears slipped out of his blinded brown eyes, the salty liquid making his cheek hurt even more, and he flinched away from the pain and the thought of him crying in front of a villain.

“Well, Kid Dunger, what’d you think of my whip? Painful enough for you?”

The boy wanted to retort, to say something that belonged to his normally sarcastic and quippy nature, but his mind told him otherwise, his burning cheek reminding him of the consequences.

“Hmm. I’ve never heard you so quiet before, Kid Dunger. Is there something the matter?”

The boy still remained silent, his mouth clamped shut, and he heard the man move behind him, the leather whip dragging loudly on the floor.

“Oh well. I’ll be getting something out of you in a matter of moments. Please, stay still so that I can properly remove your upper clothing. That way, I can get to your back easier.”

‘What?’ Henry wanted to speak up, to ask what the villain wanted, but the fact that he had a whip and was planning on taking off his shirt and silver chestplate was enough to help him figure it all out.

He shivered anxiously as the man cut off his clothing, leaving only his pants, gloves, and boots intact. Cold air hit the pale skin of his back, raising goosebumps up and down his bare body, and he shivered again, waiting for the first sting to happen.

A couple tense seconds passed before he heard the snap of the whip, pain ripping brutally through his shoulders. He cried out, clenching his fists tightly as the whip snapped again, more pain burning itself into his back. The whip continued to snap, raining down blow upon blow over his shoulders, spine, and lower back, and his cries grew louder with each lashing.

He could smell the blood, could feel it slipping down his ribs before dripping to the floor, and his mind screamed for him to just pass out, to go under the calmness of unconsciousness so that he could be free of all this pain. Thankfully, he could feel his consciousness slipping from his grasp, his body slumping down as everything went dark and he was floating once again.

~~~

The sound of an alarm blaring caused a man to stir from his slumber, the whole room dark and comfortable. Slowly, he reached over and picked up his phone, checking the caller’s I.D. before answering.

“What’s up, Kyle?” the man asked, listening as the other person spoke quickly on the phone. He sat up sharply, his tired demeanor turning to that of pure anger and worry.

“Where’d you say they were holding him at? Okay. And you’re sure. It’s Kid Danger they’re doing this stuff to?”

The man stood up, moving to stand in front of a window, his blond hair and pale eyes making a perfect contrast with his bright blue eyes.

“Okay. Let me put on my bandana and then I’ll head back to Swellview. I’ll see you when I get there. Thanks Kyle.”

The man scooped up his black bandana, tying it across his forehead, and grabbed his leather jacket, tugging it over his shoulders.

“Hold on, Henry. I’m coming,” he whispered as he rushed out of his apartment room and locked the door behind him.

Chapter Text

Too soon, Henry stirred from his slumber, his body roaring with pain. He couldn’t stop it, keep it in. He wouldn’t have tried, even if he could. The teen let out a scream, raw agonizing pain and anger making itself known in his loud cry. Not long after he did so, he heard that damn door open again, letting in another villain to do as they pleased with him.

“Prepare to fight,” a voice commanded quietly but the boy continued to stay slumped down, too tired to really deal with anyone.

“You aren’t looking very feisty anymore, Kid Danger. What happened? Did they already break your spirit?”

“Just do what you have to do, Dr. Karaté,” the boy responded, his voice shaky and weak, and his good hand clenched tightly into a fist.

“Ah, there it is! Well, we’ll just make this quick, yeah?”

Before Henry could think, the villain landed a solid karate chop to his wrist and the boy clenched his jaws tightly shut, having no strength left to even whimper. The man kicked his leg hard before landing another karate chop to his ribs, efficiently breaking the bone just like he had with the boy’s wrist.

As he beat Henry up, he hurled insult after insult at the boy, berating him and attempting to beat the cruel comments into the teen’s mind. When he finished, both were breathing heavily but the boy remained rather silent, despite the wheezing that came out of his mouth with each breath he drew.

The door opened and the man grunted to someone before leaving, obviously done with him.

“Kid Danger, you aren’t looking too good,” the Toddler stated calmly as he moved around, checking out the boy’s condition. His back was a bloody, bruised mess, dark scarlet red lines zig zagging across his bare, pale skin. Blood, both new and old, streaked over his back and shoulders, making trails down both sides of his ribs, and there was a pool of blood just below the boy, staining the floor gruesomely. As he moved around, he looked at the multiple variety of bruises that littered his arms, torso, and even his face, his left wrist and right wrist both looking rather wrong .

He stopped at the boy’s face, noting that the left side of his face was swollen with a forming bruise. His right cheek was red and inflamed, a bright red cut stretching from his eyebrow and down to his chin. His brown eyes, which were normally so clear and quick, moved sluggishly and his irises were pure pinpoints, suggesting blindness. Whether it was permanent or temporary, Toddler didn’t know and he could care less.

The boy looked exhausted, weak, and pale, and for a moment, the villain wondered if maybe he could use a break to rest some more before more villains came in. Shaking his head, he pulled out his lunch box and began to shift through small glass jars full of liquids.

“Toddler?” the boy called out, his voice strained and hoarse, and the villain stopped, turning back to look at the boy.

“How long have I been here?” he asked, his voice still rather small-sounding, though it was now clearer after he had cleared his throat.

“Umm, a couple days now. You were out for two or three days after you passed out from being pushed off the platform. Every time you’ve passed out since, you’ve stayed under for approximately a day,” the villain responded, calculating each day in his mind.

“So I’ve been here almost a week,” the boy responded, concluding with the same amount of days as the villain.

“Yep. Sure have. Now, be quiet. I’m doing something and I need to focus.”

The boy remained silent as the Toddler set out different jars, placing them one-by-one on the table by the door. He tugged out an IV bag, tubing, and the needle and sat them down on the table as well before using a separate needle to carefully measure out the contents of the bottles, squirting them into the bag one-by-one.

“Can I… Can I have some water, please?” the boy whispered and the Toddler huffed as he finished up the last needle-full of liquid, pleased with the fact that the IV bag was now halfway full of the liquids.

“You’ll get enough liquids from this IV. So, no,” he responded as he moved to grab an IV stand from the corner of the room. He swiveled it to the boy’s right side and connected the tube to the bag before hanging it on one of the hooks. He took the IV’s needle and located a vein on the boy’s upper arm, pushing it in before taping it down. The teen didn’t even react, his body remaining heavy and relaxed. The Toddler finished hooking up the IV and stepped back as he watched it drip down, flowing into the boy’s body rather quickly.

As soon as Henry felt the liquids forcing themselves into his body, he let out a sigh, his mind drifting away as a drug-induced high swept through him.

“Ah, there you go. No more worries. Just a happy, more-willing teen,” the Toddler spoke as he moved back to his box and put everything back in. He glanced back at the teen, debating on whether or not he was doing something potentially life-risking but saw the peaceful, relaxed look on his face and decided that he didn’t care. He left the room with his box, leaving the boy to enjoy the bliss of being on a high.

“Your go,” he murmured as he passed by an impatiently waiting Frankini, turning slightly to watch as the extravagant young man moved gracefully into the room.

Henry heard the sound of the door opening once again and blinked his eyes a couple times in an attempt to clear them enough to see. He ended up with the same result as before; nothing but pitch black.

“Oh, Kid Danger,” a voice sang as heels clicked on the floor. “Did you miss me?”

“Why would I miss any of you?” Henry responded, already growing quite exasperated with this conversation. He just wanted it done and over with so that he could return to the high. He wanted to go back to enjoying his life, not hating it.

“You know, Kid Danger. I’ve always wondered what you carried underneath all that clothing. Sure, the spandex is tight but your pants don’t help show anything off.”

“Why would you wonder something like that, Frankini? I’m only seventeen. I’m like twenty years younger than you.”

Frankini scoffed, offended, but chose to ignore the comment about their exaggerated age difference. Instead, Henry felt some tugging on his pants, the sound of fabric being cut and ripped scared him. The boy felt his pants slip off his frame, dropping to the floor in rags and leaving him in only his boots, gloves, mask, and boxers. Judging from the mood the villain was obviously in, he figured the last article of clothing wouldn’t last much longer on his smaller frame either.

He felt something thin and long slide up his boxers, starting just beyond his balls before stopping at his hole and poking in slightly. The boy grunted as his body tensed against the touch, his nervousness rising even more.

“Don’t worry, Kid Danger. We’re going to have a lot of fun, you and I.”

~~~

As soon as he entered the city of Swellview, Drex pulled out his phone and dialed a number, one that he had used a lot whenever he’d fight Henry Hart or Captain Man. The other person picked up on the second ring, muttering something with an exasperated tone.

“Yeah. I know. I’m glad to hear from you too. Anyway, listen. I need you to gather medical equipment and find me at that five-star hotel. Yeah. Give me thirty minutes. Yeah. Grab everything you can possibly take. Thanks.”

He hung up the phone and turned his attention fully back on the road, his fingers wrapped tightly around the steering wheel and his knuckles turning white from the tight grip. His blue eyes flashed around, looking for Kyle so that he could go get Henry. Those stupid villains had crossed a line, that was for sure.

Chapter Text

As Drex stalked down the hallway, following Kyle, the man who had, at one point, fought with Kid Danger due to matching on some kind of app, he struggled to keep his patience and calmness. Storming into a room full of villains wouldn’t be the greatest idea, indestructible or not, and even he knew it. At the same time, he couldn’t help but grow angrier with each step. He could hear Henry’s screams and cries, echoing throughout the small, hidden-away building, his voice raw and desperate.

“Are we almost there?” he finally asked and Kyle turned back to face him, his facial expression worried and on-edge.

“Yeah. Almost. Just a couple more feet and then we’ll be in the waiting room part. How are you going to get the kid out without too much fighting?”

Drex curled his fingers into tight fists before holding up his mutated hand, the claw’s sharp and pointed.

“They’ll leave. Just watch and see.”

Kyle shrugged and they resumed the long, silent walk, disturbed by the occasional choked scream that belonged to his archnemesis.

After a couple more minutes of walking, they finally arrived at the end of the hall, a door leading into the “waiting room” for villains. Brochures were pinned to a board on one side of the wall by the door, waving softly in the air as the two men passed them. The ex sidekick hesitated and backed up, taking a look at a pamphlet that had caught his attention.

It advertised the plan of capturing Kid Danger, inviting any and all villains to come to the waiting room with whatever they wished to use on him. Disgust made the blond man wrinkle his nose, a strong urge to vomit due to the fact that they advertised this shit in the first place. He ripped the pamphlet off of the board and shredded it into tiny pieces, dumping them onto the hardwood floor while Kyle simply watched on, his expressional carefully neutral and blank.

“Alright. Let's go,” Drex grunted. The other man pulled open the door, holding it to allow Drex entrance, and he walked in, his gaze sweeping over the room. A handful of villains with their goons stood around in the room, chatting and showing off tools, weapons, and other items that they had brought with them.

His gaze finally landed on the mastermind of this whole place, locking onto the short, dwarf-sized man, and he squared his shoulders and stalked up to him, easily grabbing him by his shoulders and shoving him against the wall so that they were eye-level.

“D-d-drex?” the Toddler stammered, shocked and surprised to see the villain in person. “I - we thought you left Swellview? What are you doing back?”

“Why would you think I left?” Drex hissed, raising an eyebrow and the Toddler nervously wiggled a bit, his gaze shifting nervously from side-to-side.

“I mean, you’d been gone almost a whole year, Drex. We just assumed you had found some better city to control. You know, like.. like an upgrade?”

“Oh,” Drex chuckled darkly, giving the poor villain a cold smirk. The Toddler laughed with him, obviously hoping that the major villain was in a good mood, rather than a horrible one. He’d received too many cuts, broken bones, and other painful injuries from the madman to know that no one should fuck around with him when he was in a bad mood.

“Get everyone out of the building, right now,” the blond villain growled out, strained control very evident in his gaze and voice. “If I see one more person, I will kill them with my bare hands. Move it .”

He let go of the short man and immediately, everyone was being herded out of the room with the simple explanation that they were closing down the building for the night. He threw a glance quickly at Drex before running out as well, crying like a spoiled brat that didn’t get their way.

Kyle entered the room, surprised, and Drex flexed his hands quickly, trying to ease some of the tension held in his body. Sure, he was a villain and was used to causing harm and chaos. But in all honesty, he was nervous too. The screams coming from the poor kid still echoed in his mind, even if everything was now silent. What would he find when he went to rescue Henry?

“Grab me as many blankets and towels as you can find, Kyle,” Drex urged and the two split up, the blond villain going towards the room where Captain Man’s sidekick was, while the black villain scurried around to find anything and everything he could get for Drex.

The blond man stopped at the door, hesitantly grabbing the knob, and pushed it open, the sight that met his gaze completely horrifying him.

The kid was a mess, that much could be said. Covered from head to toe in blood, the boy’s face was swollen and his eyes simply rolled around, not focusing on anything at all. He was alone, thank god, because the villain hadn’t been lying about killing the next person he saw.

Moving to the wooden pillory, the villain easily snapped the chains keeping the wood in place. He moved the top board away, freeing the boy’s neck and wrists. Then, without a second thought, he ripped out the IV that had been sitting in the boy’s skin, tossing the whole thing to the side.

“Easy, Hen, easy,” he murmured softly as he helped the boy move away from the messy area and to the clean couch, watching as the boy basically sank into the cushions before passing out.

He tugged off his leather jacket and wrapped it around Henry’s waist, covering anything he wouldn’t want seen, and turned back to the doorway, arms crossed as Kyle ran in with a huge pile of towels in his hands.

“Alright. Set them down here and help me get him wrapped up,” he urged the other man quickly and they set to work, not commenting on anything they saw. It was evident, though, that neither of them ever wanted to see the teen like this again. The boy, upon further inspection, had bruises littering his face and body, covering almost every inch of his pale skin. Red marks encircled his neck and wrists, proving that he had rubbed his skin pretty raw during his attempts to get free. There were a couple broken bones and his back was littered with whip lashings.

What bothered Drex the most was that the boy was completely nude, a white liquid smearing his upper thighs and waist. He knew what it meant, knew that someone had done this with not just a sidekick and a pure hearted boy, but also a minor in the eyes of the world. He didn’t even want to address that particular issue at the moment, knowing that he would lose all control over his temper if he did. 

After they got the teen wrapped up completely in towels, Drex picked him up carefully in his arms and made his way out of the building and to a waiting van that Kyle had brought for them. He climbed into the back, with the help of the black man, and laid Henry carefully on the foldable cot they had installed earlier that day. Taking straps from the cot’s sides, he carefully strapped the boy in place to keep him from rolling or falling off the make-shift bed. Then, ever so gently, he reached up to the boy’s face and nudged his dirty-blond bangs out of the way, running fingers through his soft, thick hair to keep it in line.

“Don’t worry, Kid. We’re out of there now. You’ll be taken care of, I promise. And those assholes will get the reckoning they deserve,” he murmured softly to the boy as he gingerly cupped his bruised cheek, a soft look passing over his face.

“Step on it, Kyle,” he called out as the man climbed into the driver’s side and, after a quick, “Sure thing!”, they sped off into the darkness of the night.

Chapter Text

Kyle didn’t follow Drex in; only the lowest of the low could be in a place like this. A large four story apartment building with broken windows and tattered sheets fluttering around inside the windows.

Carrying the wrapped boy in his arms, he made sure to keep his face tilted inwards, towards the grown man’s chest, to hide the mask on his face. Sure, it would’ve been easier to just take the mask off. No one would piece together that this boy was Kid Danger without his mask, but Drex refused to do things the easy way. He knew that, should Henry wake up with his mask off, he would panic and maybe even attempt to flee, which would result in further injuries.

As he turned a corner, he made his way up the old, crickety stairs and to the second floor, using his boot to kick open the door leading to the doorway.

He stalked down the hallway and to the end, turning to face apartment 2d, his apartment. He juggled around the boy’s body in his arms while patting himself down and eventually coming up with the key to the place. After unlocking the door, he entered and nostalgia slapped him in the face as the door shut softly behind him.

Damn.

He hadn’t been in this apartment in what felt like ages, the last time being when he last fought against Ray and Henry. Sure, he’d continued paying the rent just in case he had decided to come back but there was a difference between paying for a place and living in it.

Henry groaned softly, shifting slightly in his arms, and the blond man snapped back to reality, remembering the young teen in his arms. He maneuvered himself and the boy around stacked boxes and old master plans, heading straight to the bed on the far corner of the room.

As he lowered him gently onto the mattress, the towel faintly fell away from Henry, revealing a pale hipbone discolored with purple, black, and blue bruises. Drex traced a finger lightly over the bruise, unable to imagine the pain the boy must’ve gone through before he had gotten to him.

He let out a slow sigh before gingerly tugging the towel back over the boy’s body, wrapping him up tightly while pulling out his own pear phone. Typing a quick message, he then returned his attention to the boy, afraid that if he took his attention off of him too long, the boy would simply disappear and reappear in that horrible place he’d just been in.

The minutes ticked by, only disturbed by the fighting of the neighbors next door or whenever Henry shifted around in the bed, obviously uncomfortable and in a lot of pain.

Finally, after what felt like years but was actually more along the lines of half an hour, there was a soft knock on the door. Then, the door opened and shut and a man walked in, carrying a medical bag in his hands, large framed glasses perched on his nose.

“So, Drex. How’d you get injured this time? By the way, you need to come up with your own supplies next time. I am not losing my job because -” the man started rumbling as he came over to the villain, only to stop as his gaze landed on the boy.

“That’s Kid Danger?”

“Mhmm,” Drex grunted, crossing his arms, and the doctor swallowed nervously, his gaze flickering back to the villain.

“Did you?” he asked, motioning to the unconscious boy and the blond man shook his head quickly, denying what the man was obviously implying.

“No, I didn’t. I rescued him from his abusers. Now, will you please take care of him?”

The man nodded and, with the help of Drex, got the boy unwrapped from the towels and situated on his stomach so that they could check out his back without a struggle.

“None of his injuries are too severe, thankfully. At least, none of the physical ones are. The mental injuries this boy may have might be too deep for even the best psychiatrist to help him.”

As if just talking about him was a trigger, the boy’s eyes snapped wide open, brown eyes shooting around with wild fear. He shot up on the bed, lurching out of it quickly like a drunkard, and Drex barely grabbed a hold of the boy before he could get past.

“Kid, Kid, hey! HENRY!” As soon as the name left his lips, he managed to pin the boy’s arms and legs down to his sides, holding him close in a bear hug while the doctor urgently took out a needle and measured a dosage of sedatives to give to the boy.

As soon as the needle emptied its contents into the teen, he slumped down in Drex’s arms, his breath coming in sharp gasps as tears slipped down his swollen cheeks.

“Don’t… don’t let them. Drex, don’t let them. I don’t want-” he stammered, not entirely making a lot of sense due to his drug-ladened brain. Still, Drex held him close and slid a hand gently through his hair, stroking his head in an attempt to help him calm down completely.

“Don’t worry, Kid. I’ve got you. You have nothing to worry about. You’re safe, I promise.”

The boy softened, sobs turning into soft hiccups before silencing into soft breaths, Drex not loosening his hold until he was positive that the kid was completely asleep. Then, he gently moved the boy back to the bed and turned back to the doctor.

“Okay, that sedative should last quite a while. I’ll get him stitched up and you don’t have to worry about anything.”

Drex nodded and sat back in a chair nearby, not even bothering to engage in any chat with the other man in the room. The only time he moved was when he helped turn Henry from his stomach and back onto his freshly bandaged back so that they could better access his other injuries. By the end of it, everything that wasn’t bandaged was covered in blue and purple splotches, almost as if the boy had been dressing up for Halloween.

“Alright. We need to get some food and liquids in him. I don’t know how long he was trapped but it’s been long enough that he needs help. I’ll put in a feeding tube and an IV drip to give his body the nourishment it needs. Then, I’ll show you how to care for those things so that you can do it yourself.”

With that, the man set up the feeding tube, pushing it into Henry’s stomach through his nostril and taping it down on his cheek. After making sure the liquidy substance was going in at an appropriate speed, he put in the IV and connected it to a drip.

Drex watched closely as he was instructed on how to care for the boy as well as what the proper amounts were for each dose of food and liquids. It made him a little nervous, to say the least, to have so much responsibility over the boy. Should he mess up, the consequences could be severe enough that he’d have to release Henry over to the hospital and the authorities.

After everything was set up, the doctor left, telling Drex that he’d be back within the next week or so to check on the boy, and the blond fully looked at the boy, now that he was all patched up and covered with blankets. He was shivering ever so slightly, his skin clammy and wet, and the villain adjusted the blankets, tugging them up to the boy’s chin to keep him warm and comfortable.

“Look, you little douchebag, when you’re awake, you and I are going to have quite the conversation. I can’t keep coming back to Swellview to help you whenever you need it. You’re just lucky that I wasn’t too far away this time. Next time, though, if you aren’t careful, you might just end up dead and there’s not much I can do for you then.”

“I’ll pay you back eventually,” a small, weak voice croaked and the man’s blue eyes snapped to the boy’s face, doe-brown eyes barely visible under the bandages and the swelling. “I promise.”

“Awe, kid. You need to be resting. Go back to sleep.”

“Promise you’ll be here when I wake up?” the boy responded, fear thick in his voice. Tears had begun to gather at the boy’s eyes and he looked quite shaken, almost appearing like he’d go into a full blown fit if anyone were to even mention a hair out of place on his head.

“I promise. Now, sleep.”

Henry let out a quiet, shaky sigh, and his eyes fluttered as he drifted back off to sleep.

Chapter Text

The kid was probably out for a week straight, only stirring enough to blink sleep-filled brown eyes at Drex or to mumble a couple words before he passed out again. Most of the time, he didn’t make any sense, the words being jumbled up and random. Still, the blond villain would lean in closer to listen, pretending to understand exactly what he was saying, if only to make him feel heard.

After a week of tending to the boy’s feeding tube and IV’s while he slept, Bradley came back and checked over his injuries and overall health, his eyes never betraying his thoughts despite the conditions.

A couple minutes passed, Drex sitting in the chair pulled up beside the bed with his arms crossed. He was growing rather impatient with the man, worry and frustration gnawing away at his self-control. Bradley straightened, pushing his glasses back up on his nose, and swiveled his gaze to the villain. In response, the blond man leaned forward, preparing himself mentally for anything the man might say.

“He’s doing really well, Drex. You’re taking great care of him. We can remove the tube and the IV. Just make sure he keeps eating and drinking water. I recommend soups, applesauce, basically anything mushy and easy to swallow.”

Drex sighed, his tight muscles relaxing at the news, and he nodded, just happy to hear that the boy was okay. The doctor efficiently removed the feeding tube as well as the IV and disposed of it safely before giving Drex a thumbs up.

“I’ll be back in two or three weeks to check on how healed up he is. Until then, I’m sure you can take care of him just fine. Call me if anything pops up or you get worried.”

Drex simply grunted at Bradley, walking him to the door before locking it shut behind him. When he got back to his chair, he was startled by the fact that Henry’s eyes were open. They were clear and calm, despite having a heavily tired look to them, and the boy’s arm moved up, thin fingers lightly touching Drex’s face as he knelt by the teen.

“You are real,” Henry hummed softly, a vague look of surprise washing over his face. “I thought you might’ve been a dream I dreamt up.”

“Nope. I’m here, Henry. And I’m not going anywhere anytime soon. How are you feeling?”

He reached out to touch the boy’s forehead, his hand as light and gentle as his voice. The boy whimpered slightly, his eyes closing quickly, and the villain yanked his hand back quickly, thinking he might’ve hurt the boy in some way.

“I… I think I’m okay. I’m just really tired and sore. Things still hurt a lot.”

Almost as soon as the words left the boy’s lips, his eyebrows arched and he moved his hand, with a bit of difficulty, so that it was in front of his face. His eyes narrowed and widened as he moved his hand closer before moving it farther back.

“Umm, kid? Whatcha doing?” Drex asked, both curious and worried about the boy. Maybe he was being delusional again? He didn’t know and that made him more nervous than anything. Because, when Henry was going through delusions, he would say things he didn’t actually mean. Drex could still recall the first time Henry had one of his delusional episodes, just a couple days ago. He’d admitted (accidentally) to the villain that he had this plush unicorn that his annoying guy friend had given him back in elementary. The unicorn, named Franklin, was one of his prized possessions and he couldn’t go to bed at night without the plushie near him. Though, it was kind of a funny, humiliating story to the blond man, it was the reason why the boy had broken down, sobbing and demanding to know why his mother had sold it in a garage sale, mistaking Drex as one of his parents.

The villain didn’t know and was so lost at this point that all he could do was make up random excuses. None of them were good enough for the boy though and Henry had ended up simply crying himself asleep.

Henry hummed, drawing Drex back to the present, and he watched as the dirty-blond teen dropped his hand and closed his eyes.

“I just discovered I can see again, that's all.”

Okay. So it was a delusion, after all? Drex reminded himself to play it cool, knowing that just agreeing with the boy would have the best, most effective effect.

“Mhmm. So, when exactly did you lose your sight?” he asked, leaning forward a bit to rest his elbows on his knees.

“While I was with those criminals,” Henry started, a practiced neutral expression replacing his previously content look. “Heather came in and used this weapon to blind me. She didn’t know if it was permanent or not. I guess it wasn’t because I can see again.”

Wait, what? Drex’s eyebrows shot up in shock, surprised that Bradley had missed that when he was patching the boy up. Or maybe he knew and had known that it wasn’t permanent damage.

Henry’s eyes opened again, meeting the ex-sidekick’s blue gaze steadily.

“Why am I here, Drex? Why not just drop me off at Ray’s store? Schwoz could’ve taken care of me.”

At that, the blond scoffed, his face pinching into a sour expression.

“I wouldn’t trust that clumsy moron with my cat, let alone with a boy who’d just gone through hell. Sorry, kid. You’re going to be stuck with me for a bit until you get fully healed.”

“Would you at least let me call Ray? Or maybe one of my friends? I’m sure my parents are worried sick about me.”

Drex complied, tugging out his phone and handing it over to the boy before standing, dusting his pants off.

“Well, kid, I’ll give you some time to talk. I’m going to fix us some lunch. Hungry for anything in particular?”

The boy raised an eyebrow at him before shaking his head slowly.

“No thanks. I actually feel really full right now, so I’m good. Thanks anyway.”

Chapter Text

When Henry dialed up Charlotte’s number, he waited for the second ring before hanging up, his mind coming blank on exactly what he should say. He tried Jasper next, hanging up as soon as he heard the voice on the other end, piping up with a soft “Hello?”. Nibbling on his lips, he tried to come up with something to say, something that would explain what had happened to him without getting too deep into what had actually happened.

What had happened? He tried to summon every memory of his experience with the villains. He remembered being in a lot of pain and the bright light that flashed and blinded him. He couldn’t see but he could always tell who had come in to “teach him a lesson”. He had experienced Heather’s blinding gun, Dr. Minyak’s whip, and Dr. Karate’s beatings. Then there was Frankini.

The young teen let out a quick and rapid shutter as the feeling of the man’s fingers slid up and down his body, even though he wasn’t actually there. He could still feel him all over his body and he hated it. He felt disgusting, vile, used, and no longer pure. Were sidekicks pure? It doesn’t matter. If he wasn’t strong enough to rescue himself from the dangerous events he’d just lived through, what good could he actually do for anyone?

By the time Drex had reappeared with a tray of food for both of them, the teen boy was breathing rapidly, his face pale and arms wrapped tightly around his small, battered body. The phone, clutched rather tightly in his clenched fist, was beginning to crack under the strong grip he had, his chocolate brown gaze staring off at nothing.

“Kid!” the ex sidekick gasped as he pushed the tray into the chair cushions and came running straight to the boy’s side. His hands came up to grip the boy’s small, bony shoulders, and he forced him to turn and look at him.

“Kid, relax. Breathe, talk to me. What’s going on?” he urged softly, trying to break through to catch the young sidekick’s attention.

“I-I-,” Henry stammered, his gaze shifting around the room, purposely avoiding Drex’s piercing gaze. “I don’t know. I just got to thinking… about… you know.”

“No, I don’t know, kid. If you’d tell me, maybe I’d understand a bit more. But you’re not really being helpful with such a vague answer. Is it something I did? Something I said? Did one of your friends upset you? I can’t help you if you won’t let me in.”

“N-no, nothing like that. It’s just..” Henry hesitated, his body fidgeting under the ex sidekick’s grip.

“I don’t want to talk about it right now.” 

With that, the boy abruptly yanked the blankets up over his head, stubbornly refusing to remove them when Drex asked him to.

Drex was stumped, completely and utterly. How did a parent reason with their stubborn teens? How do they get their teens to talk to them? He didn’t know and that bothered him more than anything, knowing that he really couldn’t help the dirty blond if he wouldn’t let the older man in.

He let out a brisk sigh and sat a plate of food on the nightstand by the bed, throwing the boy’s form another glance before picking up his own plate.

“Alright, kid. That’s fine. Your food is on the nightstand. I’ll eat in the kitchen and give you some space.”

He moved back to the kitchen, occasionally peeking out to make sure the kid actually ate his food. By the time he’d finished, Henry had taken a couple of bites out of the small bowl of applesauce.

The ex sidekick made his way to the chair beside the bed, watching with a saddened gaze as the teen boy simply tugged his blankets up over his head once again. He hated seeing Henry like this; dull and almost-lifeless. He wanted so desperately to just grab the boy in a hug, hold him close, and whisper to him that everything was going to be just fine.

He didn’t know that though. He didn’t know if everything was going to be fine for the teen ever again. Anger coursed through his veins, hot and harsh, and he stood up again and tugged on his wraps and headband.

“Kid, I’ll be back in about an hour or two. Stay here. I’ll lock the door so no one else can come in while I’m gone. You’ll be safe here. So, just rest.”

He proceeded to grab his jacket and his boots before stepping out of the apartment door, locking it behind him. As he walked down the hall leading to the exit, his fists clenched tightly as he tried to decide who to go after first.