𝒞ℋℰℛℛ𝒴 𝒦ℐ𝒮𝒮ℰ𝒮, 𝒞𝒪ℒℬ𝒴 ℳ𝒜𝒟𝒟ℰ𝒩

|03| 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞.

☡

𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐏𝐑𝐀𝐖𝐋𝐄𝐃 lazily across the couch, her head resting on a pillow and her legs curled up underneath her. Colby sat beside her, arms crossed, a frown etched on his face as he listened to Vic launch into yet another over-the-top story. Eva lounged on the floor, her chin resting on her hand, while Amy flipped through a comic book. Jake was leaning back in the armchair, half paying attention, and Hartley was perched on the ottoman, eyes wide as she absorbed every word.

"Oh. And this one time," Vic began, his hands gesturing wildly, "I made a hundred clones of myself so I could rob a hundred banks at once. Yeah, it was all fun and games until one of the clones got weird and forced us to call him Papa."

Hartley gasped. "A hundred clones? That's insane!"

"And what about that time I used my sonic scream to distract Captain Valor so Jake could crush him with a boulder?" Eva added, a wicked grin spreading across her face.

Jake leaned forward, eyes gleaming. "That was epic. Totally epic."

Aveline rolled her eyes but smiled a little, amused by the ridiculousness of it all. "You guys really went all out," she said, shaking her head.

Colby, however, sat stiffly, jaw tight. He couldn't hide his irritation. "So... where was I while you're all off doing those horrible things?" he asked, voice sharp.

"Ah," Vic said, waving a hand. "With the babysitter."

Hartley blinked. "Wait... supervillains use babysitters?"

Eva snorted. "Okay, fine. We left them home to play with the rats," she admitted with a smirk.

Aveline laughed softly, covering her mouth with her hand. "I'd say I'm horrified. But from what I know about you guys, that's pretty on brand."

Colby's jaw tightened even more, his fingers drumming against his knee. "Hearing these stories just... reminds me that I never got to be a villain. I've waited my whole life to get a power, so I can prove that I'm not just... just the run-of-the-family type, and now... now I'll never even get a chance to fight with the rest of you."

A silence fell over the room for a moment. Even Hartley looked a little uncomfortable, and Aveline's brow furrowed as she reached over, lightly nudging his arm. "Colby... it's not like you won't get your moment," she said softly. "You'll find your thing. You just... haven't yet."

Colby muttered something under his breath, not meeting anyone's eyes. Vic, sensing the tension, quickly clapped his hands together. "All right, all right! Enough doom and gloom. Who wants to do a puzzle?"

Aveline tilted her head and raised an eyebrow, glancing at Colby. "Puzzle?" she asked, a small smile tugging at her lips.

Colby groaned, standing up abruptly. "Yeah, sure. Because nothing says villain bonding like a thousand-piece puzzle," he muttered, shaking his head as he stormed toward the door. "I'm going for a walk."