It's not every day that you get kidnapped on the first date.
But then again, not every girl is Charlie Delacqua. The daughter of a millionaire who made his fortune off of Superhero technology, it was really only a matter of time until someone...
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The next day was the worst one yet. Charlie's mood was lowest it had been since she first got kidnapped, and she couldn't bring herself to do much more than sit and count the number of stained ceiling tiles above her. There were thirty two and a half, all lined up and yellowed like the teeth of someone who drank a lot of coffee and didn't go to the dentist.
Or maybe it was like a piece of grid paper that you would use in math class, except someone had spilled their soda on the paper before they even began to use it. She brought up her hand, and began to trace math equations in the air.
It was kind of funny, Charlie thought, how your brain gave you something to think about when you were totally and completely bored. Read the back of a lotion bottle, count the flowers on the bedspread, tie the loose fibers of the rug into a braid. Anything to keep from going crazy, she assumed.
After a while she grew bored of the ceiling tiles and ran a hot bath. Well— as hot as she could get the water to be, which was just a shade warmer than lukewarm. Once in the tub she set to work counting the ugly carnations on the ugly, peeling wallpaper. Sixteen in each row, watery and moldy. Some of them were just muddy pink blobs.
A sudden knock at the door barely did anything to pull her out of the trance.
"Are you dead in there? I hope you're not dead. I'm really not in the mood to haul your body off to a landfill."
With the filtered, robotic voice, it was hard to tell if she was joking or not. Charlie didn't know if she was capable of humor anyway.
"I'm only dead on the inside."
Charlie tried to say it back just as flatly, but it mostly just came out whiny.
The door to the bathroom started to jiggled and Charlie screeched And hopped up, nearly slipping and actually dying in the process.
"You can't come in here! I'm naked!" Charlie said, scrambling for her clothes.
"Uh, Okay. I was just going to let you know there's a call on the secure line again. I need to grab it before they hang up and—"
Charlie slapped her clothes on without drying off and busted through the door, not hesitating one bit as she grabbed Shadow Witch's hand.
"Uh—"
"What are you waiting for? Houdini me into there!" Charlie said.
Shadow Witch sighed and snapped at the same time. This time the teleportation barely phased her, only making her feel a little bit disoriented. After just a minute or two she was able to happily walk over and stand beside the chair Shadow Witch always sat in.
Once again, it was her father on the screen, only this time Copper Knight was with him. He stood a little off to the back, his hands behind him and a stern, unpleasant look on his face.
"Hello, Mr. Delacqua. Have you finally come around to my terms?" Shadow Witch said evenly. She spoke fats, as if she was trying to get the first word in.
