"And I thought I was the villain!" I told my therapist. "I mean, I plot world domination and steal money like the next guy. I'm in it for myself and my own comfort and quality of life. I hope to make enough to acquire a small island to retire to where I will be left alone to my evil plotting. I am most definitely a villain!"
"What makes you feel that you aren't a villain any longer?" she inquires.
"About six weeks ago, I decided that my nemesis, Honor, and his team were getting in my way a bit too much. I realized that Honor himself really doesn't have much going for him other than brawn, and of course his 'brain,' Thinker. Deciding that Plot was probably the one making the tactical decisions that were thwarting me, I cooked up a plan to kidnap her. Without her, he would be completely lost! Sounds like a great plan, right?"
"It certainly seems like a well-thought-out plan. I assume it did not work as you'd intended?" she said.
"And you would be right! Oh, the kidnapping went off without a hitch. I captured her on the first try and put her into a nice holding cell in my temporary headquarters. She has a lovely suite. It has a bathroom, with privacy, and she even has a window. I can allow all of this because of the superior force field tech I developed."
"You definitely have a way with technology," she said, nodding.
"Thank you. I really do! Anyway, my plan at that point was to hold her, and when Honor showed up to rescue her I would use that technology to capture and imprison him as well. You see I had a new technique that makes the force field 'sticky.' If you touch it, it spreads over you and encapsulates you. With the right tool, you can then move that encapsulated pod to another location. Once I had taken him out, I planned to release her. She doesn't have the physical prowess to take me out, though she is a brilliant tactical mind. I even considered recruiting her so I was being extra kind to her."
"That is definitely sound planning on your part." she opined.
"Indeed. Well, as you know the first thing you do after a successful kidnapping is to talk to the victim about your plans. That's where it all started to go wrong."
"I started in about how I was going to trap Honor when he came for her, and Plot said, 'I'm sorry to tell you this but no one is going to come for me. Honor doesn't care one whit about me.' I was completely taken aback. I gathered myself and started again, but she started crying softly. She didn't even sob, tears just trickled down her face. She didn't even move to wipe them away."
"Now I assumed, as anyone would, that she was just trying to disarm me. She wanted Honor to be able to catch me unaware."
"Yes, that seems to make sense," she said.
"See, you agree! Of course, Honor was going to come for his teammate! His name is Honor!"
"A week passed and while Honor was going about his business around town, catching petty criminals and grandstanding for the cameras, no rescue attempt had happened. I went again to discuss my plan, and to let her know I hadn't let down my guard, and she reiterated that Honor didn't care about her at all and that he wasn't going to come. I guess I must have looked a bit frustrated because she once again apologized and even went so far as to praise some of my previous plans."
"You sound as though you were feeling very conflicted," she questioned.
"Yes, at this point I was wondering what I might have missed. I mean, this was his teammate after all. He was honor-bound, pun fully intended, to rescue her, and yet her she was after a week had passed looking resigned and trying to reassure me!"
"I reviewed the security tapes from her cell. I know, but I did mostly give her privacy! I am the only one who can review the tapes. In my review, I did not see anything that would indicate that she was coaching Honor not to rescue her, or giving him plans or suggestions. What I did see was her crying herself to sleep every night. Every night!"
"I admit that I started treating her better. I brought her better meals, and books to read. She was always appreciative and seemed to enjoy our conversations. By week four, I started bringing games to play; chess, checkers, Othello, Stratego. I started to enjoy her company."
"You seem to feel a connection to her," she said.
"Well, yes, I suppose, you know, as much as I ever do. It didn't stop me from reviewing the tapes! I continued to look for signs of messages, or betrayals. She still cries, every night. Every night! How can a hero, who calls himself Honor, just leave a teammate in the hands of his nemesis for a month and make no effort to rescue them? A month! I knew I didn't like this hero, but now I have had enough! Now he must go down."
"Do you think she loves him?" she inquired.
"Of course she does! Why else would she waste her tears on a fool like him? She is far too good for him. She is smart, and moral, and ethical, and so much better than he has ever been. She should be treated like the vibrant, intelligent, vivacious woman she is."
"Hmmm." she vocalized.
"So last week I hunted him down."
"Oh? How did that go?" she questioned.
"I caught him easily since he didn't have her help. I had him pinned, and was trying to decide his fate. So I asked him about Plot. Do you know what he said? Do you? He said, 'who cares.' Who cares? He went on to say that she was always telling him what to do and he was better off without her!"
"I took great pleasure in eliminating him."
"It sounds like you did not get the resolution you were hoping for from finally defeating your nemesis." she offered.
"Your damn right. I wish I could kill him again! Once was just not enough! What really bothers me though is...how do I tell Plot so that she doesn't think less of me?"