Hey! I love your writing so much. I think I read almost all of your stories.
I was wondering if you could write an angst to comfort story with a henchman who made a minor mistake and is absolutely freaking out because their previous boss didn’t allow for mistakes and the Supervillain and current leader would comfort them?
I think it would be so cute!
Bonus point if the henchman is ruthless in fights and normally very stoic and cold.
I hope you have a nice and once again, I love your writing ❤️
Henchman braced as Supervillain swept into the room, their grandiose presence seeming to bring everyone in the office into a more upright posture. The henchman stood impassively with their hands clasped and head slightly bowed, awaiting any orders that might be heading their way after the rather dramatic entrance.
“Henchman. Grab Hero’s file for me, will you?”
Henchman knew a command when they heard one, just as they had been prepared for.
Supervillain brushed by, still speaking as they walked.
“You can stop with that ‘sir’ nonsense. I respect the dedication, but you could really stand to lighten up a bit. It’s Supervillain,” their boss called, rounding the corner into their private office before Henchman had a chance to retort.
It would take more than that to trip Henchman up. They knew the rules, and ‘sir’ was just the tip of the iceberg.
Fight well, follow orders, and keep their head down. That’s all Henchman knew how to had to do. The trap of casualness was not one they would be falling into anytime soon.
They walked briskly to a cabinet against the wall and jingled a small set of keys from their pocket. They found the correct one almost automatically and went straight for the initials they knew Hero would be filed under. They dug past a few folders, brow creasing as they passed the suspected location. Semi-frantically, Henchman pulled out two other drawers, digging through those too to no avail.
Henchman froze. Hero’s file. It was gone.
Numbly, their gaze shifted across the room to the shredder that they had used yesterday to purge some older files at the request of their supervisor. Their hand shook as they closed the drawer of the filing cabinet.
Follow orders, until they can’t. Then it becomes, accept what comes next.
Blankly, they stepped towards their superior’s office. They paused at the door, shoving all their thoughts down into a tiny box they sealed shut with the mental equivalent of an excessive amount of duct-tape.
They could face the punishment. They always could.
The door opened with a click and Henchman allowed their jelly-filled legs to carry them into the center of the room, stopping there and reassuming the stiff posture and clasped hands that they reserved solely for moments spent in the presence of their boss.
“You can just set it on the desk,” Supervillain voiced dismissively, not looking up from the task at hand, which seemed to be signing some papers spread out in front of them. When no file placed itself on their desk, Supervillain rested their pen and questioned, “Is there something else?”
When they received no response, the supervillain lifted their head and immediately took notice of their employee’s current state.
“Henchman, are you alright?”
Supervillain had risen from their large leather arm chair and was now heading towards their subordinate.
“You just look a little pale. Come, sit down will you?”
They grabbed Henchman by the shoulders and led them to sit down in the chair that they had just occupied.
They hadn’t so much as touched the cushion before the words started to spill out of their mouth, lacking the usual curtness Supervillain had grown used to during Henchman’s lengthy employment.
“The file. I’m sorry. I must have misplaced it yesterday with some old papers. It’s not an excuse,” they added hurriedly. “I know and I understand that you need to-“
Their boss shot observant eyes to Henchman’s hands, which they had unknowingly started wringing in their lap.
“Is that what this is about? The file?” Supervillain questioned incredulously.
Their stoic, ruthless fighter who had never been anything but absolutely dependable on the battlefield was now ashy as a ghost and squirming after being asked to deliver a file.
“I messed up. I know the consequences-” Henchman explained almost robotically before their boss cut them off.
“Consequences? Henchman, we can just print another one. They’re saved in the cloud. It’s no big deal. It takes, like, two minutes. I know the printer is slow but it’s certainly not worth crying over.”
Crying? Henchman would never-
Oh. There was liquid trailing down their cheek now, running from the corner of their eye to the bottom of their jaw.
Oh no. Their boss would never forgive them for this.
Henchman braced for sharpness, but Supervillain met them with nothing but soothing words.
“Breathe, Henchman. Breathe.”
Supervillain still had them by the shoulders, but now they were in front of them, kneeling and modeling deep breaths with their whole body and maintaining eye contact with a completely frozen Henchman.
“Are you breathing? I don’t hear anything.” Supervillain shook them gently and their employee finally took one big breath in without breaking the rigid professional composure they were still so desperately clinging to.
“That’s it.” Supervillain encouraged, signaling them to release the breath with an exaggerated deep sigh through slightly pursed lips. “You’re doing so well.”
Henchman’s facade broke with a loud, hiccuping sob.
At that, Supervillain wasted no time smothering them with a tight hug, holding on for long enough that Henchman was able to stop hyperventilating and start matching the pace of the lungs pressed up against them.
Only when Henchman’s face started to burn hot with embarrassment from their situation did their superior finally pull away, but only far enough to look them in the eye as they spoke.
“You transferred from Villain’s office, correct?”
Henchman nodded in confirmation, sniffling quietly and averting their eyes.
Supervillain went right back into the embrace and continued it for as long as Henchman let them.
A few tissues and a short talk on acceptable treatment of workers later, Supervillain eventually exited their personal office, entering the greater office area and addressing the first worker that they encountered.
“Other Henchman, pull Villain’s file please. Send me the address.”
Other Henchman nodded, immediately sliding their chair over to the nearest filing cabinet and beginning to thumb through the labels in the drawer.
“Got it,” Other Henchman signaled by waving a file in the air, already typing out a message on their computer.
“I think it’s time I pay someone a visit,” Supervillain declared as they sauntered out the doors, their phone dinging with what was undoubtedly the location of their newest nemesis.
