Disclaimer: I do not own Dr. Horrible's Sing-A-Long-Blog or any of its characters. All rights go to Joss Whedon and his gifted cast and crew.

AN: Seems like these chapters are getting a bit longer. Hmm. And, I like Nathan Fillion, so I kinda have a forced affection for Caption Hammer, so yeah… Also, this chapter's not quite as groomed as I would like it to be, but meh, oh well. Might be edited later, might not.


Subtleties

Things were beginning to unwind.

Plans were set into motion, and soon – soon – those plans would enter a perpetual force that would be self-sustaining. Plans that could move forward without the mad scientist in the mix who had been pushing it along.

But somehow those plans pushed him here. Here of all places.

For a long moment, Billy simply leaned against the doorway, pushing up useless glasses back up to the bridge of his nose. And for an equally long moment, he never even noticed him.

The once large frame that marked the build of a superhero, of the one and only Captain Hammer, didn't look so formidable now. He looked small, in fact, bent down and hunched over a single suitcase, bunching up sweater vests into it. Billy almost wanted to laugh, right then and there. This was the man who destroyed everything, took everything, and he didn't even know how to fold laundry, even after having Penny.

It seemed like a bad punch line to the universe's horrible joke.

"Going somewhere?" Billy's voice finally slicked out, like a snake slithering up to its prey, calm yet deadly. But also defensive and ready to strike.

The figure froze in front of him, suddenly shrinking further into the small apartment room.

Slowly, the man took in a shaky breath, as if he had to remind himself to do so, and stood up before turning to face him.

Billy already knew Hammer was leaving the city, tired perhaps of being martyred despite still breathing—which was exactly why he was here. But as Hammer turned to look at him, the hero's tired eyes sparked with something small, something lost, and Billy could see that he was stuck between the remember when's and if only's.

He knew exactly how it felt.

Now Hammer was going to leave the city, probably the state as well, but Billy couldn't figure out if the ex-superhero was being cowardly or brave, smart or foolish. It took him a moment (as it did for Hammer to gather himself and take a step forward) to remember that rights and wrongs didn't exist anymore. Things weren't black-and-white anymore, and heroes were just as gray and muddled up as he was.

Regardless, Billy remembered that his own departure was inevitable as well.

Hammer stood there, his eyes focusing and un-focusing as he obviously tried to remember to let go of his fear, to remember the words of his therapist and the harsh words of his by-gone fan club.

"What are you doing here?" the once-strong and commanding voice of his nemesis barked out. It was strange, Billy thought, how the sharp question didn't cut him like it once had.

And the villain couldn't help but smirk.

Even Hammer could see through his civilian disguise, looking every bit the doctor that he was but wasn't. Glasses, brushed back lengthening hair, a false name tag against his chest—it was amazing what ignorance taught society. Don't look, it won't happen to you; blend in, no one will notice you.

Apparently his silence concerned the hero, for he drew himself up to his full height defensively and curtly asked, "Are you going to kill me?"

The ELE villain detached himself from the door frame to step inside the opened door of the apartment, and smiled, for once loving the fact that Hammer was never subtle. But while the hero was straightforward in all ways, Billy was not. He dealt underhandedly, played victim and villain whenever it suited his needs, and he was a master of listening to unspoken words and fears. After all, that was all he had left, unspoken regrets and pleas that no one else could seem to hear as well as he could.

So Billy could easily hear Hammer's cries and pleas for him to do it, to make him the martyr everyone wanted him to be.

The villainous doctor was suddenly made more aware of the weight of the death ray, tucked away in the hem of his pants and underneath his shirt as it pressed against his back. The cold metal didn't warm up against his cold flesh, even as his thoughts grew darker, even as he bore witness to Captain Hammer's unspoken cries. The ex-hero wanted death, wanted the glory of dying by his hand, wanted everything just once more, wanted to be loved by the public once more, to even just be mentioned in the papers one more time.

But Billy knew more than anyone that "one more time" had a bitter sting. The sting of his own "one more time" was spreading throughout his veins, venom licking away the half-lived life within him—yes, Billy knew one more time was a fate worse than death.

Finally, Billy took a step closer to his once-enemy, and answered, "No."

It was a simple response, but it killed the small spark in Hammer's eyes, and Billy knew that his mercy was so great, that it was perfect revenge.

The little spark, however, didn't die without a fight. Before Billy could even blink, his body slammed against the wall, crushed beneath the weight of Hammer pushing forward against him, enraged snarl in his now-eye-level face.

Billy's heart stopped, his breath was kicked out from under him, but in his mind, he was secretly impressed that Hammer understood enough to feel jaded. He was also disappointed that Hammer was still so dull as to not question why.

The ex-hero held up his body with one hand and readied his other fist, intent shimmering darkly in his expression, in his listless eyes, and Billy felt time repeating itself. Hammer in front of him, fist ready to add a red coat of paint to his wall; Hammer above him, death ray in hand, neither aware that it couldn't kill its maker.

"Are you going to kill me?" Horrible asked from beneath Billy, but he wasn't sure if it was whispered or not, screamed or not.

At that moment, Hammer blinked, his snarl only fractionally softening, as he caught onto Horrible's carefully laid out subtly. Hammer for once, could hear the doctor's unspoken wish, if only because it exactly mirrored his own.

Do it.

Billy could see Hammer's thoughts as clear as an equation, tumbling against itself until it swallowed everything else whole and became an answer. He could also see the torture, the hatred, the regret, and Billy hated Hammer in this instant as much as he hated his own reflection.

They both lost what was most dear to them because of the other; he lost Penny, Hammer lost his invincibility and glory. They both lost what they had hoped would bring them love and were left hollow—Billy hated him because they were the same.

The hero's snarl returned, but his fist joined its brother around the collar of his shirt, and without any effort, slammed his body again onto the hard wall. Then again, and Billy could taste blood in his mouth.

"I hear Snow defeated you, doctor," Hammer sneered with anger-ridden words spitting on his face, joining a small trail of blood.

But he said nothing.

It earned him a punch in the gut.

"Defeated you, took your precious shelter." See, later I'm going to take little Penny back to my place, show her the command center…

Still, he said nothing.

And it was killing Hammer, "What are you planning?"

Billy finally met the hero's challenging gaze, facing his dare to deny that Snow wasn't on purpose. But the bags under his eyes, the absolute exhaustion also pleaded for him to say that it was part of a scheme, praying that no one had replaced him. He was hoping that even while the world forgot about him, that he at least still meant something to the person he had robbed from—to the person who had robbed from him.

Dr. Horrible, however, was not a merciful villain. Or, perhaps it was his mercy that made him so villainous.

"I came to take care of what's mine," he said instead, both ignoring his questions, spoken and silent, and telling him everything.

Really, it was a shame that Captain Hammer wasn't adept at Billy's art, and to prove it, Hammer shoved him further up the wall, burning his back. Billy coughed and really regretted having put the death ray in his pants—the skin, he knew, was broken were the gun was pressing into. He could feel the pain and blood trailing down his body.

"To tie up loose ends," Billy translated, voice squeaking through the hero's tight hold, but for a few reflexively frantic heartbeats, Hammer didn't move.

Neither moved nor breathed.

Then, at last, Hammer let go of his grip, not caring as Billy plummeted to the ground. But it was enough. The villain steadily got up onto his feet, brushing blood from his lips, and hated Hammer for his mercy as well.

They both hated each other enough to let the other live, and Dr. Horrible stirred within him, wishing to laugh a laugh that no one else was worthy of. The laugh that had always been meant for his ears alone.

"Loose ends, huh?" the hero mumbled loudly, including him on his inner musings, not bothering to hide the disappointment in his voice.

"Yes… But I won't kill you," he responded. Even Hammer noticed that the tone of his words whispered that killing him had been his original intent—to kill his worst enemy.

The both of them were different now though, shaped by their experiences. There was no urge now to dish out an evil monologue like he once loved to do (and would once stay up all night until he was sure he would get it right). Hammer didn't pose, didn't offer any so-called "banter", and instead was hunched over by the invisible weight of worthlessness.

The only difference between them now was desire. While Hammer wished to leave to start over, try again, Billy just wanted to disappear.

The ex-Captain nodded to no one, possibly answering a thought in his head, before turning away from Billy and back to his single suitcase.

In a way, Billy admired him.

After all, there was something to be said about simplicity. Hammer was a simple man, made complicated now only because of his presence. And Billy was brought to his door by a simple plan. Give Penny her peace, whether that meant reviving the homeless shelter, protecting an orphanage, or tying up all said ends, he didn't care. Hourglass had already confronted Snow, charming him with her talk of bravery and grandeur in the "future", and soon, she'll charm him into signing the building over to her.

Soon, Dr. Horrible would have his victory. Soon Penny wouldn't be the only one at peace.

The bulky figure paused as he shoved the last of his stack of clothes into the case and whispered without looking at him, "I want you to know… If I knew what would happen, I'd have let them put you away behind cold bars." A second passed, "The 'cold bars' is jail."

Regrets, loose ends, shared misery. Whoever said that sharing a burden made it lighter had obviously never had a burden in their life.

"No," Hammer shook his head, correcting himself again, "I'd have beat you until you stopped breathing."

At this, Billy smiled, a small jaded thing, as he remembered fists that once beat him into a bloody, non-resisting pulp. Those same fists had also waved the police away, once claiming that the small-time villain wasn't worth the paperwork of jail time.

But Billy was a master of the unspoken and knew even then that Hammer had loved his fearless and stubborn spirit, had loved trying to beat it out of him; after all, Hammer would hold back just enough for Dr. Horrible to recover quickly and come back to play.

The ex-Captain Hammer closed the case, not yet locking it, and turned around, hope still sparking in his eyes.

I would have killed you, he told him, and he meant it. But he also was hoping that it was stepping on his toes, that he'll change his mind and strike him like the poised snake he was.

Blue eyes slid closed as Billy dipped his head before turning to leave.

Hammer was no longer his to take care of now, so he walked as straight as he could, with injuries he was used to bearing, back to the still-opened doorway.

But before he disappeared down the hallway, Billy hesitated.

His arch-nemesis… Softly, he brought a hand against the doorframe to better support his wounded weight, as his mind halted at a revelation that he had always known. Captain Hammer was no longer his worst enemy, and while Hammer was far from forgiven, the only other person Billy planned to kill was reserved for the new owner of that title, for the one who had let everything fall apart.

I would have killed you.

"I would have let you."

And Billy disappeared from his doorstep.


TBC

This was fun to write, I just hope it was okay to read… And MAN, I was writing this, and I thought that I was burying the two in UST (Unresolved Sexual Tension) =P ...No? Just me? Oh well, maybe one day I'll take this chapter and make it a slash-fic, haha. …Just kidding, by the way.

...I think.