Chapter Two

MR. V

The elevator ride felt slower than normal and Mr. V noticed that Ms. Scatter patted her hand on her hip rather impatiently. It was a rarity to see Ms. Scatter, of all people, to be so openly nervous and anxious. She wasn't even this nervous when she had to speak with the Villains to propose the campaign to them. She took it in full stride and seemed to have no problem in speaking with them one on one. Though Mr. V could hardly blame her, this was not a night to be scatterbrained and accidentally ruin all their hard work; especially since they were all her previous employers. Mr. V himself was nervous but clenched his cane to help conceal the things he did not want the Villains to see. None of them could show any signs of weakness else they risk the villains swooping in and taking advantage of it. The four Hosts had put everything towards this plan for the last five years, and they would all see to it that this went as perfectly as possible.

Once the elevator finally touched the first floor, the doors opened with a ding and Ms. Scatter gasped at the sight of the hooded crowd. Mr. V covered his own mouth with his hand to hide his own excitement. All the Villains came. All the Original Villains came, and they brought their Recruits. He had counted the heads earlier, but it still seemed too good to be true. It was all coming true for them, things finally looked like it would go the way they wanted; now they just needed to get the rest of the Villains onboard with them. Ms. Scatter pushed her glasses on her face and let out a shaky breath and clutched her clipboard to her. "There's no turning back now."

Mr. V released half the breath he had been holding and glanced down at her, "Now we win them over and make changes."

Her head bobbed a nod and she let out another breath before they stepped off the elevator to join their fellow Hosts in the foyer to greet their guests. Both of his fellow Hosts worked great together, especially since Ms. Villa and Mr. Po were childhood friends and came to the Anti-Castle not long after a big fight with Edna Mode in the Incredibles Realm; and they brought their judgement towards fashion against anyone with them. A woman with magenta purple hair and green cat eyeglasses in an indigo black velvet dress with a black and white striped coat spoke exuberantly to their guests as they entered the Castle, though none seemed pleased to be speaking with her. Ms. Villa, however, only smiled wider as she looked the Villains up and down as if judging their clothes.

"If you would all just file in and out of the doorway, that'd be great, so we don't get too much rain on my new carpets." Ms. Villa chimed as she waved her hands to welcome them into the castle. "Please be sure not to push or shove or step on anyone's tentacles."

The Villains reluctantly listened and continued to file in deeper into the foyer while depositing their soaked cloaks and coats to a man with combed back dark chocolate brown hair in a green suit and an indigo black tie and a pair of green framed glasses. He overly thanked and nodded respectfully to each of them before running off to the coat room. He moved so fast he nearly knocked his square glasses off his face as he returned to continue his coat collection. Mr. Po panted heavily from his recent return from the coat room and spotted Captain Hook messing with the buttons of his rich red coat.

"Shall I take your coat, Captain Hook?" He held out his hand expectantly and Captain Hook's Recruit handed off her cloak to him.

"No, you shall not!" Captain Hook berated him with a scowl and shoved his Recruit to the side. "This is my coat and I intend to wear it!"

"O-Of course, Captain Hook!" Mr. Po bowed before scuttling off to the coat closet again to hang all of the cloaks. Mr. V gritted his teeth at Captain Hook's actions but held his tongue. He couldn't risk offending him so soon in the night before they had a chance to discuss things with the other Villains. However, after all was said and done Captain Hook would most definitely receive a restraining order from ever stepping foot in the Castle again. Though his fellow Hosts worked hard, Mr. V clearly saw that they needed some sort of intervention, especially since he could see how impatient their guests were becoming as things grew more crowded in the foyer.

Mr. V strode up to them with Ms. Scatter following nervously behind him clutching her clipboard to her chest and made sure to tap his cane loud enough for Ms. Villa and Mr. Po to hear. In the middle of her greeting Ms. Villa threw a glance over her green glasses and had a wide smile coming to her face. "Ah, yes, the man of the hour, the one you have all been waiting for!"

"Welcome Queens, Gods, Dark Fairies, Sea Creatures, and Exotics to the Anti-Castle!" Mr. V held his hands out and gave a long bow to the crowd of people who stood before him. None of them seemed to be impressed. His associate Hosts clapped for him to fill in the silence and to break some of the icy disapproving looks from the guests. "Thank you, Ladies and Gentlemen, for coming at my invitation."

"Yes, we have come at your invitation," The Evil Queen hissed and glared at him. Those big green eyes were ever so impatient, full of so much hate with a slight touch of revenge. "Now tell us why we are here, Cretan!"

Mr. V merely smirked and tightened his grip on his cane, "All in good time, your highness."

Behind him he could he hear Ms. Scatter's knees knocking together and made sure to position himself carefully in front of her to prevent the Villains from seeing her trying to regain her composure as she stood in the same room with all her previous employers.

"Look, Bub," Hades called above them all. "I answered the invitation and came here as asked, but I ain't got all day. I have an Underworld to run, and I don't need you wasting my time. So, if you have nothing else to say, then I'll be out of here."

"Come now, my good sir," Mr. V tapped his cane on the ground more firmly to silence the disgruntled Villains and light became aglow all around them. "I assure you that I am not wasting your time."

Candelabras and chandeliers burned their candles brightly, the fireplace in the room beside them became hotter. The Villains all stopped and looked from the glowing lights and glared at the smug look on Mr. V's face. "Please, come follow me and my associates."

He turned on his heel and did not even bother to wait to see if they would follow. He knew that they would. He heard the loud whispers of grunts, complaints, curses, and footsteps behind him. A smirk crept on his face.

"Mr. V," Ms. Scatter hissed beside him as she shuffled her feet faster to keep up with him. "Are you sure it is such a good idea to speak to them in such a way? I know I am not in any position to tell you how to do your job, but – these are the Original Villains! They mean business! There is a reason why they are all feared, revered, and respected by all!"

"I know what I'm doing, Scatter." He spoke in a hushed tone. "They're only scary because they're here in a large number. I know how powerful they all are." He glanced over his shoulder and saw that Villa and Po were right behind them with the Villains and Recruits all following. "However, I also know how desperate they all are to make a better name for themselves."

"Scatter, dear, you really need to learn to relax." Ms. Villa walked a little faster and hugged Scatter's shoulders. "Mr. V has this all under control!"

Mr. V didn't argue with her despite the fact he felt as though he had very little control over their situation. He had ways to coerce the Villains into signing their contracts and agreeing with their cause, but unless they did so he had no control over this situation at all.

"Besides," Mr. Po chimed in over to Scatter's left shoulder, "even if it doesn't it still falls on his shoulders to fix, not ours."

Mr. V frowned and noticed the smug smirk that crossed Mr. Po's face. Though the ladies seemed to trust and hope for the best for this situation, it seemed as though Mr. Po would not let up so easily and remind Mr. V of the gravity of their situation and his own responsibilities.

Ms. Scatter didn't seem quite ready to let the issue go, though. "But if they knew about the amount of merchandise that they made by those Up top they - "

"Exactly!" MS. Villa cut her off and linked arms with her as they walked. "They wouldn't be complaining about the stories and would instead be happy in their wealth. They would even be willing to update their wardrobe!"

"Which would leave us without much of a job." Mr. Po snickered. "So, don't worry about things so much and let's see how things pan out."

"They're getting' old and rusty by just sittin' around here doing nothin' but relivin' their glory days." Mr. V snorted as he turned his head forward again. "They need a little something to do, and so do those Recruits that they've salvaged and enslaved over the years."

His fellow Hosts grew quiet and their optimistic energy quickly fell at his words. Though he wanted them to keep their spirits high, he didn't want them to forget about their purpose either. Ms. Scatter frowned and both Ms. Villa and Mr. Po fell away from her sides.

"Don't fret too much now, Scatter." Mr. V sighed over his shoulder. "You're scatterbrained enough as it is. Just follow my lead and do as I tell you."

She nodded shyly, "Yes Mr. V."

"You have nothing to worry about, Ms. Scatter." Mr. Po somehow managed to regain his chipper attitude, "You have both Ms. Villa and I to depend on should the need ever arise."

"You mean she can rely on you." Ms. Villa threw her nose in the air with a smirk. "You are my assistant, Eito, do not forget that! I am an assistant to no one, but fashion!"

Before Mr. Po could retort, they came to a stop in front of the large doors of the dining hall where they would soon dine and conduct their meeting with the Villains. The footsteps behind him grew closer as the Villains joined them outside the dining hall. The irritation that was within the Villains only seemed to grow as they were kept waiting. Mr. V made sure that everyone was together and accounted for before tapping his cane on the floor. "First order of business." Mr. V smiled over his shoulder and looked to the Original Villains and their Recruits. "Dinner. No proper business proposition is ever done without dinner."

"You can't be serious." Ursula groaned with a roll of her eyes.

"Of course, I'm serious." He twirled his cane around his fingers before tapping harder into the ground with his cane. The large doors opened, and the great aromas of their favorite dishes wafted in the air. "It's never fun to talk to anyone when they're hangry. I know we're all villains here, but we can all be friends at least during a meal."

Hades rolled his eyes, The Queen of Hearts crossed her arms, and Jafar merely leered at him as they shifted with impatience. Mr. V bowed again and gestured for them to all enter inside. Not knowing what to do, Ms. Scatter, Ms. Villa, and Mr. Po merely mimicked Mr. V's actions at the opposite door. Much to their surprise, the Evil Queen led the way into the dining hall with the Queen of Hearts, Captain Hook, Maleficent, Cruella, Ursula, Jafar, Scar, Lord Claud Frollo, and Hades and their respective Recruits following after them. With everyone inside, Mr. V bowed to let Ms. Scatter and Ms. Villa enter first, then followed after them alongside Mr. Po with a tapping of his cane to close the door behind them.

All of the Villains all took their place at the table with the Recruits sitting in between each Villain as if to act as a small buffer from the other Villains. Mr. V took his seat at the head of the table on the left-hand side with Mr. Po sitting on his right while Ms. Scatter took her seat at the right-hand side of the head of the table with Ms. Villa on her left. Grumbles and mumbles were exchanged as everyone took their seats, and Mr. V could feel his confidence boosting as everything was currently going according to plan.

With a clap of Ms. Villa's hands as the signal, servants entered from small doors on either side of the room carrying silver domes covering the plates that lay in wait for their diners to dig into. They all walked along until a servant stood beside each and every guest with a specific meal prepped for all of them. Amused whispers and comments were heard as the Villains enjoyed the little extravagance that they were going for to woo them over to their cause; plus, they were finally being treated with the respect they felt they deserved. Mr. V snapped his fingers and the silver domes all lifted to reveal the favored dishes to each villain.

The Evil Queen and her Recruit were given apple stuffed quail with grapes, roasted potatoes, greens, biscuits, and a blood red wine. She wrinkled her nose at the food but still gracefully grabbed her fork and knife to cut into her quail while her Recruit poured her goblet to the brim with wine.

The Queen of Hearts clapped in glee at the giant plate full with heaps of strawberry tarts, jams, breads, and a rosé wine. Her Recruit seemed a little less enthralled by such sweet pastries and ate the bread cold and plain.

Captain Hook hardly seemed impressed at buttered lobster with garlic mashed potatoes, carrots, rolls, and only seemed delighted when he saw the rum; he immediately reached for the rum while his Recruit scooted to the side with her plate to begin eating.

As elegantly as she allowed, Maleficent seemed very pleased with her rotisserie chicken with slices roasted potatoes, carrots, chunks of bread, and a sour thorny raspberry brown ale. Her Recruit seemed to be stiff and anxious as he tried to mirror Maleficent's actions.

Cruella all but cackled in laughter as she immediately picked at her shrimp cocktail with lemon slices, cilantro, deviled eggs and crackers. Her Recruit was doing everything he could to keep her from touching dry martini that was supposed to be her drink for the evening.

Ursula ate her seared flounder with crab cakes, oysters, eel, and assortment of sushi with a strange sort of vengeance while her Recruit looked terribly bored and ready to be finished with the evening. She had to shove his arm to encourage him to eat and he did after an annoyed groan escaped him.

Jafar wordlessly ate Al kabsa with baba ghanoush, akkawi manakeesh, and a Shahrazad and made no motion to give away whether he enjoyed it or not; his Recruit, on the other hand, kept her mouth shut, but her eyes glistened with happiness at the food.

Scar nearly purred as he chewed on his medium rare steak with boar, and meerkat sausage. He would occasionally cut off a scrap or two and would put it on his Recruit's plate; she all but thanked and praised him for those scraps.

Lord Claud Frollo kept his face painfully strict and blank as he picked at his bacheofe with cheese, bread, and sipped his ancient red wine. His Recruit sat mutely beside him and copied his actions with an alarming accuracy to the point they were in sync.

Hades spoke casually with his Recruit as he snacked on kleftiko with hummus, feta cheese, pieta bread, and ancient Greek wine. He seemed to have an open friendship with his Recruit, though there seemed to be something dark within it.

Mr. V picked up his glass and held it up in the air as they dined. "Well, bon appetit!"

While the Villains dined on their food, so did the Hosts of the night. Ms. Scatter cut into a chicken alfredo with a classic white wine while Ms. Villa had a chicken parmesan, with sweet rolls, and a red wine. Mr. V he always fancied a good gumbo and a good glass of whiskey while Mr. Po had a Brazilian Fish stew with water. The air around them changed to one that was much less hostile as everyone ate. All grumbling came to a stop, all mumbling became chewing, and it was a glorious moment of silence that could only be enjoyed when people came together to eat food. Mr. V could not help but smirk in victory as he watched them all dine, though it quickly fell the moment he locked eyes with Hades.

"All right so a little food to sweeten the deal is nice," Hades spoke with food in his mouth. "Now what do you want?"

Ms. Scatter shifted nervously in her seat as she cast a nervous glance to Mr. V then Ms. Villa and strained to keep a smile on her face. Mr. V should have known better than to expect the evening to go so smoothly with just a simple meal for Villains. He noticed that even through his calm cool demeanor that Mr. Po was growing nervous too. "Must you be so impatient?" Mr. V peered over his glass of whiskey. "A meal amongst friends and business partners should be done in good time."

"You obviously weren't around when that kid Sora showed up, huh?" Hades rolled his eyes and threw his drink in the back of his throat.

It was true that Mr. V and his fellow Hosts had not been around when the kid Sora from an entirely different Realm invaded with King Mickey trying to rid the world of Darkness. They had only heard the stories that happened during this time and he could not help but be relieved that he hadn't been around yet.

"Do not say that wretched fool's name!" Maleficent snarled. "You'll only invoke his presence."

"Yeah, yeah, it was your fault to begin with on that one, Maleficent," Hades jeered. "I had loads to clean up in the Underworld as well as arenas."

"Blast it all how much longer are we going to have to be here?" Hook slammed his hand on the table. "I have a crew to lead and a sea to plunder." He burped and the spittle landed on Lord Claude Frollo's face.

"Yes, although I do not approve of the language being used by my associates." Lord Claude Frollo wiped the spittle off of his face. "I really am ready to finally know why we are all here. You have entertained us enough, we want answers; now."

"Oh, hush you ole cad," Cruella cackled and held her drink out in the air. "You can keep entertaining me, darling. I always love a good show! The drinks make things much better."

She sloshed her way too far one way and her drink spilled over onto the Queen of Hearts. She was in the middle of eating her tarts and her face burned red. "How dare you!" She pointed at the cackling Cruella. "OFF WITH YOUR-"

"All right!" Mr. V slammed his cane into the ground and there was silence everywhere. "Since you are all so impatient, I shall tell you. Now shut up and pay attention!"

Ms. Scatter shook nervously in her seat while Ms. Villa continued to eat her food and poor Mr. Po just hid his face in his hands. They all anticipated the Villains acting true to their character, they had only hoped that Mr. V would have had a little more tact in dealing with them.

Author's Note:

Thank you so much for reading, I hope you're enjoying the story so far!

I apologize that it is still a little rough. I am currently in the process of going back through and editing this story to properly include Ms. Eva Villa (Ms. Villa) and Mr. Eito Po (Mr. Polite). They are two very important characters to the Recruiter Cast.

Please remember to leave a comment and review to tell me what you think!

Thanks for coming along the journey with me, stay tuned!

Ko-fi/SarahtheWriter.