Nightfall knows a thing or two about Brainwash.

If the human part is still in that shell of a body, she knows a bunch. Not just the little things but the deep stuff. The stuff you wouldn’t want to get out.

His secrets.

Who cares about favorite colors when she has what makes him tick?

The powers have taken a lot of him away, making him almost unrecognizable to her. But there is some part of him that remains true. In her heart, she knows this.

His weakness.

It’s her. It’s always been her.

After what she calls the ‘disaster’, he never deigned to reach into her mind. Maybe he is as afraid as her with what he would find in there.

That gives her the slightest amount of power over him. He will never control her.

It’s his greatest secret. That he used to have a heart. And only she holds the key.

The problem?

She can’t bring herself to use herself against him.

Or anything for that matter.

OoOoOoO

“Stay out of my way, Nightfall,” he sneers. He allows her to see his face, and she almost wishes she couldn’t. Normally, he distorts his appearance so others don’t figure out his identity, but she already knows.

So she guesses she’s just lucky.

“I know your weakness, Brainwash,” she states instead. Standing right in front of him, she has more confidence than most considering his mind abilities.

His lips press into a firm frown. “You won’t do anything about it,” he says.

While he says one thing, his face expresses another. They both recognize that she won’t directly hurt him. That isn’t what bothers him.

“Maybe. Maybe not,” she teases, spinning her knife in her hand with practiced ease.

“You won’t.” He’s confident. He’s unwavering.

At one point, it was his assureness that made her fall for him. It comforted her that he always appeared to know what to do. How to act.

Now it it leaves a sour taste in her mouth that makes her stomach tense.

“I’ll stop you,” she vows with equal confidence.

She struggles to not shrink under his intense gaze, but she manages to keep her spin straight and meeting his eyes. She won’t be small anymore. “What makes you think you can?” He poses.

“Because I’m the only person who can,” she answers simply.

If she won’t fight him, knowing he won’t take her mind, then she has only has one option. She has to be an obstacle at every turn.

In everything he seeks, she has to be there.