Laurel's hysterical laughter filled the large and quite empty room. She kept eye contact with the man in front of her, her eyes glimmering as she cackled. The man was tied to a metal foldup chair with white silk and had a gag tied tightly around his mouth. His frantic struggles and muffled cries increased her amusement.

"Why so sad, hunnybun? Don't be unhappy! See Mayor Johnson! You gotta smile!" Laurel grinned at him. "It's so easy!" She giggled, taking a step towards the man.

Mayor Johnson, a young man in his late twenties, was a kind soul and a man devoted to his job. He was known as the best mayor Opal City has ever had. He was not easily frighten, nor was the rest of Opal City. But things were different when it came to Laurel Dashner.

Perhaps it was her obsession with smiles and laughter that made Laurel terrifying. Or maybe that she could kill a man with the flick of her wrist. What most people found so disturbing was the fact that less then two years ago Laurel had been normal. No sign of mental illness or instability. Then one day she woke up nuts. Some say Octavian Jones, a super villain, had done something to her. Others blamed it on her past. Not one person knew for sure.

Laurel loomed over the man sitting in the chair and stroked a finger down his jaw. "Look at you, so very handsome. Your wifey must be a very lucky lady. Such a pretty boy." Laurel cooed. Her voice was startlingly affectionate and sweet. The mayor shied away from her touch to the best of his ability only to struck across the cheek.

"Hold still! I'll have none of that! Now what did I tell you about smiling!" This demanding and pointed question made the mayor feel like a young boy again. He grunted into the gag. "No talking hunnybun, just smiling!" Mayor Johnson forced a smile as a tear escaped him. "Are you scared, pretty boy? No need! I'll be sure to make this real quick."

The villainess wasn't joking. She pulled a revolver from her waistband, spun it around her thumb before cocking it and placing the barrel on the mayor's temple. The two held eye contact for a few seconds until the man closed his eyes and braced himself.

Neither of them were expecting what would come next. Laurel was tackled to the ground, her gun flying across the room. Laurel had been sprawled out, facedown on the ground. Her face was smooshed against the cold and worn cement floor. The person who had tackled her was sitting on the small of her back to keep her flat to the ground.

"Well, well, well look who we have here." Laurel recognized the melodic voice as her arch-nemesis, Sidney. The hero smiled proudly knowing that she had overpowered the villain.

"Awwww, here you go ruining my fun again." Laurel pouted, letting her body go lax. Sidney relaxed as well, assuming the villain had surrendered.

Suddenly Laurel hooked her legs around Sidney's and flipped the two over. Now she was on top, straddling Sidney. "Sweetpea, I thought you were done fighting us bad guys!" Laurel exclaimed.

"That was when we all thought you were dead." Sidney spat, fighting against Laurel's strength. "Damn Emerald, she jinxed us, writing that article about me retiring."

"Who says I wouldn't of come back anyways I missed you." As Laurel said this, she tucked Sidney's hair behind her ear. Now Laurel didn't seem to be joking when she said this. She wasn't laughing or smiling. She had sounded serious and her face was a stone-cold pokerface. Sidney wasn't sure what to think. Was Laurel playing with her? Or was she serious?

Sidney made the mistake of pondering these questions, as Laurel took the opportunity to launch herself off the hero. She raced towards the window which had no glass in it, just the frame sitting empty. "Bye Sweetpea! Bye Mayor Johnson!" She leaped out of the window, her laughter echoing after her.

Laurel would realize later that she had forgot her prized possession. She had forgotten her revolver. It was a gorgeous .36 caliber Colt 1851 Navy Revolver. It was in perfect condition. And it was surprisingly clean, seeing as she used it for the majority of her kills. The barrel was still a glistening gray and the gold accents clean. The wood was unscratched except for a set of initials and a word. The initials were L and D. And the word, well the word told everyone exactly what Laurel was. The word was Tortured. 

• I hope you like it, I think this is going to be a pretty decent story so :)) I'm excited to write this! Hopefully it'll go well! 

Love, Laurel•