History Main / YouWillBeSpared

* ''Literature/HarryPotter: [[spoiler: Severus Snape begged [[BigBad Lord Voldemort]] to spare Lily Potter, in part due to his unrequited love for her. It didn't work, though Voldemort offered Lily the chance to step aside.]]

Usually, the villain will make this promise to anyone who helps him, or to someone they feel indebted to, are friends with, or are in love with. If the villain ''really'' likes this person, expect them to sweeten the deal with a ShinyNewAustralia. This is generally played for laughs, since few "realistic" villains are quite so egomaniacal that they bandy out the lives of others this way.

* In Hellboy, the "you're death will be quick and painless" version is said by Rasputin to Professor Broom before he's killed. The actual line is "It'll be quick.". It is actually quick and, from what the audience can tell, painless.

** At Fry's funeral (don't worry, [[IGotBetter he gets better]]):

Contrast IllKillYou.

Contrast [[{{ILLKILLYOU}} I'LL KILL YOU]].

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* AntiHero-ic version in ''[[{{Blade}} Blade 2]]''. Blade gets information out of a Vampire Mook, saying, "Tell me what I want to know, and I'll consider you as a loose end." The Mook spills the beans, and Blade actually lets him get away, even when he runs into him again later on. Of course, [[BrickJoke at the very end]], Blade catches up to the guy in a sleazy porn theater about three countries away: "Well you didn't think I forgot about you did you? <Stake'd>"

* On {{Supernatural}}, the demons assisting Lucifer will be killed as soon as Lucifer is finished with the humans and angels if not sooner. Any demon caught assisting Team Free Will will be granted [[WhoWantsToLiveForever immortality]] [[AndIMustScream instead]].

If said to a hero, it may because they're [[FriendlyEnemy Friendly Enemies]]. An OmnicidalManiac may either express a desire to preserve one person or event that they like, or say that it's the one thing they'll miss after destroying the world.

** Though this troper isn't sure how or why, that somehow manages to ''[[UpToEleven increase]]'' the horror of genocide, which, by all rights, should already be at [[BeyondTheImpossible beyond the impossible]] [[HighOctaneNightmareFuel horror]] levels. Maybe because committing genocide implies unfathomable, implacable hatred, but committing genocide except for ''one member'' of the race/species, for whatever reason, seems to imply that you're doing it [[ForTheEvulz for kicks]]. Not that doing it out of hatred is much better, and you're a CompleteMonster either way, but... yeah.
** In actual Nazi era, many, many, many Nazis would argue that this, that or the other Jew was in fact a good man and should be spared. Goebbels could get infuriated by it. It is more likely knowing someone as opposed to the faceless masses of people to be killed.

** Becomes a major plot point in the [[TransformersDarkOfTheMoon third film]]. [[spoiler: Carly's boss Dylan, and some of his associates, are the descendents of humans who worked for NASA when the ''Ark'' was discovered on the moon. To ensure that no other human learned of this, Soundwave and Laserbeak forced NASA's employees to keep quiet about the discovery, lest they be killed off. Dylan turns out to be one of the few humans chosen to be spared after the Decepticons enslave humanity, possibly to work as a liaison between the 'Cons and the humans slaves. It's also revealed that the various deaths in history related to NASA were Soundwave and Laserbeak getting rid of "loose ends."]]

* UrExample: In ''TheOdyssey'', when Odysseus gives his name to the Cyclops as "Noman", the Cyclops says that he will eat "Noman" last.

* In ''PVPOnline'', after horrifying him by StoryboardingTheApocalypse, Scratch reassures a quivering Skull that ''his'' death will be painless.

* [[CuantaVida "You're a crazy bastard, yes? You, I like. I'll kill you last."]] Though considering the speaker's ''[[FateWorseThanDeath modus operandi]]'', this is probably of no consolation to the guy who ''really'' doesn't like seeing his friends killed.

* The BigBad of FullmetalAlchemist didn't ''say'' anything until he'd [[XanatosGambit already made his move]], but once they're the only two left alive he gives something along the lines of this trope to Van Hohenheim, "in gratitude for giving me life." Poor man had had [[GenreBlind no inkling]] Homunculus was evil until then, and they had even established in conversation that he was basically his father.

* Inverted by Virigar [[OurWerewolvesAreDifferent the Werewolf King]] in RykSpoor's ''Digital Knight'', when he tells Jason Wood, "I'm minded to let you live for a while.... So you will suffer all the more while everything you value is destroyed before your very eyes!"

** This might help explain his somewhat ambivalent attitude toward his [[HotBlooded second]] and [GentleGiant third]] sons. After one goes all OmnicidalManiac on you and [[WhatHaveIBecome turns you into]] an [[IAmAMonster immortal]] [[CatchPhrase monster]]....

* A rare heroic version in RobertAHeinlein's ''Have Space Suit, Will Travel'': just before HumanityOnTrial, Kip is assured that he and Pee-wee will be allowed to live out their lives. Kip asks that they be returned to Earth if humanity loses, which may have been a factor in deciding to spare for now -- although they intend to re-evaluate later.