AN: Chapter title from 'Sweet Dreams' by the Eurhythmics.

"Sweet dreams are made of these. Who am I to disagree? I travel the world and the seven seas: everyone's looking for something. Some of them want to use you. Some of them want to get used by you. Some of them want to abuse you. Some of them want to be abused."

Chapter 11: Sweet Dreams

He'd gone to get food.

He'd be back. He said so.

He said he had something to give me for being so good yesterday.

He told me to wash quickly and braid my hair to get it out of the way before he came back.

I took a hot shower, even though I didn't ask. The water burned some places but it was good, too. Good to feel clean. I wanted to stay under the hot water for a long time, until my skin turned pink and shriveled up and I was warm all the way inside like I was when…

But I couldn't because he was coming back soon. He said so.

I opened my mouth and drank and drank the warm, metallic water until I wasn't thirsty anymore.

I got out and dried off and my hair was only a little damp so I braided it right away, surprised at how long it had gotten. The braid hung down my back like a heavy rope, brushing my hips as I moved. I found a little rubber band on the floor and used it to tie it off tight so it wouldn't come undone no matter what.

I sat on the edge of the bed and waited, the rough wool blanket warm around my shoulders and I wrapped it around my knees too as I sat there.

I heard a key in the door and he was back and he came back just like he said he would.

He had two bags in his hands and one smelled of food, hot and buttery and my stomach growled loudly.

He chuckled but frowned as he looked over at me.

My eyes went wide. What had I done wrong?

"Blanket off," he ordered.

I quickly shrugged it off and stood, naked, at his gesture.

He sat the bags down on the table and came towards me.

"Turn," he said.

I turned slowly, letting him look me over. When I faced him again, I searched his face for approval.

He nodded. Moving past me, he dug into one of his bags from yesterday and pulled out something black.

He turned and approached me, lifting the object in his hands. It was thick and had some sort of silver metal part that laid flat and another that stuck out like a half-moon.

"Let's try on your present, shall we?" he asked.

He put it around my neck and went behind me and I heard a lock click and then it was on.

"Go look," he said, gesturing to the mirror on the bathroom door.

I went and looked in the mirror.

It was a collar, thick and black and leather. I touched it, tracing the elaborate impressed knot design that made it pretty instead of plain. It fit around my throat loosely. I could breathe fine and it settled down on my shoulders with a soft weightiness. The edges were rounded and wouldn't cut my skin.

"Do you like it?" he asked, grinning as he came up behind me.

I nodded.

"No one can take it off except me," he said, holding up a tiny key-chip, "So you better get used to it."

I nodded again and my stomach growled.

He took a matching leather leash from his pocket and clipped it to the metal circle on my collar.

Tugging on my leash, he went back to the little table and sat in the plain wooden chair and I moved to sit across from him in the other chair.

"Here," he said, yanking the leash and pointing to the floor next to him.

I stopped and went to his side and sat on the floor, looking up at him. He dropped the leash and stepped on it so I couldn't stand.

He opened the white box and I could smell pancakes and see the steam still rising off of them.

He started eating.

I waited, shivering by his feet, and watched him eat.

After a few minutes he tore off a bite and looked down at me.

"Open," he said.

I opened my mouth and he fed me a tiny piece. I chewed it slowly, savoring the bite as long as I could.

He finished eating and handed me the box with what was left over.

There wasn't much.

I picked at the bits of pancake and sausage that were left and licked the buttery syrup from the bottom.

He watched me.

I was still hungry. I gave him back the box, which he tossed into the trash, and looked up at him, waiting for more.

He picked up my leash and led me over to the bed. He stepped on the leash again, forcing me to my knees in front of him as he sat down.

"Have to make sure the collar doesn't block anything," he said with a smirk.

It didn't.

I wasn't hungry anymore.

"Tonight," he said, unclipping the leash and zipping up his pants, "you make me some money."

I nodded and wiped off my mouth, standing.

He dug into another bag and pulled out some clothes and a big shoe box.

"Put them on," he said, tossing the clothes to me.

More black leather. I pulled on the short skirt first. It zipped closed and clung to me like a second skin. It was barely long enough to cover everything as I moved. Next was a see-through black lace bra that fastened in the front. It pushed my breasts up and together and made them look bigger than they were. The shirt was next; just a leather vest, really, with thin silver accents embroidered on it. The neckline was low and barely covered the edges of the bra. It had only three snaps to keep it closed and it, too, clung to me.

There was a gap between the top of the low-rise skirt and the bottom of the vest. My back and stomach were bare from the base of my ribs to far below my navel.

I opened the shoe box and sat on the edge of the bed to pull on the tall, high-heeled black leather boots. They reached all the way up past my knees, and I tottered when I stood.

"Walk," he ordered, pointing to the far wall.

I walked, finding my balance as I went. After several passes across the room, I could walk normally.

I hit the wall and turned to walk back, gasping lightly in surprise when I found him standing close behind me.

He shoved me up against the wall, yanking my legs up around his hips and grinding into me. I locked my heels around him and held on to his shoulders as he popped open the vest in one swift movement and then unhooked the bra, his hand immediately on my breast. His jeans rubbed roughly against me and I moaned.

He let go and pulled away and I stood on jellied legs, breathing heavily.

"Oh, yes, that will do well," he said with a smirk, "Put yourself back together, you've got more to do."

I reassembled my outfit and tugged down the skirt where it had ridden up.

"Put these on," he said, tossing me a small bag of makeup and pointing to the mirror.

I stood in front of the mirror, putting on the makeup. I was thankful that I'd learned how. If Juliet hadn't…

I paled, the red lipstick quivering in my hand.

The ring on my finger seemed to glow in the reflected light.

Daemon had turned the TV on and wasn't watching me.

I slipped off the ring.

I held it in my hand for a long time.

He'd missed it. I didn't know how, but Daemon hadn't noticed it yet. When he did, he'd make me get rid of it.

I couldn't.

I wouldn't.

I still wore the thin silver necklace, almost invisible beneath the collar.

I took it off and put the ring on it. I wrapped it twice around my neck and it was tight, but not too tight. I lifted the collar and tucked the ring into the hollow of my throat. I let the collar fall back down.

There. It was undetectable. No one knew it was there but me.

It was safe.

I finished putting on the makeup. When I was done, I looked at myself in the mirror.

He stood behind me.

"You're perfect, Angel," he said, his hand resting on the back of my thigh.

Blood-red lips, dusky-painted dark eyes, pale white skin and a thick black collar.

I was Angel.

-000-

He led me into the noisy, pounding, dark building; neon lights flashing around us as the music pulsed and bodies moved and writhed.

"You see the guys with chains on?" he whispered in my ear as we stood in a dark corner.

I nodded, noticing the silver glints as they gyrated on the dance floor.

"Those are dog tags. They're sailors, just paid. Pick one and bring him out back."

I nodded again.

He slipped off the black trench coat I was wearing.

I stepped forward into the flashing lights.