Faith sat fidgeting in the car, practically on the edge of her seat as they were driven across London. She expected to be taken back to the house, but as they diverted toward another part of town she turned. Ripper, or the demon masquerading as Ripper, said nothing. Instead he sat beside her like a king, a coy smile barely tugging his lips upward. He had said nothing for the length of the car ride, after their brief conversation leaving Buffy at the cemetery. She wasn't sure what to make of it and said nothing for a long time as well. He didn't appear to be puzzling over the code he thought she'd been using, her deceit much simpler than that. It was a wonder for all of his power that he didn't suspect something so simple as a telepathy spell, minor as it was.

"What if," she began hesitantly. "What if I wanted my fiance back?"

He turned, studying her profile in the passing street light glow. He lifted a hand to her cheek and caressed it, running his hand up through her hair like a pet before letting it drop. His expression was neutral and remained so as he least the pretending that he was, in fact, her lover was dropped.

"Can't be done. I like this body and I see no reason to give up his power. He commands attention. He inspires devotion. I even got you to come round, pet."

Her stomach churned but she didn't let that show, didn't pull away as he touched her hand.

"There's nothing I can do to convince you to give him back?"

"Would you really sacrifice someone else just for your own comfort? I thought you do gooders were supposed to be selfless."

"Maybe a few years ago I'd have joined your parade and wouldn't think twice. I'm not as good as you think I am." Stall. Buy time so maybe Buffy and the gang could find some answers. "I'd do anything for him. He'll hate that I've said that, if he can hear me. He'd give a speech about the greater good but I don't care. I love him."

She paused, thinking about what she just said, having spoken truthfully without putting much of a filter over it. No filter at all, in fact.

"If he could talk, he might say the same thing."

"Can he hear me?"

"Don't worry yourself about that, pet. If I want him to hear, he can hear. If I want him to sleep, he sleeps. If I want him to suffer, he suffers."

"You're making him suffer?"

"Not so long as you give me reason not to."

Emotional ransom was not something she was used to paying. It had been so much simpler to not care, not form attachments. She spent so much of her life avoiding even the simplest of emotional responsibility that having her heart dangled in front of her by someone who knew how to destroy it was a new, and unwelcome, torture. She flinched. He noticed.

"We've reached an understanding here. I don't know why you keep pushing."

"But what if I found the right person to take his place? The right body to transfer you into?"

His eyes widened and he laughed, loud and long. The sound of it echoed in the small space they occupied, seeming louder because of it. The driver glanced at them in the rearview mirror and didn't react otherwise. The laughter died down quickly enough, leaving her holding her breath for an answer. He stared hard at her and frowned thoughtfully.

"You would really sacrifice someone else to get him back?"

"If I had to. If it meant having him again."

"You surprise me."

"Yeah? Sometimes I do that to myself, too."

"I'll think about it."

They pulled up to their destination and he motioned for her to proceed him out of the car. When they reached the warehouse it was transformed. People still bustled inside but it was no longer the disgusting, abandoned thing it had been the first night she arrived. Everyone bowed as he entered and she froze to see it. It was almost like worship, nothing that what he would have ever wanted if he had been himself. Indeed, he was generally very happy to fade into the background and support from behind. He graciously waved for them to rise, barely pausing as he made his way to the back rooms. When she didn't follow he turned, annoyed by her disobedience.

"Come, Faith."

She forced herself to get out of her head and start walking, joining by his side. The back rooms were entirely different as well. The cage was still there but a desk had been brought in as well. A table sat in another corner surrounded by chairs and a few of their black clad security guards. Ripper took his place at the head of the table, motioning the others into their own chairs. One was left empty by his side that she realized was meant for her and she sat a beat after the others. He smiled, folding his hands on the table while watching the others intently.

"The progress we've made in the last few days is tremendous. I'm very pleased with how many we have reached. The house is looking quite in order and here, our base of operations, is looking perfectly ready for what we have planned."

"What do we have planned?" Confused, since he hadn't spoken of any sort of plan in front of her, she couldn't help but ask the question.

He glared.

"You would be wise to be quiet and pay attention. If I need you to speak, I'll tell you what to say."

He turned back to the voiceless men gathered around the table with them.

"Now for us to be able to make this work I will need more recruits, of course. This warehouse must be full under the full moon. Focus on mages. I want nothing left to chance. Make your selections carefully and quickly. Do not let me down."

There was a general murmur, a few nods in the crowd. Everyone stood even without an official dismissal and left them on their own again. Questions were burning brightly in her mind but she didn't dare ask. She didn't need to, because he spoke just a moment after everyone had gone.

"Let me make something perfectly clear to you, Faith. I have humored your misbehavior because every pet needs time to adjust to their training. When we are alone if you wish to have a voice, that's forgivable. But when we are among my followers you are to remain silent. You will never question me, or my orders. To do so again will mean severe punishment not just for me, but for your lover as well. Do you understand me?"

His eyes flashed red and she dropped her head and gaze quickly, unable to rebel against it though every cell in her body screamed to slam her fist dead into his face.

"I understand. I'm sorry."

"Tell me it won't happen again."

"It won't; I promise."

Her mind chafed at that promise. It was contradictory to so many things that she was. He softened immediately and nodded his approval, moving close to her again. He tilted her chin up and kissed her. She didn't try to resist and though she felt nothing but revulsion at his slightest touch she couldn't actively deny him, either. He pulled away after his savagery, cupping her breast in one hand.

"I have a mind to celebrate, since things are going so well."

She looked down at his hand and then back up into his eyes. Her own widened and she tried to pull away. Steel fingers wrapped around her waist, stopping her from going anywhere.

"No." The horrified word came out as a whisper. "No." This one was stronger.

"Pets don't get to say no."

He ran a finger down the front of her shirt and it split as if torn. He moved the garment from her body and draped it lazily over the chair next to them. She jerked, managing to break his grip long enough to get away from the table. She cried out as she felt herself being caught, turned to fight back when her entire body froze in mid-motion. Only her eyes could move, watching as he came toward her. Her fist was pulled back, ready to fly, but it was a blow that was never to land. He tore at her clothing, maneuvering her back against the table. Her first he brought down. Soon enough she was naked under his roving gaze.

"I could have any one of them, do you know that?" His tone was as abrasive as his touch when he spoke. "They would beg for me to take them, as many as I wanted."

He released the hold on her head allowing it to move. She glared, angry tears threatening to form.

"So take them, if they want you so badly."

"No," he corrected. "It's no fun if they come willing. No fun if they're already broken and I haven't laid a hand on them. I've been indulgent with you, haven't I? It's time to pay the piper now, pet, for that indulgence."

She cried out in sheer terror and fury when he turned her around and bent her over the table. She heard him unzipping his pants and felt him turgid and probing at her entrance. She wasn't ready, didn't want this, and screamed as he forced himself inside of her. Thick, heavy tears slipped down her cheeks as he began to thrust. This was not the lovemaking she'd cherished with her fiance or even the lusty encounters she'd experienced with other men prior to him. At least there was pleasure in those times. At least then she'd been able to choose. He grunted and strained behind her, thrusting into a dry channel until something tore with a shot of lightning pain and the intrusion was eased by blood. Somewhere in the middle she was able to ball her fists on the table but could not stop him. He seemed little concerned with her comfort or pleasure anyhow.

She felt him cum with a low, guttural groan and prayed for mercy that didn't come. Once finished he bent over her, still inside, and fondled her chest - groping and searching every crevice of her body until he was ready again.

"He can see you," she was told as he began thrusting again. "He's making quite a racket about it."

"You bastard!" She breathed out the word with venom. "Stop it!"

"There's more pleasure in it this way. I'm letting him smell the blood, watch as you're helpless to stop me. Do you think I might get you pregnant?" He paused, she could hear the smile in his tone. "Wouldn't that be the cherry on top?"

Her blood ran cold as he taunted her with his machinations. She was tempted to beg for mercy, if not for her than for him. The words didn't come. It would have only served to further goad him, she suspected, and she didn't want to give him any further satisfaction.

"No," he decided, "impregnating you will have to wait. I could ensure it, by magic, but I think we'll leave that for a special occasion."

She shuddered in horror and he brought himself to climax shortly after. She didn't care to speculate what had done it - his threats or her reaction to them. That he had was enough. Her body was her own again as he stepped back and let her drop to the floor. Her knees were water, refusing to hold her weight. She couldn't bring herself to look at him, not any part of him, from her vantage point. This seemed to suit him well enough as he dressed. He dropped her rags of clothing into her lap which reformed by magic.

"Clean yourself up and come into the main room. Don't take too long."

He left her alone, a guard stepping in after him. She was not too proud to care, gathering her clothes against her body and crying in the aftermath. Huge, wracking sobs shook her frame and she collapsed sideways on the cold concrete floor. She cried until she couldn't manage another tear. Her head throbbed from the expenditure of grief. She felt sick to her stomach and didn't move for fear of that until the guard approached.

"You should get cleaned up like the boss said. He won't like waiting for you."

"You just stood by and let him do that. He's a monster and so are you for letting it happen."

"He's got the power; he makes the rules."

He bent and brought her sitting up again. She winced in pain and tried to cover her nakedness, though he'd already seen everything he could. She let herself be picked up, ashamed that she couldn't do it herself. She did shrug him off when he tried to lead her to the bathroom and walked under her own merit. She cleaned, and dressed, and hated this demon. If it was the last thing she'd do, she'd see him punished for every moment of torment he had caused her and those she loved.