It took a while for Dawn to get over just starring at her. Faith. Faith was here. But soon this was taken over by the questions. What did Voldemort want with the rogue slayer? More… why was she locked up? Dawn still thought of Faith the way she'd last seen her, with a huge knife scarily close to her and her mother. Then something hit Dawn. That had never happened. Dawn had not been there. She had never actually met Faith! Dawn shook her head clear, and looked closer at the other girl. She stirred again and Dawn could now see her face. She looked awful, deathly pale, and bruised all over. Dawn winced. What had they done to her? Dawn laughed at herself: She new exactly what they'd done. More important was how come she had refused to join him? Back when she had been with the mayor, all Faith had wanted was that kind of power. It sounded to Dawn as if Voldemort had offered it to her on a plate, and she threw it in his face. Some part of Dawn just smiled, and said, good for her, but there was always that part that 'remembered' the times when Faith had been the bad guy, as well as when she'd been the good guy, fighting at Buffy's side. Dawn could not help the wrench of not hate, but betrayal. She'd trusted Faith so deeply, and was utterly shocked when things turned out the way they did. (maybe she wasn't actually there, but she still remembered it all) Dawn jumped slightly as Faith stirred.
"Faith?" she said.
Faith opened her eyes slowly, shutting them again against the light. She tried to move, and found her self well and truly restrained, not to mention aching in every part of her body.
"Faith?" Dawn repeated. "Can you hear me?"
"Depends." She said with difficulty, her voice gritty. "Who are you?"
"You don't recognise me?"
"Kinda got eye opening difficulties here kid."
"I am not a kid!"
Faith's eyes snapped open, and she winced at the light,
"What the f*ck are you doing here!?" she exclaimed. Dawn smiled at the reaction.
"Erm, sitting around, fiddling with my chains… getting a numb bum. This floor is way to hard and way too cold."
"Uh-huh. Well I don't think he was considering comfort when he fitted it out Lit'le-bit." Dawn swallowed, shocked by the 'memories' that name bought back. It was funny how she'd never noticed that Spike's favoured nickname was the one Faith had always used too. "So seriously, what does that piece of shit want with you?" Faith asked. Then her eyes flew wide, "Oh, god, it's not cos'a me is it? Or Buffy? Please don't say he's comin' after…"
"Hey!" Dawn cut her off. "He doesn't know about any of that. He doesn't even know who I am. And you can't tell him! Ok?"
"Whatever. Why are you here then?" she asked again.
"He nabbed me from my school."
"In Sunny D?"
"No. Here in England."
"We're in England!?" Faith raged. "Well screw that!" She tugged on the chains and gasped as pain over took her body.
"You ok?" Dawn asked automatically.
"Five by five." Faith breathed. But she didn't try the chains again.
There was a long silence. Faith had given up asking Dawn questions. She knew enough to figure that the reason Dawn was at school over here had to be round about the same reason Voldemort wanted her. Faith also knew simply from looking at the girl that she was not going to tell him a thing about it.
Eventually Dawn spoke.
"He worked you over pretty good, huh?" It was phrased as a question, but both girls knew it was the obvious truth.
"Yeah. I guess he did."
"Why?"
Faith raised her eyebrows.
"Wha'd'ya mean why?"
Dawn didn't answer, but just looked into Faith's eyes. Faith soon broke the contact. "I just don't like being pushed around is all." She shrugged. Dawn sighed. She could see the loneliness in the slayer's eyes.
"No." she said. Faith's mouth quirked at one side.
"No? … Dawnie… I didn't like his offer, simple as that. I don't like grunt work."
"But with the mayor…"
Faith cut her off, fast, in a very scary tone,
"That was different, Dawn."
"I know what it feels like Faith." Dawn continued relentlessly. Faith had turned her face away so it was shrouded in darkness and Dawn could not see her expression. "Like stabbing pains all through your body. Like burning inside of you." Faith's body stiffened, and Dawn heard her voice out of the shadows.
"He did it to you?" Faith said in barely more than a whisper. "He… he tortured you?" She didn't need an answer, and she didn't say any more. So Dawn continued.
"If the only reason was that you didn't like his offer, then why did you let him do that to you? Why not just give in, and deal with it later?" Faith did not reply. "Faith? Faith!" She didn't even move. Dawn shut up when she heard footsteps approaching.
"Ahh, you're awake already?" came the snake like voice.
"What can I say? I'm just itchin' for more." Faith retorted in a flat voice. Voldemort grinned, and entered the cell. He took a step towards Faith, then changed his mind.
"Better let you rest a while… wouldn't want you passing out half way through now, would we?"
"I can take it." Faith replied, her voice a little strained.
"No doubt. Later." Voldemort smiled. "Now, my little Gryffindor… it's your turn."
"Didn't you hear me? I can take it! I can take it now!" Faith said in rising tones. She was kneeling up as far as she could. Voldemort's cold face frowned. He looked between the girls.
"Don't tell me my dark slayer is protecting this shred of a girl?" Faith's eyes flashed to meet Dawn's. Behind the dark lord's back, they were pleading. Faith tried to mis-understand them, but the message was loud and clear. Dawn didn't care what he did to her, just so long as he didn't find out a god-damned thing. "Do my little friends know each other?" Voldemort continued mockingly. Faith hesitated, then sighed,
"No." she said, slumping back down. "She means nothing to me." It hurt more than she would ever admit, but she knew that saying anything else would give him reason to use Dawn against her. Or help him to connect the dots between the girl and the slayer. Dawn didn't want him to know any of that, so she had no choice. Voldemort frowned a little, but accepted this answer. He clicked his fingers, and Dawn chains magically transferred from the wall to his hands.
"Up." He said to Dawn. She obeyed, and followed him out.
Faith sat silently in the cell, waiting for what she knew would eventually come. Mere minutes later there was a heart-wrenching scream elsewhere in the building. For the first time ever, Faith cursed her slayer hearing.