I woke up feeling bright and refreshed, so I knew instantly that there was something wrong. Not that I didn't like feeling warm, cheerful, and well rested, but there were only three times when I woke up to that feeling; when I was drunk, when I was drugged, and when I was raped. Obviously, I was a little afraid of feeling good.

I noted that there were arms around me. They weren't tight, like they expected me to run or fight, but they were holding me back either way. So, either I was still in Collar and in the arms of a heavy-sleeping master, or I had magically managed to get away, get drunk, and was currently snoozing in the arms of a rather flat-chested young bar maid.

I opened my eyes to see a head of extremely clean shaggy brown hair. Ah. Scenario four, when a kind hearted slave took pity on the nightmare haunted savage and bunked with him to let him sleep. This one didn't happen all that often, because a lot of the slaves were more afraid of me than their masters were, but every so often one would take the risk. A couple had been hoping I would kill them when they did it, others were being hen-pecked by the rest of the harem and decided the safest place for them was right next to the sleeping monster, and a few had just been too stupid to know danger when they saw it. Of course, I hadn't hurt any of them. I mean, I wasn't really a monster, I just wanted to be left alone. As long as the slaves weren't trying to hurt me, I didn't have any problem with them. It was the masters I wanted to throttle.

So, back to the situation at hand. Not the worst scenario possible, but not the best either. Way above rape, but still a few rungs below drunk and barmaid. I wondered, as I slipped out of Heero's arms, if he had decided to help me out of the goodness of his heart, or because his master ordered him to. Since his master didn't like me much, and because there were two other beds in the room, I guessed it was because Heero was such a sweet kid. I was glad he had found a master like Zechs, who would take good care of him, though I really wished that he had never had a master at all. But, then again, I'd seen what could happen to orphans on the streets, and it was sometimes worse than what happened to slaves. At least a slave was fed and well-groomed. So perhaps it was simply better to say that I wished Heero had been more fortunate. There, a good wish with no possibility of backlash.

Heero made a noise as he adjusted to my body's removal, and for a second I thought he would wake up, but he kept right on sleeping. I felt kind of bad about sneaking away like that, but I didn't think that I could stay in bed, either. Despite having nightmares every time I slept alone, I really couldn't stand being touched or held like that. Too many beatings or something, I guessed, but whatever it was I had trouble being touched. Which, really, wasn't trouble at all, because most of the time no one dared to touch me unless I was drugged half way to hell or sleeping. Both times in which I wasn't conscious enough to give a damn.

I was hungry, but I wasn't dumb enough to try to find food in a place where the master hated me, the other slaves didn't know me, and I didn't know where the food was. So, having no other choice, I tossed myself down on the bed next to Heero and shut my eyes, knowing very well that I wouldn't be able to get back to sleep.

I stayed there for about half an hour before I heard the patter of feet telling me that someone else was up. It was a soft sound, so much so that I knew it couldn't be the master. I assumed that it was probably the tall green-eyed slave, who had the style of a dancer and the voice of a mouse.

The door opened, but instead of the green-eyed boy being in the doorway, the little blonde was there instead. I slitted my eyes, pretending to be asleep and wondering what he was up to. He took a minute to look and me and Heero, probably making sure we were asleep, before proceeding past us into the little bathroom across the room.

Ever hear that "Curiosity killed the cat," saying? If I were a cat, I'd be dead like a hundred times by now.

So, being the little sneak that I am, I slipped out of bed and padded silently to the doorway of the bathroom, then peaked through the crack between the door and the wall. Inside, the blonde boy was rifling through the cupboard under the sink. He seemed to find what he wanted, then stood, a small yellow bottle of prescription pills in his hand. The water was running, so I opened the door a hair more to get a better look. I couldn't help glancing at the name on the bottle. While I'll never be able to pronounce it, I recognized the prescription as the same one that had been forced upon me by several masters to quiet me. It hadn't worked, as instead of quieting me it had merely shut down my emotions and nearly turned me into a robot. But, regardless, it was a powerful antipsychotic. Was the fucker forcing it on the blonde? How badly behaved would someone his size have to be to warrant such a punishment? And he had seemed weak, was it because of the pills? Damnit, those things nearly killed me by overdosing on four pills, what were they doing to him?

"Shit," I muttered, then realized my mistake as the blonde boy jumped a mile, tossing the bottle into the air, and spilling most of the tiny pills into the sink, where the water washed them away. The boy spun to look at me, his eyes wide and face pale with terror. He looked into my eyes with that kind of fear that makes me sick. The one a cow has when looking at a butcher. But his eyes only paused on me for a second, then darted behind me.

"Shit, man, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scare you like that."

"I-it's alright," he replied shakily, still trying to see around me. "Where is-..."

"Quatre?" Heero asked as he sleepily pushed me out of the doorway. "What's going on? I heard a commotion and... what are you doing here?"

"I..." the blonde said, then hesitated.

Of course he hesitated. What was he supposed to say? "Oh, I was just in here taking my happy pills when the god of death walked in and scared the shit out of me. It's no big deal, master will just have to buy me another bottle of these pills, which are probably worth more than he paid for me." Yeah, like that would go over real well. On the one hand, if the master knew about the pills, then Quatre, which I could only assume was the boy's name, would be in trouble for dropping the bottle and costing the master more money. If the master didn't know, there was a very good possibility he would sell Quatre when he found out. No one ever wanted to deal with a crazy slave, for fear that they would freak out randomly. Only the most prized slaves, like lucky me, were considered valuable enough to drug. Given the fact that the master would also have to buy the slave the expensive medicine all the time, masters were very hesitant to take on slaves that were considered crazy. Not that any of us could be considered sane.

But, anyway, back to the scene at hand. Heero stepped forward and pulled the bottle out of Quatre's lax grasp, then read the label. Quatre looked like he just wanted to slide into the cabinet and die. As Heero read, he frowned in confusion, finally looking up at Quatre when he finished.

"Quatre... what...? Does master know?" Heero wondered.

"No, he doesn't... but I was going to tell him! I swear, Heero, it's not what you think!"

"Then tell me what it is," Heero demanded in his monotone. Jeeze, this guy was scary, always talking without emotion. Creepy.

"It-.. I... It's difficult to explain..."

"Look," Heero said, staring at the bottle in his hand, "It's none of my business. As long as master knows, you don't need to explain anything to me. Just make sure you tell him."

"I will," Quatre said with conviction, then sudenly smiled sheepishly. "Really, I guess I have to now," he said, taking the bottle back. "I just lost all but three pills. I'll need master to buy me a refill."

I gaped at the two of them for three whole seconds.

"What are you thinking?" I bellowed. "You think the big blonde bad-ass is just going to let this blow over? He'll fry your ass!"

"Duo," Heero snapped, "Be quiet. You don't know what you're talking about."

"The hell I don't! I've had more masters than you have hair!" I yelled, then turned to Quatre. "You tell the big prick that you're on happy pills and he's gonna drop you like a hot potato!"

"Duo!" Heero yelled, grabbing my braid and giving it a tug sharp enough to bring me to my knees. From the floor I looked up to see the little blonde looking so terrified that he would be physically ill. Good. It was about time someone kicked these idiots out of pretty pony land and showed 'em the real world. "Master is not like that. He's not going to abandon one of his slaves just because he needs some medicine," Heero finished, glaring at me.

"When are you going to wise up? The kid might be a good fuck, but he's not good enough to be worth that kind of money."

"It's not about money. The master doesn't care about that."

"It doesn't matter how rich they are. They're only gonna pay for a purebred hole. They don't want one that's got flaws."

"Damnit, would you listen! I swear to you, nothing bad will happen to Quatre, unless it's for lying! And I know master won't even beat him for it."

"I wouldn't bet on it."

"I would."

I snorted, looking him up and down.

"And what do you have to bet with? It's not like slaves are allowed to own anything, and, sorry dude, but I've had better bodies than yours, if that's what you're going for," I said, sneering. Heero was unfazed.

"Master bought me some jewelry for my costumes. If I lose, it's yours."

"Huh," I said, considering it. I wasn't interested in looking pretty or anything like that, but if I managed to escape, which was a big, huge, crater-sized "if", then I could pawn some of the jewelry for food. But I also realized that Heero would be in trouble for "losing" the jewelry. Well... maybe a taste of the whip would put the kid's head on straight. And Zechs didn't seem like such a bad guy, no matter what I said. Maybe he wouldn't be so rough on him.

"Alright," I said. "So what do you want for your end? I'm warning you, I don't do sex, and I'm not givin' up the braid."

"If I win, you have to behave yourself and be civil to master for one whole day."

"Well what the hell? I can mind my manners for a day!" I said, laughing. "Not that I'll have to," I said, getting off my ass and heading for the door. "You tell the master all about your problems, Kitty-Cat, and when you're all purple and junk I'll be sittin' pretty with the diamonds."