NOTE: Once again I want to thank everyone for encouragement on this story. This kind of character development/exploration type is not really my 'comfort zone', particularly not in an AU (also not my usual territory...although I have loved creating a whole new world even if it is a dark one. I've grown very fond of my Animula...I'm going to have to find way to free them. Heehee). I'm thrilled you guys have enjoyed this story so far! It has also gotten a *lot* longer than I thought it ever would, but I'm still having fun and I hope you are as well! Actually plot is going to start occurring in this story at any minute...I promise.

More Huggles to Wondo for pushing me to try an AU and a 'reverse'-slave fic at that! (Trust me it was no easy task to talk me into this).

Another NOTE: Everything Neal has to say about the De Beers diamond company is 100% true.

Chapter Forty-five

"Joseph Renner…you've done disgustingly well for yourself over the past few years."

Clicking through the corporate website of Peter's former owner Neal studied the professionally done portrait photograph of Renner on his profile page. Renner had a practiced 'trust me with your money' smile spread across his clean shaven face that Neal felt would have instantly made him hate the man even if he didn't know his connection to Peter and Elizabeth. Renner's hand tailored suit and Charvet silk tie wasn't the only give away to Neal that Renner was doing well for himself, it was the fact that he wasn't taking on any new accounts unless you were read to invest a million dollars up front.

Reading through the PR portion of the web site that was designed to court new high end investors Neal noticed that the company made no secret of its Animula ownership. In fact the exact opposite, they prided themselves in having one of the 'largest stocks of highly trained Animula in New York' at their disposal. They didn't give a number, but from what Neal had learned in the past it was rare for a company to have more than six Animula at any one time. Common knowledge said that there were about a thousand Animula in the city, but the more Neal thought about it the more he started to believe that the extraordinarily low number was probably more Market propaganda.

"The smaller the public thinks the population is the less likely they are to think about them at all." Neal sighed to himself bitter.

Only the Market knew for sure how many Animula were in the city and Neal felt it would be in their best interest to downplay the true population size. Not only would it be easier for them to white wash the idea of the subjugation of a thousand individuals compared to the systematic torture of ten thousand, but it would also allow them to drive prices higher through an artificial imbalance of supply and demand.

"Diamonds are practically a dime a dozen, but the jewelry companies certainly aren't telling anyone that."

In a lot of ways Neal admired the De Beers diamond company for their successful execution of perhaps one of the greats long cons of all time. Their control of the diamond market was nearly absolute and by owning a full eighty percent of the rough diamond market they got to not only decide the price but market supply as well. Neal had broken into one of their diamond storage warehouses in London where they stock piled them once just to see if the stories were true, he had not been disappointing.

In 1938 diamonds were a dying industry until De Beers had the brilliant idea to market diamonds not as investment, but as a status symbol for love. With some strategic help from Hollywood soon a diamond engagement ring worth two to three months salary became the expected norm. The basic message was the bigger the rock the more devoted the man. They rewrote history to the point where people today believe that the tradition of exchanging diamond engagement rings is centuries years old, when in truth the practice was currently barely three generations old.

Neal had never bothered with any heist jobs involving diamonds because in the end they were impossible to fence for even a fraction of their supposed market value. Even legally trying to privately sell a diamond was all but futile considering a diamond ring lost fifty percent or more of its value the second it was purchased from a jewelry store. The only time he ever stole a gem stone was if it had historical significance or if the jewelry designer was an artist in their own right.

Thinking about how easily the idea of diamonds intrinsically having value had been placed in the collective conscious of the public Neal started to wonder just how much of Animula history had been rewritten by the Market. Neal had assumed that the Animula label of being soulless was as old as history itself, but in the hundred and fifty years that Animal had been actively bought and sold by the Market they would have had plenty of time to change popular perception in their favor.

"The Market might not be so hard to take down if it could be proven that they started the 'soulless' rumors themselves. People don't like being deceived by others for profit."

Most of the revenue generated by Animula went to the one percent of the population that could afford them in the first place or directly to the Market itself. With public trust in billion dollar corporation and the elite at an all time low Neal realized it wasn't out of the realm of possibility that with some work Peter might actually live to see the end of the Market.

"Start by saving one…"

Repeating Elizabeth's words to himself reminded Neal to focus. As much as he enjoyed the idea of changing the world it wasn't like he could be the spokesperson for such a movement. If he stepped up to confront the Market in any kind of public way he'd just be arrested by the FBI for past crimes. However that didn't mean he couldn't work towards such a goal in the shadows.

"In any case we are going to need money to fight money." Neal mused to himself. "Renner and Cheng seem like a good place to start for getting some venture capitol."

Starting to get more heavily into planning the up coming con Neal pulled out his phone and called Mozzie. He had called Mozzie briefly after Elizabeth had left to tell him how it turned out, but he had also made it clear that he was still in the dog house for contacting her without asking. Although Elizabeth expressed interest in seeing Mozzie again Neal suggested that he tread carefully, she was in a very vulnerable emotional position and Neal wasn't sure if Peter was going to decide to talk to her in the near future or not. The phone rang twice before Mozzie answered.

"Hey, Neal…everything okay?"

"No, but it's going to be. I have a job for you to keep you out of trouble until then."

"What do you need?"

"Find out everything you can on Joesph Renner of Pinnacle Spire Investments. I want details on him, including anything rare or valuable that he has or is even rumored to have."

"This is another one of Peter's former Masters?"

"Yes."

"Do you think it's a good idea to go after him and Cheng at the same time? Could get complicated."

"You let me worry about how many birds I want to kill with one stone."

Not leaving any room for Mozzie to argue Neal hung up on him. After hearing the story from Elizabeth Neal not only had a better understanding of Peter's initial desire to target Renner, but also his later hesitation to expose himself to the old enemy. Having read the man's professional profile he seemed like the exact type to enjoy some high stakes illegal gambling. Renner would be easier to get an audience with if Peter was with him, in fact Renner would probably insist on talking with Neal if he just saw him. However if Peter wasn't comfortable with the idea getting even with Renner Neal wasn't sure if he would press the issue. They could cross that bridge when they came to it. In the mean time it wouldn't hurt to be prepared and keeping Mozzie busy was always good for general damage control.

Having read all he could about Renner and his investment firm Neal cleared his browser history and closed the program. He doubted that Peter would check, but it best to be safe. Neal glanced up at the clock and noted that it was just past two. Peter didn't always come over for breakfast, but he usually came over before lunch. Peter had gotten oddly quiet last night during dinner after seeing the forgery. Neal had watched Peter picking at his meal unsure if he should be concerned or not. Neal couldn't tell if something about the forgery had upset him or if the meal was simply too spicy for Peter's taste and he was just too polite to say anything.

Neal had decided not to think too much about it at the time, but now that Peter seemed to be avoiding his company today he was getting worried. Peter no longer needed to come over for medical attention now that he was off the IV antibiotic and the cuts had healed over to the point of not needing bandages. However that hadn't stopped him before from joining Neal on his side of the apartment for a majority of his waking hours.

After another half hour had passed Neal began to think about knocking on Peter's door to make sure he was alright, but he hesitated to invade Peter's privacy right now. Elizabeth's sudden visit had thrown Neal for a loop, and he did feel a little awkward having to keep the meeting a secret from Peter. He was confident Peter had slept through the event. It was impossible to sneak down the stairs in the older mansion without the oak steps making a considerable about of noise.

Neal suspected that Elizabeth had guessed the Peter was here and had stepped away to give the chance to contact her when he was ready. However she may have just been spooked by Neal and gone home to email him so that they could plot against him together if they perceived him as an obstacle rather than an ally.

"Although neither one of them seem the plotting type." Neal noted to himself. "Of course you never know what someone is capable of when cornered."

Neal reached up at rubbed at his throat. It was no longer bruised but the memory of Peter bearing down on him with intent to kill was still fresh in his mind. Peter had been near death but he still he'd still had a surprising amount of strength when motivated, now he was healthier and had a loved one to protect. Neal shook his head to clear it. He didn't really believe that Peter would attack him again, but Peter's sudden shift in behavior had him worried for the tenuous friendship that they had developed. As much as Neal hated being a 'Master' there was no escaping the fact that Peter had very few options other than keeping on Neal's good side since he depended so heavily on him for everything, from basic food needs to a hiding place from the Market.

If Elizabeth had told him that she had been here Peter might be resenting him for not coming clean about it last night, but not feel safe confronting Neal about it. Sitting at the kitchen table with the laptop Neal started giving serious consideration to the idea of using the program Mozzie had installed on Peter's computer to check his email. He hated to invade Peter's privacy, but it might be for the greater good. He was just opening the program when there was a soft knock at his door.

"Come in." Neal answered automatically.

Peter stepped into the apartment looking like he hadn't slept very well. The night before he had been avoiding eye contact again, but Neal was pleased to see that he was willing to look directly at him now. Peter came over and sat down across from Neal as Neal closed the laptop and pushed it aside. The pair sat in an uncomfortable silence for a moment. Even though Peter had initially seemed better, something was still wrong.

"I'm sorry I'm late." Peter apologized quietly.

"Coming over here isn't an obligation, Peter, you can't be 'late'."

"I'm not wearing out my welcome, am I?"

"Not at all." Neal smiled reassuringly. "I enjoy your company, I've become a bit of a loner this past year before you came along."

"It's not healthy to be alone."

"No, it's not." Neal agreed solemnly.

Neal had never been good at keeping lasting relationships either personal or with business partners. He placed some of that blame on his father forcing his mother and himself into WitSec and the string homes that had followed not to mention having to leave his name behind twice. The eventual life he'd fallen into with false identities and aliases hadn't helped him cultivate any strong bonds or ties to anything he'd call a true home. The closest he had come to finding someone that he had thought he could spend the rest of his life with was Kate and she was gone.

Having become somewhat lost in thought Neal suddenly noticed that Peter was studying him. When he was caught looking Peter dropped eye contact and bowed his head slightly. Neal recognized that Peter falling into old trained patterns was a clear sign of stress. Even if Elizabeth hadn't told him that she had been here Peter had still been reading her daily emails and thoughts of contacting her had to be weighing heavily on his mind. Neal wanted to talk to him about it, but felt it was more important that Peter start that particular conversation.

Neal pushed himself back from the table to give Peter some space to make him feel more at ease but instead it caused him to automatically stand up. Shaking his head in obvious frustration with himself Peter sat back down again. There was no denying now that something was bothering him. In the past the best way for him to have hidden his anxiety from a Master would have been to fall back on behaviors trained into him by the Market since birth. With Neal the opposite was true, but such heavy brainwashing would difficult to break free of particularly when something was distracting him. Knowing he'd shown his hand Peter stared expectantly at Neal, waiting to see what his response to the new tension between them would be.

"Would you like a beer?" Neal asked.

"I could use one."

"Me too."

Peter managed to stay seated this time when Neal got to his feet to go into the kitchen. Neal pulled two beers from the fridge and opened them before bringing them back to the table and offering one to Peter. Sitting back down Neal leaned back and sipped at the fizzy alcohol. He knew that alcohol wasn't a great way to solve problems, but he felt in this case it might be a needed ice breaker. Resting his elbows on the table Peter took a few long pulls on the cold beverage. Peter instantly lost some of his anxious edge, but he had replaced it with a weary defeat. Neal waited patiently for Peter to say what was on his mind. Peter was three fourths through the bottle before he looked up at Neal, but he didn't say anything and it didn't look like was going to.

"Peter, what happened? I thought we were doing well."

Peter didn't say anything right away. He looked around the apartment as if hunting for something that he missed before. Neal was starting to feel that Elizabeth must have told him about her visit and Peter was giving him a chance to come clean on it. Worried that if Peter had to drag the secret out of him that they'd lose the trust they'd fought so hard to gain would be lost Neal prepared to tell him the truth, even though he wasn't sure that was going to be any better.

"Peter…"

"I'm worried about you." Peter interrupted.

"Me?" Neal replied in surprise. "Why?"

"Do you know what the Market uses as its main training tool?" Peter asked, seemingly changing the subject.

"I assume collars."

"No." Peter shook his head slightly. "Collars are to help Masters feel safer and in more control, but pain is not what make Animula fear being returned to the Market. I actually wish it was."

"What?" Neal asked surprised.

"If the Market relied on pain I think the Animula would have revolted long ago. As much as I hated and resented Renner and Cheng for being physically abusive I never feared them, not the way I truly fear the Market. Pain works as a superficial method for control, but it also runs a high risk of breeding violence in the victim and raises the chances that they will fight back."

"I have to admit I am surprised that you never turned on Cheng."

"If there hadn't been other lives at stake I would have attacked him long ago, as it was the second I only had myself to worry about I lashed out."

"Push hard enough eventually you'll get pushed back." Neal agreed. "But if the Market isn't using pain, what are they using?"

"Nothing, literally. Solitary confinement is their weapon of choice and it is remarkably effective."

"Solitary?"

"Two weeks are mandatory, punishment for getting returned, after that in order to get out of solitary you have to kneel on the floor motionless for a solid twelve hours, only then will the handlers interact with you again and give you another chance at a new Master. Two weeks may not seem like a lot, but after the fourth or fifth day of staring at the same four blank walls completely alone an intense psychosis sets in. Despite that the first time I was returned it took several months before I was willing to kneel, but they knew eventually I would. Obedience is just a waiting game for the Market and they are nothing if not patient."

"Peter, that is horrific."

"It works. By using isolation the Market just takes everything away until the hopelessness of having nothing makes you willing to do anything just to have something…even if that something is negative."

"I can't believe this barbaric treatment hasn't lead to mass insanity."

"I think a strong case could be presented that it has. Which leads me back to why I'm worried about you."

"I don't understand."

"Neal, you never talk about family, Mozzie seems to be the only one who you connect with and I get the feeling that's mostly because he seeks you out, nothing about this apartment feels like it's really a home to you, you can't even settle on a name. It's a different kind of solitary, but the fact that it's self inflicted doesn't make it any healthier."

"Is that what's been bothering you? Are you worried that I'm not the kind of person you can count on longer term or that I'm going to become too dependent on you as my only social outlet?"

"Both options have crossed my mind. Although I have to admit now that I say it out loud I see that I'm worrying about two extremes without even considering a middle option. I'm afraid that you won't keep me, but also that you might not let me go."

"It's a perfectly rational fear considering your past." Neal sighed.

"Considering my past with humans in general: yes. Considering my past with you: no, it's not. You deserve more of my trust by now, but I still find myself struggling with the fact that you have chosen to be a con man…even though you clearly have the talents to be so much more."

"You trust me enough to tell me that you don't trust me, which ironically is a good start." Neal pointed out choosing to ignore Peter's last statement. "When you consider the possible consequences of you upsetting me it took a good deal faith in me just to tell me you're still having doubts. So I still think we have a good foundation to work on."

"I didn't think of that."

"Well...that's why solitary is such an effective torture." Neal smiled sadly. "No one does well when left to their own thoughts for too long, we need others to bounce ideas off of to keep them from rattling around in our heads."

"So why aren't there more people in you life?"

"...because I'm still licking my wounds from the last time I let someone get close."