Same Old Song: Incentives
by Shay
“Step one of my level of torture, is sensory depravation.” Angelus’ cruel yet kind voice says to Xander. “I have you standing uncomfortably chained to the ceiling, in this dark, dank room, all alone.” Angelus continues. “That’s enough to make the strongest person go insane.” He finishes happily.

“Tell him about step two.” Spike says gleefully from behind Xander.

“Well, after I take you out of here, you get Sleep depravation.” Angelus almost moans with the pleasure of talking about torture. “And Step three, which is often the final step, because I’ve been torturing them for so long, is incentives.” Angelus says, looking into Xander’s eyes. “Taking the bad with the good, you could say.”

“What are you talking about.” Xander groans painfully.

“I’ll give you an example.” Spike says looking at Angelus. Angelus nods his head in approval, and lets Spike explain to Xander.

“Say the bint does something Angelus here doesn’t like.” Spike begins. “You pay for it.” he concludes. “Simple as that.”

“I’ve only ever tortured two people at a time, a hand full of times, so I might need a little warm up. Most of the people I tortured didn’t have anything to lose by not doing exactly what I said…except for their lives. But you have Willow’s life to worry about, and she has yours. This should be fun!” Angelus finishes happily slapping his hands together.

“Dru, luv. The fun is about to begin!” Spikes yells for Drusilla.

“You are a sick, evil, thing, Angel.” Xander says, emphasizing every word, but especially the word Angel.

“Don’t ever call me that!” Angelus says punching Xander in the face, so hard, that his head snaps to the side.

“Xander!” Willow yells from her flat position on the floor. She is tied to the floor, but leather straps, similar to the spiked ones on the table Xander had been on previously.

“Ya know what?” Angelus says to himself, as well as the room. “Let’s skip a few steps of torture. You want to? I think we should.” He says almost crazily. “Let’s move right on to the Glorious Five…and of course, my incentives game.” He finishes.

Xander just stares at Angelus, anger and hatred obviously burning in his eyes.

“You didn’t think running away would go unpunished did you?” Angelus asks sneering. “Oh no, you will be rewarded for that little indiscretion.”

“Rewarded?” Xander asks confused.

“Yes. You get to see your precious red head burn.” Angelus says, smiling wickedly. “Dru, bring the matches.” he yells into the next room. “And some ice cubes.”

***

“Giles.” Buffy sobs onto her watchers shoulder. “I let them down…again. I saw Angel, and all I cared about, was making him hurt, like he has hurt me. And I let my friends get taken…there is no telling what he will do to them. Not to mention what Spike and Drusilla will do.”

“Shh.” is the only consolation the British librarian can give her for the moment. He has tears coming out of his eyes. He wipes them away, so she can not see them, and then turns to look in her eyes. “Buffy, it is not your fault. I shouldn’t have let you go by yourself. I should have accompanied them to LA. If I had done my job correctly, we wouldn’t be in this situation.” Giles tells her.

“What about Oz, and Cordelia?” Buffy asks worried. “Oh my God, what about Oz and Cordelia?” She repeats with fervor. “They weren’t with Willow and Xander, and they haven’t called. Do you think they…” she doesn’t finish her sentence, before a new wave of tears is washing down her face.

“Buffy!” Giles shouts at her. “Buffy, pull yourself together. If we want to save Xander or Willow, we have to be calm, and think things through.” He hadn’t meant to sound harsh with his obviously hurting slayer, but the thought of losing children to a cause they shouldn’t have to be fighting caused him much grief, and anger. He had liked Oz and Cordelia. Oz especially so, since he was the smarter of the bunch at times. And Oz’s responsibility concerning the fact that he was a Werewolf, was enough to make anyone proud. And Cordelia, the always truthful, never dull cheerleader. Even she had her strong points. But it especially pained him, to think that they had died, and he had been able to do nothing. And now that Xander and Willow were in such grave danger, he didn’t think he could bear it. He had to keep busy, or he would go insane thinking about all the possible tortures that Angelus was pressing on them right now. Or that they may be dead already.

“You’re right Giles.” Buffy says, rubbing at her nose and eyes. “What should we do?” she asks, needing him to tell her everything was okay.

***

“Ahhhhh!” Willow screams in pain, for the hundredth time it feels like, in this one night. Angelus, Spike, and Drusilla have been throwing lit matches on her body for the past hour or more. Angelus started with ice cubes. He and Spike had rubbed them, what you could consider seductively, if it had been different circumstances, all over her very naked body. She had never felt so cold in her life. Living in Sunnydale, pretty much guaranteed warm weather all year round.

Angelus said he had wanted her to feel the heat of the matches, all the way throughout her body. When the first match hit her insanely cold flesh, she had felt like her whole body was on fire. Her eyes even felt like they were melting into nothingness. It was enough to make her cry out in pain…over and over and over again.

“See luv.” Willow can barely hear Spike as he talks. “I promised you, you would hear screaming soon.” he finishes, with a sweep of his arm, around her waist, and they dance around the room.

“La la la…la la la.” Drusilla hums to herself more than anyone, as she spins around in dizzying circles.

Willow starts to slip into darkness, but is brought back by a scream from Xander. “What are they doing to him.” She wondered worriedly.

“Xander?” she says weakly.

“He can’t hear you red.” Spike says as he and Drusilla dance by Willow.




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