Cordelia Chase rarely slept anymore.

And when she did, it was for never more than fifteen or twenty minutes at a time. If it wasn't her own fear keeping her awake, it was the teasing and taunting she suffered at the whim of her vampire captors.

For the hundredth time in as many minutes, she wondered why they hadn't killed her yet.

And for the hundredth time, she wished they would just get it over with.

"Bored. . . now. . . "

Willow's mischievous whisper sent a chill of helpless dread through Cordelia. She sank back to the far wall of the cage, her hands gripping the bars. She watched in breathless terror as the flame-haired vampire strolled over to her, an impudent smile curving her crimson lips.

"How's Kitten today? Are you hungry, Kitten? Want some milk?" Willow said, trailing one hand over the steel bars. Hazel eyes, completely devoid of humanity, bored into Cordelia's terrified brown ones.

Cordelia was past feeling the relentless hunger that gnawed at her insides and she wasn't about to beg her demon jailers for a single morsel.

She'd die of starvation first.

If she was lucky.

"Awww, Kitten doesn't wanna play. You're no fun at all."

Cordelia squeezed her eyes shut, willing away the tears prickling her eyelids. She rocked back and forth, trying to block out the sound of the vampire's voice. She was going to go mad if she had to listen. . .

The scrape of a key in the lock made the teenager look up. Willow was pulling open the door, an avid gleam in her eyes. Cordelia moaned.

"Come on, Kitten, let's play."

"No, no please no. . . " Cordelia groaned, trying vainly to push herself into the corner. She felt clawed hands behind her, shoving her towards the vampire. Losing her balance, she fell forward.

Willow reached out and grabbed a handful of Cordelia's long hair, tangling her fingers in the greasy strands. With a jerk of her arm, the vampire pulled Cordelia out of the cage.

With a scream, Cordelia fell five feet to the floor, twisting her ankle as her numb legs hit the ground. She fell to her knees, only to be pulled up again by the hair. She screamed again as Willow twisted her hand sharply, nearly pulling out a clump of her dark hair.

"Meow for me, Kitten," Willow said, shaking Cordelia's head.

"Oh, God. . . "

"Oops, wrong answer. No God here. Meow, cat."

"No. . . "

With a suddenness that took Cordelia by surprise, Willow punched her in the face. Blood spurted from her nose, splashing Willow's fingers and her victim's tattered clothing. "Meow, bitch."

Cordelia prayed for something, anything, to end this nightmare. "M-m-me-e-e-owww. . . "

"Again."

Willow made her meow for many interminable minutes. Cordelia had begun to cry, her voice cracking painfully as she struggled to make the sound over her sobs. The vampire was shaking her by the hair, her face awash in sadistic pleasure.

Coughing on the blood dripping down the back of her nose and into her throat, Cordelia collapsed at Willow's feet, her sobs shaking her emaciated frame.

Letting her go, Willow raised her fingers to her mouth, idly licking away the droplets of blood that marred her slender white hands. "Mmmm, you taste good, Kitten."

Cordelia curled into a ball, her face pressed against the cool concrete floor.

Crouching on the floor by the girl's head, Willow peered at her with all the curiosity of a scientist studying some new form of life. "You cry a lot. How about we give you a reason to cry?"

Once again with savage speed, Willow reached out and grabbed a handful of the blue satin rags of Cordelia's dress. She ripped the fabric away, leaving the young woman completely nude.

Cordelia shivered in incoherent fear, trying vainly to cover her body with her hands. Willow laughed and grabbed her wrists, twisting her arms behind her back so that Cordelia's breasts were prominently displayed. She leaned forward, her lips only centimeters from the girl's ear.

"How many vampires do you count?" she whispered gleefully.

Cordelia wanted to die from humiliation. Every eye in the room was on her. Murmurs of lewd appreciation reached her ears. "T-t-ten. . . "

"Ten. Ten very horny vampires." Rising, Willow pushed Cordelia into the center of the room. "Let's play a game, Kitten. How many fucks will it take until you bleed. I say five. What do you say, Kitten?"

Cordelia could only stare at her in horror, Willow's words only dimly comprehended. Only when the vampires advanced on her, their clawed hands grasping her arms, spreading her thighs, did the true nature of Willow's game sink in.

Her screams echoed throughout the nightclub, joined by Willow's demonic laughter.