Chapter Text
Ramsay followed Alyn down into the basement, still yawning a bit. This basement wasn’t as impressive as their old one, never mind his father’s. Not nearly as cold down here and it was carpeted.
Which meant Ramsay had Alyn put tarps on both the floor and against the walls to protect the carpet and the lovely red painted soundproofed wall . Grinning, Ramsay imagined that must have scared the shit of Jon. He twirled the taser and giggled at the thought of what Jon’s face must have looked like.
The only things in the basement other than the opaque plastic was a large cage and some of their torture toys hanging on the walls. A few large boxes and a table. The basement was pristine and they had not yet had a chance to bring any victims down here yet.
“What is the problem, Luton?”
.
“He found a knife,” Luton tried not to laugh. It wasn’t funny.
“He knocked me out cold but I’d punched the code into the lock the door when I came in, so now it's idle threats. Sorry, Ramsay.”
Jon grabbed Luton by his hair and pulled him up to kneeling. He put Ramsay’s blade to Luton’s throat. “Let me out. Give me Theon and we'll be even.”
Ramsay laughed and nudged Alyn. “He is trying to negotiate, isn’t that cute? He looks like he is on the set of one of those soap opera’s, doesn’t he? Go on, open the door and let’s get Jon under control.”
“One moment, Jon! I’ll be right there to chat and negotiate, alright? You should just relax a little more. Luton already told you no one wants to hurt you. He hasn’t done anything hurtful to you, why would you hurt him?”
He fingered the two syringes in his pocket full of muscle relaxant. He gave one to Alyn. “We can circle him and whoever keeps his attention, the other can inject him. I know Reek and Luton want us to be careful, but Jon is bigger than us both. He is someone we would have Damon handle. I hope Luton and Reek understand we may have to hurt Jon, at least a bit.” He said quietly to Alyn.
Ramsay smiled at Jon and he very slowly entered the area, hands open and splayed. He very calmly paced around Jon and Luton. After giving Luton a look to convey if he was alright, he paid attention to Jon.
“Well now, Jon, you are asking for some things I can’t negotiate about. But we can certainly talk and make some other negotiations instead. Such as, I can’t give you Theon, he isn’t even here really. But I can allow you to speak with my pet, Reek. He is very worried about you, he begged us to allow you to live. Of course, I can’t allow you to see him while holding a knife, can I? Wouldn’t be very safe for my boy.”
“Let’s start,” Jon yanked Luton to his feet and started walking backwards to the stairs, “with getting the hell out of here. Right now. You killed my girlfriend and my entire family. I have nothing now. Nothing. Give me Theon and you’ll never see me again. No one else has to die today.”
Ramsay gave an easy grin and seemed utterly unconcerned.
“Jon. That isn’t going to work. It’s code locked. Luton does not have the code. You aren’t thinking things through yet. I think you should really let Luton go and we can talk all you’d like. Listen to me, you are not going to hurt Luton. He has done nothing to your family, to you. All he wants to do is help you...same as my boy. Would you like to see him? All you have to do is put the knife down. Or you know what, I am feeling happy today...go on keep the knife if it makes you feel better. But maybe you….could let go of my friend, yeah?”
“I'm sorry,” he told Luton. “I can't do that. You send that one out and I'll let this one go, then you and I can leave… or not.”
“Are you going to kill us all, Jon? With a flaying knife? It's not for stabbing and slicing in combat and it certainly wouldn't stop a bullet. Let's reassess our choices,” Luton advised.
Jon couldn't help but notice he was the only one panting. “You’re all psychopaths,” he realized.
Ramsay sat down on a black large wooden box and tilted his head looking at Jon. Now he wore a sympathetic, almost sad look.
“Aww...Jon. Look, I understand...you are panicking for no real reason you know. We aren’t going to flay you alive or whip you to death or something. Theon…”
Ramsay winced at the name.
“He asked us to save you. He asked us to keep you safe. And I know he will want to see you. But..in this state, I can’t let you. Not until you stop threatening others. And here is a hard truth for you, even if I did as you asked...Reek would never leave with you. Even if you found a way to kidnap him..he would do anything he could to come back to me. We love each other, Jon.”
He rested his hands on his knees.
“So..you cannot hurt us all with that knife. You can’t get out past the door without a code. And Theon won’t leave here with you. Just put the knife down, let go of Luton and we can talk.”
"Are you sure about that?” Jon shoved Luton into Alyn and backed himself into the wall. “Are you sure enough to let me ask him?” He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “Is Arya dead?”
Ramsay looked Jon in the eyes but didn’t move an inch.
“Good. I am glad you made a right decision. Now we can talk. Or rather, I can answer your questions. Yes, I am positive enough to let you ask him yourself. But not while you hold a weapon and are volatile. And yes...I am sorry, Arya and Gendry are both dead. My father’s orders. Sometimes parents make their children do bad things...what you need to think of now..is your future.”
“What if I killed your father for you then? If I fail, what does it matter to you? If I succeed, no more orders to follow, take your inheritance, and let me go. If Theon doesn’t want to come, I won't make him.”
Ramsay acted as if he considered it. Then he sighed and stood up slowly, taking care to show he was not about to launch. “I think you don’t understand your new reality yet. You have nothing. No family. No friends. No money. You have one person left in this world that wanted you to have a chance to survive. Now, we are willing to allow you to join our pack...we are offering you a place to live...and your main job in the pack right now...is to accept it. Luton has offered to take you in. So...maybe you should reconsider things.” Ramsay stretched and then started to walk again. He kept his distance from Jon and he did not reach for any weaponry.
“You want me to work for you?” Jon furrowed his brow until his stomach dropped. He slowly looked at Luton then to Ramsay. “What, exactly, are my choices?”
Ramsay gave a small smirk and spoke softly but clearly.
“You are going to be owned by Luton. You are never leaving here. Your choice is how you accept it. The easy way or the hard way. The easy way would be for you to put down the knife and listen, do what you are told, allow yourself the time to learn our rules, to adjust. It doesn’t have to be bloody, Jon.But if you choose the hard way... So those are your choices..easy or hard.”
Ramsay gave a look to Alyn, fast, very fast to warn him that Jon might panic.
“We want to help you through this, Jon. But if you need to try and fight at first we’ll understand.” His voice was very unconcerned, as if it didn’t matter either way since Jon was never leaving.
Harley woke up and stretched, hating the sound of the jangling chain. Her bladder cramped and she called out loudly but respectfully.
“Hey, please, I really need the bathroom. Would someone unlock my chain, please? ANYONE?”
Cub heard Harley, he woke up right after he heard Master leave the room. He sucked on his binky and tried to get his brain to work.
Sluggishly, he thought it out. Master gives rules and Cub obeys them. Did Master say this morning to Cub to “stay”? No. Alyn had just talked to Luton on his phone and then left. Cub slid out of the bed and started to crawl towards New and Smash’s room. He wondered where Smash was, if he was going to ever stomp around him again?
The thinking was too much and he stopped, shivering and panting. He had a very deep-seated fear of knowing, of thinking too much about things.
Something screaming in the silence of his inner core tells him to ever be anything or know anything beyond THIS that his Master would become angry Alyn very fast. That is a nightmare NEVER worth thinking of.
He shook it off and sat in front of New’s door.
“New? Cub help?”
He reached for the doorknob and ineffectively turned it back and forth. “Stuck. Oh..wait...bad. No Touching Closed. Doors.” He turned white and swayed, moaning. “Broke rule. Did bad...thing.
It was all Cub could do not to lose his own bladder upon the rug. He slowly slid down Harley’s door and curled up on the floor in front of it. No lying, no sneaking, he knows the rules. If Cub breaks a rule, he cannot hide from it. That makes the bad worse.
Cub went into a fetal position and made sure to use his arms to cover his head well. At least that one thing he can do to please his Master. He started to sob, prepared to spend the entire day here until his Master comes.
When Puppy or New get punished, they apologize, they might cry or beg or even scream during a punishment. Then they sniff and it is over. For Cub, it is a whole world of a difference. Even though Cub has rarely seen angry Master since he has...been a good boy?
But even when angry Alyn was here it was never anger at Cub. He was never hurt by his angry Master, no he cowered and groveled and Master got very bloody on someone being BAD then he would be nice to Cub.
Whenever Cub makes a mistake, he becomes terrified like this. Despite the fact that his Master NEVER gets mad like that at Cub’s mistakes, he sees it..he waits for it. And every time a mistake happens, he tries to at least be good by waiting to grovel, beg and take any punishment or lecture given.
Also, it hurts Cub very badly to upset his Master. He is good boy, good Cub..he is perfect boy and Master’s little innocent angel. That is what he always must be. To make a mistake is not good, perfect, innocent or at all like an angel. What if...what if this time..the offense was the one that brought angry Alyn?
Harley groaned, Cub’s behavior when he makes some minor mistake is well known. Great, now I have to help him while trying not to piss myself. Wonderful.
“Sweet Cub, hush, it is alright. It was a very very small mistake. You know your Master is a good fair Master. He wouldn’t hurt his little boy over such a small thing. You stopped as soon as you saw the mistake. That is a very good thing! And he will be so pleased with you that you remembered the rules! Take a deep breath, honey.”
A soft curse and then she called out past the sobbing, “HEY, CAN SOMEONE PLEASE GIVE US A HAND, HERE? I HAVE TO REALLY GET TO THE BATHROOM AND CUB IS SCARED! HELLO? ANYONE AWAKE?”
“I'm chained too, sorry, Harley,” Reek called.
Skinner knocked on the door. “You, um, need help?”
Cub mewled under his feet, curled up and holding his head.
“Yes, please? Could you unlock the door and unchain me so I can use the bathroom?. Ramsay or Alyn usually let me out by now for those things! Please or I really think I might have an accident.”
Harley was nearly dancing in tears. Her usual crawl mandated by Ramsay unless given permission to stand wasn’t going to matter anymore. She was on her feet and ready to run for the toilet.
“Skinner, I am not trying to break my rules, but I’m standing and I am going to run for the bathroom. I’ll crawl afterward, okay?”
Skinner stared at the ceiling and opened the door. “I didn’t see how you came out,” he mumbled.
“Emergency, sorry!” Harley leaped over Cub and flew to the bathroom. “Skinner, would you unchain Reek so he can calm down Cub? Unless you want to calm him yourself?”
Harley was just glad that at the last minute she remembered to throw on Damon’s old t-shirt. Then as she used the toilet she looked down to see which one she was wearing that produced such a look on Skinner’s face.
“Oh man…” It was an obscene picture involving a fantastically endowed woman and a scary robot with a huge metal erection. On the very bottom written in marker was some old joke written by Ramsay. Figures.