WARNING!

In this chapter, there will be mentions of prostitution, escorts, and the sex industry as a whole. My characters give their opinions about this topic, but please keep in mind that this is a work of fiction, and my characters' opinions are not to be interpreted as necessarily mine or as a lesson on morals.

I hope I was not too clumsy, my aim is not to stigmatize or point at things. I don't want to open a debate either.

Don't hesitate to tell me if I'm being hurtful in the way I write about things, though.

Enjoy!

CHAPTER 10

At last, Katsuya could work again. It was about time. After a few days of being locked up in the shiny golden cage that was the Kaiba Mansion, he was certain he would become mad just looking at the goddamn bed and its silky sheets. The house staff was all polite and lovely, Mokuba and Isono came as often as they could, IKaiba kept him company at all times, Kaiba was being civil – when was the meteor rain scheduled for again? –, but the blonde still waited impatiently for his freedom at work. Yes, he really thought working in Kaiba's tower was better than being lodged and fed by Kaiba's staff. At least, when he was at KaibaCorp, the rookie was not afraid to have a nightly visit of a creepy smiling Kaiba. The last nightmare he had of this nearly gave him a heart attack.

When he returned, he got bound to office work for a while, as the new Duel Disk was coming out in a few weeks and they needed to complete the launching announcement and public appearances of Kaiba. That meant Katsuya had to prepare his employer's trips from one place to another, check the places where he would be, and tell the organizers he would be there instead of Isono this time. It was his first real task as the CEO's shadow, in public, and he felt both giddy and excited to prove himself, although he was mildly worried when his mentor informed him that it was Kaiba himself who had requested the rookie came with him as his bodyguard. He would have to be extra careful.

He got an office on the same floor as Isono, just under the CEO's. The working space, almost half the size of his apartment, was bare except from a brand new computer on a shiny glass desk and a big, comfy chair. Still, it was more than he had ever had, and he had been said he could decorate the room as he wished. No restriction. The blonde could not wait to put on a picture of his best dragon pal, just to taunt his boss with it if the man ever came in one day. That, and a giant poster of Men in Black, a private joke meant only for him, IKaiba and Isono. Oh, yes, this was his territory, not Kaiba's, and he would show it.

Actually, he had seldom seen his employer, which was a relief, but when he did, Kaiba was extremely neutral with him. Which really meant a lot. No insult, no undermining word, if not for the occasional 'mutt' slipping out of the brunet's mouth once in a while, but with an almost playful tone Katsuya had never heard before. He was crept out and did his best not to let it show. No doubt the man was coming back at him for being all polished and obedient with him, thus resisting him in a way he had never before.

Of course, IKaiba was assisting him. Being the most powerful AI in Japan, and probably in the whole world, he could make background checks faster than his human, although Katsuya did them himself too, so as not to rely entirely on his friend. Once this was done, the pair proceeded with checking Kaiba's schedule and bookings, to make sure everything would go smoothly the whole week. There was no holographic projector, so they had to communicate through the blonde's computer – IKaiba wrote text messages on an instant messaging app he had coded solely for them, and Katsuya answered out loud, the microphone in the device relaying what he said to the AI –.

The first day after the blonde's return went by quickly. He only had time to say hi to Satsuki, who nearly glomped him in relief. They promised to have a coffee together sometime after the rush they were going through. He saw Isono, too, before the elder bodyguard went to retrieve Mokuba from school. His mentor smiled at him and invited him to lunch the following day, at their usual place. And not only them, but a few employees he had encountered here and there smiled at him as he passed and greeted them, before they resumed their tasks. Those small gestures made him feel welcome in this company he thought to be a devil's lore, and as crazy as it sounded given the small amount of time he had spent in here, the rookie found he was happy to be back. Maybe he would like this job more than he thought, and not only for the money he earned from it.

Or maybe not.

As a top-notch bodyguard, his roles were as numerous as the shares his boss possessed, which was a lot, really. Some of his duties were straightforward, like protecting his employer – bodyguard, guard the body, duh –, but others were stranger and specific to his position as Kaiba's shadow. One of them included his capacity to provide the CEO with everything he could need, from food to clothes, including... company. Like, decorative company for galas, or private company for the happiness of his nights. To put it simply and elegantly.

Isono had assured him Kaiba had never asked anything of the sort, but one was never too careful. So, as a dedicated employee, Katsuya had decided he would get some work done on this aspect, as it could not be proper to hesitate on a choice of escort if one day his boss requested one for real. As they were about to get through a week of strenuous public appearances and events, maybe Kaiba would feel... needs to relax. This involved studious preparations, both in terms of seriousness and safety. The rookie had to filter escort agencies to select the most interesting candidates, and the most capable ladies they had to offer. Though the very thought of 'offering' women was enough to make the blonde want to vomit in his mouth.

On a radiant Saturday morning, when the CEO was busy working on Ra knew what, Jonouchi sat at his desk – his desk –, and began browsing the internet, in search for agencies he could add into his phantom file. IKaiba helped him, though his inputs consisted more of snarky comments on the morals of such businesses. The pair of agents agreed on their incomprehension.

They sell women, how is it different from prostitution.

"Well, they only sell their time, not their bodies," the blonde sarcastically added, "what do you expect."

Katsuya did not have to care if he appeared crazy. He was alone. It was his office. However, he would have appreciated talking to his friend directly, rather than via a microphone. Oh, well, he was lucky he had his own working space, without his boss leering at him from the corner of his vision, and so he could speak as loudly as he liked.

There is little difference. When you buy someone's time in that way, regardless of how you use it, you also buy their willingness and censor their freedom of thought. So, you buy a complete being, in mind and body, for a certain amount of time, you do not buy time alone. No matter how you try to make it sound better, this is a form of prostitution.

"Y'know, if I follow your train of thoughts, I'd be whoring myself to Kaiba, too."

The thought had him smile and make a face at the same time. He wondered if the camera of his computer caught his expression and relayed it to his partner.

In a way, yes, as much as I am pained to admit it. He asks a lot of you, things you should not normally abide to. This includes your looking into glorified brothels' websites.

At least his opinion was crystal clear. Katsuya agreed, but truth be told, he preferred doing this now and be done with it for good, rather than push it away and have it bite his ass later. He just hoped he would never have to use an escort's services. Even if some of the agencies – those he selected – looked classy and respectful of the women they advertised, offering company for business and nothing else. Even if some women could have chosen this job – one could be an idealist –. It still looked wrong in his eyes.

The rookie knew he would have no say in the matter, if his boss came to decide he would need such services. If that happened, Katsuya would obey and try to limit the damage. It was dreadful, but it was legal, and he had seen worse. When he was a yankee, he had seen how it was in the poorer parts of town. He had seen prostitutes do what they had without so much as a flimsy, rusted piece of sheet metal in a back alley to protect them from the weather as they 'worked'. Or women beaten black and blue and chased down by their pimps, and still working even if they had something broken and untreated. He had witnessed what humans could do to one another for money, fame, or power, and as he watched the high definition pictures of half-naked, curvy female bodies with an uninterested eye, he concluded that this was, on an unfair scale where living beings were objects, nearing acceptable. At least, the women advertised here looked healthy.

It did not mean he liked this. Not at all. He did not like puppies being sold in shops, so humans...

He would definitely not use their services, unless he had no other option. He doubted Kaiba would like them, anyway. If he liked anyone at all besides his brother. And Katsuya could not – would not – look for a girl resembling Mokuba Kaiba. No way in hell. Kissing Yami Marik's ass in Lava Golem's cage was better than this. Kaiba would have his head just for having these thoughts right now.

You look thoughtful. Is something on your mind?

The question showed a worried undertone, and Katsuya snapped back to reality. He realized he had scrolled to the bottom of the page and had been staring at the photo of a bleached blonde girl in her twenties, described to 'like big cocks which could make her sing for her manly rooster', for a good minute of complete silence, before his virtual partner had intervened. His face heated up. He must have looked like a complete perv. He hastily closed the page.

"Sorry, I spaced out. I'm not really comfortable with that stuff. Guess there's no going around it, though."

I thought as much. I filtered out the other websites that blatantly offered 'pleasurable extras'. Some of the few I let through I am uncertain about, so I trust your human experience on the matter. A couple of them are offering male escorts, and I even found an agency specialized in transgender escorts, without sexual intercourse.

"Oh, er, um... Yeah."

Katsuya was unsure about the last one. Why specialize in that? Who obsessed on trans people so much, that an entire agency was dedicated to advertising them? Why even advertise people on an effing website? Some sites displayed them like an Amazon platform for perverts. Where was the bin to vomit into? They were talking about human beings!

And there's even a cart. Like in a supermarket. Dude, who's twisted enough ta go as far as puttin' a being in a virtual cart an' book them online for further pleasure? Ugh. Don't answer, brain, ta much.

Back to topic. He really did not want to know anything about his employer's tastes in people, let alone ask him if he preferred a trans or not. Nope, never. Yet, the blonde had to retain all viable possibilities, until the CEO decided something concrete. He had to gather his courage.

"I'll check them and select those I find most suitable. Thanks."

You are welcome, I suppose? Do you need anything else?

"Nope, although you could give me some support when I... oh God no."

What?

The message went unseen, as Katsuya's gaze remained transfixed in horror at what he saw. On one of the websites selected by IKaiba, in the 'males' section, a plethora of pictures welcomed him, masculinity displayed in full HD, without a single pixel of covering on the luscious bodies posing in various situations: on velvety bed sheets, in the woods, next to a pool... It was a cock festival in R18 FantasiaLand.

Ra, save me. A bottle of bleach won't be enough for this.

Numbed, the blonde scrolled down and discovered that the agency advertised a lot of male escorts, with all shades of skin color, and of many different nationalities. They were even offering 'cosplay fantasies', including...

Oh. Right this instant, he was glad he had not anything potentially hot or dangerous in his hand, otherwise his jump might have been lethal to his person. Upon 'looking' – for he was not, for the love of him, watching those nudes willingly –, in search for anything that could be retained as passable for his boss, he had come face to face with a copy of the very CEO. The resemblance was not perfect, but close enough for Katsuya to reel back in his chair, spluttering.

The escort was a brunet in his twenties, with strikingly similar blue eyes. He had naturally lightly tan skin, a carefully built six-pack and, unlike the others, he was covered from the mid-section. Probably to tease potential clients, if not to keep the illusion that he was as prudish as the actual man. Upon closer inspection, the blonde noticed the male's gaze looked meeker, lacking the hard glint Kaiba always bore, and his features were somewhat softer. All in all, the copy looked... less threatening, more accessible, and it felt strange to Katsuya. He was so used to working with the CEO, and IKaiba, who was a real doppelganger of the former in appearance, that he could immediately point out the differences. But he had to admit that for the common man, the escort could have passed for Kaiba.

"Have you ever dreamed of spending a romantic evening with the ice king of Domino?," the ad asked. "Then you've come to the right place! Our most wanted escort Sen would be delighted to answer the name of the sexiest bachelor, and believe us, you'll soon fall for him as if he were the real stuff! Your satisfaction will be guaranteed, and his large set of skills will allow him to play any role you want. A tender Director? 'Of course, darling, anything for you!' A bossy countenance? 'Sure, scum, kneel to me if you so desire.' A passionate, lonely billionaire hidden behind the cold facade? 'Never thought you would see it... would you stay by my side?' The only limit is that of your imagination! Book him now, before he's gone for good!"

This definitely made him sick. After the obsession over people for sale, now there was an obsession for doubles of prominent people for sale. Nice... or not.

His eyes snapped back to the corner of the screen, seeing a dozen of texts IKaiba had fired out of anxiousness at his expression, and he scoffed.

"Pray tell why you selected this one?"

I did not detect anything related to the sex industry.

"Dudes' dicks in full display are not related to sex for you?," Katsuya replied incredulously.

Female escorts are often represented with exposed body parts, mostly their breasts, considered exciting by the targeted customer base of such sites, if I understood correctly. Therefore, I saw no harm in male escorts exposing their penises, although I must admit I felt quite uncomfortable too, for reasons I cannot explain.

The blonde snorted at that.

"Maybe because you're not into this. When you're not the 'targeted customer base', as you say, seeing dicks anywhere else than porn movies or showers is quite gross. To me, serious agencies don't resort to such means to attract customers, quite the contrary."

Not that he had experience in escorts and their industry, but well, he just did not like boobs and dicks being flaunted at his face, much less with prostitution poorly disguised as classy services. He was not a posh-tart, but he was not an animal either, thank you very much. He had respect for his human peers.

IKaiba took some time to answer, which gave Katsuya time to close the offending site and try to chase the crude photos out of his mind. Especially those soft blue eyes.

"Could you erase this site?," he asked at last. "Not that it's more sickening than the others, but-"

I understand, the text came instantly with a ping, my apologies for this mistake. I did not realize such pictures were that rude.

"No prob, K. We've seen worse, and if you only look at the text, it could have fooled anyone. But gosh, try to be careful next time. I've seen enough dicks for the rest of my life."

Your customs are quite strange, J. You Japanese people can go to public baths without any problem, but a penis on a screen makes you cringe. You have got huge portions of hard memory dedicated to pornographic content, but speaking of it is taboo. I do not see what the matter is with your intimate parts.

"Huh." The blonde had the decency to blush at that, even if he felt dumbstruck. "Er, to be honest, I've nothing against crude things, per se. Hell, I saw much worse when I was part of Hirutani's gang. However, I don't like 'intimate parts', like you say, being exhibited like meat at a butcher's stall. I think sex, and people's bodies, are not to be sold. I know sometimes it's a last resort thing, but I can't conceive the idea of sex without that of love. I need sex, I love having sex, but I wouldn't fuck anyone just for fun, especially not a person employed for this, even if they look good. Ugh, it's undermining people to mere objects you can dispose of once they've been used. I hate the idea."

So you are saying that sex is both something you need, and something you choose to do, or not. I am not sure I understand completely, but I can see where you are going.

"Sorry, K. Sometimes I forget you've not experienced sex."

Say I am a virgin, while you are at it.

It was light teasing, Katsuya knew, but his face flushed nonetheless.

Don't explode, I am not offended. Contrarily to you, I am not embarrassed by my not having made love yet. I do not have a body for this. However, I can join you on the opinion that I would not like doing such a thing with a total stranger. I think I can say I would only need this with someone I love. If I knew what love is, that is.

The blonde suddenly felt very, very dumb. He had been lecturing IKaiba on his morals about love and desire, while the AI had no idea what he was talking about in the first place.

"Oh. I'm sorry. I was insensitive, here, wasn't I?"

I forgive you. Frankly, all those debates about people's appearances sound stupid to me, even if I can understand why humans entertain them. Society decided of those norms, and even I have difficulties to overcome them. But I am more interested in people's minds and characters, before the way they look, so I am not really interested in those sites. I doubt I will ever be, in any case.

"Oh, right. You're more on the brainy side, then." Katsuya nodded with a smile. "That's logical, just like you."

If you say so. And you? What do you search for in a suitable partner?

The blonde was frozen for a moment, thinking of an answer. When he found one, he took in a breath and began, "I'm not sure. I'm certainly more influenced by looks than you. With Mai, it was a powerful physical attraction, at first. I was young, and I found her gorgeous. After some time, I unveiled her hidden personality, and that was when I fell in love with her. We lived in sync, we had the same dreams, the same taste for independence, and we trusted each other. Now, I don't think I have a type. I wouldn't fall in love with another Mai if she wasn't like her. I guess I'd just be happy to find someone who'd love me as I am, with whom I'd found a home and family."

And you would do so with only a woman? Not with a man?

At that, he frowned. He had not thought about that.

"I don't know. I've never been interested in men, really. I've never thought I could be. In fact, I've never really thought about gender, I guess I just followed my heart's desire and didn't introspect too much."

And if you found your ideal partner in a man, now? Would you reject them?

Katsuya's frown deepened. Where was IKaiba getting at?

"I don't know. I can't picture myself with a man, but it may be 'cause I don't know what it's like. I've never been with someone else than Mai, and I've only looked at girls. As you say, society makes norms, and to me, it's always been normal that I looked at girls and no one else. I had Mai, then I had my father's debt to pay, and I've never thought of thinking about such things in depth."

On second thought, he added, "You know, if I were narrow-minded, I wouldn't even be friends with you. No offense. Now's actually the first time I've really thought about gender differences. Maybe I'm being dumb not minding such things."

I do not think so. At least, you are realistic and tactful on the matter, and you are right, there was no reason for you to introspect on such things. I apologize for asking something that insensitive.

"Don't, that's okay. It's normal that you ask, and I promised I would answer. I'm not sure I'm much help, though. Honestly, it's been a while since I last thought about having a relationship with anyone at all."

Because of your father?

The room seemed to shrink around him. The blonde inhaled sharply, seized by painful memories as the question rung between his ears. His computer went off with a string of apologies, and he shook his head.

"Nah, I'm good." A pause, then, "Yeah, that. T'would not be respectful if I brought someone into my mess, even more so if they're someone I love."

May I ask something else?

If IKaiba asked, it meant Katsuya would not like the question. He still nodded.

"Shoot."

Do you still love Mai?

Ah. Now, that was tricky. He stayed silent for a few seconds, before he sighed deeply.

"I guess so, but I'm not sure. I'm feeling a little empty without her in my life, as if she ripped out a chunk of me when I pushed her away. But it's been what? Two years? The pain's always been here, but lately it's felt... dull. It was unbearable, at first, I felt alone and miserable, and I regretted my choice even though I knew it was the right thing to do. Now... Now I'm not so alone anymore. Isono found me, and since he did, I've found new friends, and I've met a partner in crime," he added smiling at his computer, a smile meant for IKaiba. "I'm still sad about it, but my life's changing, and I'm changing too. Maybe I can hope for a brighter future, with or without her. We'll have to see?"

This sounded like a question, for the blonde did not know if the AI would stay with him until then. When IKaiba answered, he realized he should not worry over it.

I would love to see that with you.

The rookie grinned at the screen, relieved. Then, he stretched in his chair, sighing.

"Sooo, now that we've cleared this, I think we should go back to work. Regardless of our tastes, we have to abide to Kaiba's."

You are right. However, I still do not like this.

"Neither do I, K."

With a mournful sigh, he went back to the screen where IKaiba had corrected the list of selected websites. The link he clicked on redirected him to a classier page than what he had seen so far. At least this time, the escorts advertised had clothes on. He browsed through the pages, disconnecting his brain from the pictures and tempting smiles so as not to think about how disgusting the system felt to him.

After a while, he had narrowed the list down to three agencies. He noted them down on his notepad and scheduled a time to check on them more thoroughly, then he shut off his computer and decided he would never do something like this again. Even under torture.

Are we finished?, his phone displayed with a blip.

It was a rhetorical question.

"Yeah, any plans?," Katsuya replied.

I could order you take-out from your favorite place. Burger World, is it? And I would like to test out my new deck, if you do not mind. I am sure Mokuba could give us access to one of the labs.

The rookie snorted, amused.

"Obsessed much, now aren't you?"

I merely want to build the perfect deck. Who knows, I may use it more often in the near future.

"If you say so. Anyway, I'm always up to burgers and duels."

I would not dare to think otherwise.

His afternoon planned, the blonde pocketed his phone and went out of his office. Unbeknownst to him, IKaiba was still working. Carefully, the AI was coding the deck of the virtual version of the blonde, that would be uploaded into the world of Duel Links. Kaiba was still hunting down the one that had meddled with his beloved virtual Yami, even if he only did so when he had a second to spare aside from his usual work load. Isono was not pleased, and IKaiba had to find a solution soon to avert a crisis from happening.

Fortunately, he had one. And if he planned his moves carefully, he would solve both this problem and Jonouchi's. For when he succeeded, Kaiba would never be mad over his puny King of Games anymore, and he would never, ever feel the need to ask for an escort.

Katsuya would be happy, in many ways. Agent K would make sure of it.