Whispers of the Yokai

Chapter Three: A New Body

Mio's loose sneakers slapped the pavement, all but a blur as she darted between the morning crowd and occasional yokai alike. Her breath came in ragged gasps, each one tasting of the city's exhaust and her own spiraling panic. She didn't spare a glance at the sidelong looks from pedestrians, too fixated on reaching Gentleman's Shield to notice their eyes dipping to her poorly chosen attire. Her nipples were evident through the oversized t-shirt, accentuated by the bouncing of her breasts with each step she took.

"Get a grip," someone muttered as she brushed past. Mio could have cracked a joke, something about free shows on street corners, but her mind was a locked vault of urgency.

She burst into Gentleman's Shield's lobby like a storm. Heads turned, whispers followed. Mio ignored them all and beelined for the elevator. She was out before the doors fully opened on the eighth floor and shouldered through Takashi's office door with enough force to make it rebound off the wall.

"Explain. Now." Mio's voice cut through the hum of the air conditioning.

Takashi looked up, startled, his pen pausing mid-sentence. His glasses caught a flash of the morning light, momentarily shielding his eyes. Surprise flickered across his face as he took in her disheveled state, then scrunched up in confusion.

"Who...?"

"It's me! Mio!" She practically exploded, the emotions out of control.

Recognition flashed across his eyes, then his expression smoothed into concern.

"Ms. Kojima-"

"Mr. Kojima," she corrected with a growl.

"Right, Mr. Kojima, please, take a seat." His hand gestured towards the plush chair across from him, a glass of water already conjured onto his desk as if by magic.

"Cut the crap, Takashi. The choker." Mio jabbed a finger at her neck where the Gentleman's Choker hugged her skin, its emblem mocking her in its stillness.

"Let me see..." Takashi's fingers danced across his tablet, swiping through digital logs with an efficiency that belied his calm exterior. "Ah, here we are."

"Spill it," she said, not sitting.

"This is peculiar," he muttered, almost to himself. Then he glanced up, adjusting his glasses. "It seems there was a...mix-up. A maid choker instead of a butler's."

"Mix-up?" Mio scoffed, arms crossing over her chest—a move she immediately regretted as it drew more attention to her unintended exhibitionism.

"Indeed." Takashi's voice held a note of apology, though Mio wondered how much was for show. She couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something off about him.

"How is that even possible?" she demanded. "Your choker can just change someone's gender just like that? How does that even make any sense?"

Takashi winced, his polished façade cracking. "It's... complicated. The choker adapts to its wearer, but this level of transformation is unprecedented."

"Get this thing off me," Mio demanded, her fingers clawing at the choker as if it were a snake coiling around her neck.

"I'm afraid it's not that simple," Takashi sighed, clasping his hands on the table. "The choker, Ms. Koji—uh, Mr. Kojima, is bound by contract. To remove it, you'd have to break that bond."

"Fine," Mio growled. "I'll cancel it and get a new one."

"There's a catch," Takashi said, his voice softening. "Once severed, you can't simply tie it back together. The contract is sacred. Irreversible."

Mio froze, her newfound curves suddenly feeling alien again. "So I'm stuck like this?"

Takashi's silence spoke volumes. She didn't need a verbal response to know the answer; his expression said it all.