Black Marigold

A New Life

Once they were back in the hallway, Sugawara gave Kageyama a look of sympathy. "I'm sorry about this, truly. I wish I could've done more to help you."

"It's not like it's your fault," Kageyama told him dismissively, fists clenching tightly in anger, not just at Takeda and Ukai, but also at his grandfather. How could he have kept this debt from him? They'd promised to never keep secrets from one another, and this was a monumental secret. "Don't worry about me; I can deal with whatever those bastards throw at me."

Sugawara pressed his lips together sadly as they began walking back down the corridor, past the glaring guards and back towards the hallway of scrolls. "That's what they all say. Unfortunately, since you have a family debt, it's unlikely that you'll ever be able to pay it off." He glanced at the floor with a pensive frown. "Most of us here have a past we'd rather not talk about, and each of us owes a debt to this place for taking us in, but you... you're different—special."

"Special?" Kageyama echoed with a scowl. "Why? Because my fool of a grandfather passed his whore debt unto me? Yeah, that's special alright."

Sugawara stiffened and cast an uncomfortable glance his way. "Please... don't use that word. It's offensive."

"Sorry." Kageyama let out a gruff sigh and folded his arms, trying to keep his anger from bubbling to the surface again. Sugawara wasn't the one he should've been blaming for his current situation: All he'd done was try to help. "I'm just irritated. This isn't exactly how I thought I'd be spending the day. I apologize for taking it out on you."

"It's alright." The boy smiled at him kindly. "Everyone was like that at one point or another when they were brought here." His arms swung back and forth as they walked down the hallway, like an anxious child's. "Believe it or not, this place treats us justly—most of the time, at least." He let out a sheepish laugh. "I know I probably sound crazy, but you might be happy here, for the most part. They feed us, clothe us, and protect us. It's not a bad deal, really."

Kageyama raised an eyebrow at him disbelievingly. This place didn't exactly strike him as a safe haven, especially not after seeing the burly guards and the scared look in Sugawara's eyes talking about Takeda and Ukai. "But in return for those minimal niceties, you have to prostitute yourselves. I'd call that a 'bad deal,' Sugawara."

"Not necessarily," he responded with a tight smile, clearly annoyed by Kageyama's rough insensitive speech. "And please, call me Suga. No one calls me by my full surname, so it feels odd. Anyway, we aren't all sold out, you know. Those who do not wish to engage in physical relations are made hosts or hostesses. It's a rather amicable job."

As he spoke, he led Kageyama down another hallway and stopped in front of a sliding door inked with a painting of a sea dragon done in expensive cerulean and sapphire blues. "This is the seamstress' room. She'll fit you for some clothes, then I'll take you to your room." As he reached for the paneled door, he shot Kageyama a warning look. "She is easily offended, so please, don't speak too much."

Before Kageyama could get a word in edgewise, Suga slid the door open and pulled him inside.

* * * 

 It took the seamstress, Saeko, about an hour of measuring and sticking him with a needle to finish Kageyama's designated outfit: a black silk kimono. He thought the worst of it was over then, but she informed him that he'd have to wait another day to receive the finished, embroidered outfit and forced him into a rather open, navy blue robe instead. She also gave him another stack of clothes, all comparatively identical to the one he was wearing.

After that fiasco, Kageyama, bedraggled and well-worn, was escorted to his new room by Suga and told he'd be fetched again in an hour for training. What kind of training he'd be subjected to in a call house made Kageyama forseeably nervous, however there was no point in being disgruntled any further. He might as well have accept his fate at this point.