A knocking sound dragged me from my dreamless sleep. I blinked, confused by the orange canopy above me for a few seconds.

When my memories came flooding back to me I groaned.

"Auralia, you alright?" a female voice called from the other side of my bedroom door.

"Yes. Coming," I replied, hoping I was loud enough to be heard. Even if I wasn't, my visitor couldn't get in. After crying for almost an hour the night before, I'd decided to wedge a chair under the door handle and prevent any late-night intruders. There was no knowing what sort of ideas the other courtesans, or worse, the bodyguards, might have.

When I reached the door, I noticed the chair wasn't perfectly where I'd left it. It had slipped, no longer preventing the handle from turning, but still preventing the door from opening.

I took a deep breath, as much to calm myself at the confirmation someone had tried to enter my room as to prepare myself for the day and whatever it brought with it.

My guide from the night before stood on the other side of the door, her eyes and face almost entirely expressionless. She was dressed more casually, her hair still wet from washing and almost no make-up on her face.

Near her was another guard, one I hadn't yet met. He carried two large containers with handles, one dangling from each hand. They looked heavy, the guard about ready to drop them.

"Your body paint arrived," Mhairi said. I stepped back, letting both of them into the room. Her eyes found the chair I'd barely pulled farther away, but the guard was far too intent on depositing his cargo.

He almost dropped the paints in the middle of the room and hurried away.

Mhairi lingered by the chair, still looking between me and it.

"You're not stupid, then," she said as if she was stating a normal fact. I felt a small flush of pride. "The others said you were insane enough to actually ask for these paints, though. Said you were arrogant enough to think you could make back the money."

"Hmmm," I replied, stumped by the accusation. It didn't surprise me that they'd been talking about me, but it did take me aback that she was willing to just insult me to my face. "Yaru thought they were a good idea. I've no clue how much they cost."

"Oh." Her eyes went a little wider, the first sign of any kind of emotional reaction.

For a moment we studied each other. In the daylight she looked older, everything about her passive, almost meek.

Before either of us could say anything else, the guard returned. This time he carried an array of different items, from what looked like small paint brushes to sponges, and a large roll of something shiny and smooth, almost cling-wrap like, but on a much bigger scale.

"Boss says you know what you're doing with this stuff," the guard said, looking straight at Mhairi and ignoring me. She nodded.

"Well enough. Yaru will be here with someone to help soon," she said as the guard walked away. He gave her a thumbs-up over his shoulder, already leaving.

Paying me no attention, Mhairi went over to the first case and opened the lid. It contained sixteen pots, twelve colours and doubles of black and white. Each had a G in the middle of the colour label.

The second container held the same colours, a large M on them instead.

"Matte and Gloss?" I asked.

"Yes. We'll go for Matte today. Yaru said we needed to paint something the businessmen in the Asian district would like."

At this I smiled. I'd had several ideas I could do, involving cherry blossoms and painting myself as if I were a blossom tree. I quickly relayed this to Mhairi.

"Yes, I can do that, and I used to do calligraphy. We'll paint some Japanese words in particular places."

"As long as they actually say things like hope and peace and aren't just letters of the alphabet," I replied.

Mhairi raised her eyebrows, the unspoken why written on her face.

"Never mind. Old joke... Very old joke, I guess."

"Oh," she said, not sounding particularly interested either way. She returned her attention to the paints, pulling out some of the brushes and several circular trays with holes in the middle. Each one had six indents for paints to be mixed in.

"The paints are here then," Bernice said, walking into my room as if she owned it, her hips swaying. She was wearing a flowing dressing gown, a grey face mask on. Several other courtesans followed in her wake. I mentally kicked myself for not putting the chair back behind the door once the guard had left.

Mhairi immediately shut the lid of one container and squatted down in front of the other. It was a subtle way to defend them. In my head I thanked her. Outwardly, I moved nearer the women and farther from the paints, putting myself between them.

"Just arrived," I said, meeting Bernice's gaze without hesitation despite the nerves that tugged my stomach in four directions at once. "They look complicated. Good thing Yaru is going to be here with an expert soon."

"An expert?" Bernice let out an almost mocking whistle. "They really are putting out for your debut, aren't they? Yaru, the wonder eunuch, and the new prototype body paints complete with your own teacher. You must be expecting to make a big impact."

"I'm hoping to pay my debt back. Just like everyone here," I replied as Bernice came closer, her eyes flicking between me and the piles of accessories.

"How many years were you frozen again? Couple of hundred? You've got a lot of... confidence for waking up in such a different culture."

Arrogance, you mean, I thought but didn't say. It was jealousy. They didn't like how much Daniel was spending on me.

"I've not got much choice. My debt is huge. If I don't make a big impression today, I may never be free."

My honesty earnt me a lot of laughs, Bernice's the loudest and most mocking.

"You really don't get it yet, do you?" she said.

Warily, I raised one eyebrow, the most I'd do to show my curiosity and desire for more information from her.

"None of us will ever be free." Bernice's smile disappeared, her genuine anger giving her words bite. "Any time any of us get close, something happens, or Daniel comes up with a way to make our debt larger. Another expense. Some more protection. Finding a reason to ditch one of our well-paying regulars."

I gulped, not sure what to say. I'd feared that her words would be true, but I'd allowed hope to motivate me.

"We make men like Daniel rich, and we don't ever get to do anything else. Welcome to our court, Auralia. You're one of us now."

Bernice spun on her heel and strode away. Everyone but Mhairi followed her, but they didn't shut the door behind them.

"Well played," Mhairi said a moment later. I wondered what she meant, but she'd gone back to looking through the equipment, reading the labels on bottles and preparing a small area on a side table to begin mixing. "I thought they might come break something out of spite. You took their attention away. Made her think she'd hurt you in another way."

I nodded.

There was no thinking about it. She had hurt me. She'd taken my hope and shattered it into a thousand tiny shards. But there was no way I could express that now.

Instead, I took a deep breath and tried to think of anything else. Perhaps she was wrong, but either way, I had to carry on. If I stopped and thought about it I'd cry again.

Thankfully, Mhairi seemed to be as eager to get on with things as I was and soon held out the base layer of fabric that had come with the kit.

While the paint worked on skin, it didn't work very well on fabrics. And a courtesan couldn't go around naked, especially one in my situation. The company behind the paint had designed a fabric that hugged the skin almost as much. I would look naked except for the paint.

"Come on, hurry up and put them on," Mhairi said, a paintbrush ready in one hand and a tray of already mixed colours in the other. "We need to hurry up or you'll be late."

I nodded, taking the edges of my dressing gown in my hands. My naked walk the night before had done little to ease the sense of vulnerability I felt again. I didn't want to be so exposed in front of a relative stranger.

The thought made me laugh as I urged my hands to obey my mind and drop the dressing gown to the floor.

Mhairi stared at me, evidently puzzled by my sense of humour.

If I'd not wanted to be naked in front of strangers I probably shouldn't have suggested the body paints as an idea. I only had myself to blame.

The stretchy garment only covered a small area around my crotch and buttocks, only just larger than underwear, but it fitted comfortably and felt soft.

With a quick nod, Mhairi came closer, using the brush in her hand to begin painting the wooden branches of a cherry tree. She had to re-dip the brush often, giving me a thicker coating of paint than I'd hoped.

As it dried it felt similar to a face mask, my skin stretching slightly as it warmed up and shrunk. The smell of it was surprising, however. It didn't smell as I'd remembered wall paint had; instead it had a sweet, almost coconut-like aroma.

Mhairi painted deft strokes while I tried to keep still, but it seemed to take an age, every inch of my skin becoming something else.

I tried not to blush as she incorporated my areolas into the design of the tree's blossom, the painting growing more intimate and tickly as she continued. Just like pretty much everything else, Mhairi was completely unembarrassed and emotionless. I could have been a blank canvas, or a female statue to be painted.

The paint dried quickly, not smudging or distorting if Mhairi accidentally caught a patch she didn't mean to. Several times I ran my finger over it, expecting it to feel strange, but it was only slightly rougher than my normal skin. Whoever had designed this paint had done a good job.

It was only as Mhairi knelt to continue the design downwards from my stomach that either of us hesitated. Her cheeks flushed briefly as she brought the paintbrush down, creating a branch that travelled down my sex.

Looking away, I hoped I wasn't doing the same, but it was a vain hope. My face grew hotter as she continued to paint.

She was just reaching my thighs as my bedroom door flew open again and Yaru strode in, moving his bulk at an impressive speed. Struggling to keep up was a mouse-like man, a pencil goatee barely covering what would have been a weak chin.

Yaru's eyes went straight to Mhairi. Immediately, he frowned.

"I had hoped you'd be further along than this by now," he said, coming right up. "This is Simon. He's a technician and part of the support team for the paints. You have him to thank for this not being toxic."

I nodded, looking at Simon. He fidgeted with his clothes.

"Yes, well... I hadn't envisioned the paint being used in quite this way, of course. Not originally."

"Great creators often find themselves down unexpected paths," Yaru replied, using the same matter-of-fact tone as the day before.

Looking anywhere else but me, Simon nodded.

"Mhairi, why don't you hand over to Simon and let him show you everything else you need to know. The sooner this is finished the better."

Mhairi obeyed, instantly scrambling to her feet, but Simon gulped and looked between the two of them before taking the offered paintbrush.

He hesitated yet again when it came to continuing to paint on my skin, but Mhairi plied him with questions and queried so many details he soon relaxed, talking about his invention. Most of the details flew right past me, but I did my best to pay attention. Mhairi might have been the intended recipient, but I didn't want to be clueless when it came to using the paint.

Between the two of them, it only took another hour to finish off the job. I ached as much as they appeared to, but Yaru gave me no time to recover.

"Fantastic," he said, tucking his crystal computer away as Mhairi began to clear up. "No doubt Daniel will be eager for Mhairi to continue with her own job, but it's also high time I began your introductions."

I nodded, willing to do anything if it meant I could sit down for a while.

Yaru led me from the room as Mhairi finished up. As she got up, she stumbled, almost dropping some of the paints. Somehow Simon managed to react fast enough to catch her.

"Sorry," she said, flushing an even deeper red than before. She then made her excuses and hurried from my room.

"Such a pity," Yaru said, shaking his head slightly.

"She is still plagued by old wounds, then?" Simon asked, both of them evidently alluding to something I didn't understand.

"Yes, sadly. But she does well, given everything that's happened."

This seemed to be the end of their private conversation, Simon now excusing himself.

"Right," Yaru said, holding out a small bag that he'd materialised from seemingly nowhere. The colour matched the cherry blossoms adorning my skin. "You'll need this."

"What's inside it?" I asked, going to unzip it.

"For now, nothing. You'll use it to put tips in and hold the device that keeps track of your schedule and checks whether your clients are already in the database."

"Database?"

"Yes. All men who want to hire a courtesan have to be pre-approved. It helps ensure your safety."

I nodded as Yaru motioned for me to head out of the door.

The courtesan common room was empty, all the bedroom doors off it wide open. Only Mhairi and I were anywhere to be seen. As I passed her room I could see her hurriedly fixing her make-up and pulling on clothing.

Catching a glimpse of several scars down one side of her torso, I gasped. Thankfully, she didn't hear me or notice my observation.

Yaru, however, did. His eyes met mine, but he put his finger to his lips.

I followed him out of the building and into a large bubble vehicle, the glass on this one tinted from the outside to obscure the view. Unlike the bubble I'd travelled in the previous day, this one had an array of cushions and soft areas to sink into, with a small table in the middle. I also noticed it travelled slower and more gently, the start almost imperceptible.

As I was debating whether to ask about Mhairi, Yaru started talking.

"You survived your first night?" he asked.

"Sort of," I replied. "Daniel was... demanding."

Yaru chuckled. "That's one word for his habits. What of the other courtesans?"

"I think I navigated the introductions as well as could be expected. Bernice is—"

"Don't stoop to her level. She'll come undone soon enough if she carries on being petty and jealous."

I nodded, grateful I didn't have to explain her actions. It sounded like her treatment of me was nothing new or unexpected.

"At least Mhairi was kind," I added, more to make conversation, but what I'd seen also came to mind.

"Don't mistake her willingness for anything more than it is. She knows helping you wins her favour. Both with Daniel and with me."

"With you?"

"Yes. Once upon a time, I was also her mentor."

"You were? What happened?"

Yaru sighed and I expected him to refuse to speak, but he looked outside at the passing city.

"Well, we have a while until we reach the first of our little meetings. You might as well hear it from me. She had a bad sponsor."

"But isn't Daniel her sponsor?

"Her debt wasn't always under Daniel's care. He bought it out. A favour to an old friend, let's say."

"Did the sponsor work her too hard?"

"Not exactly. From what I understand, he abused her himself, making Daniel's attentions to you last night seem like taking a gentle stroll down a sunlit garden."

I nodded, my mind serving up far more images than I really wanted to imagine. I'd thought Daniel's desires full-on at the time. It was starting to sound like I might have been far luckier than I'd realised.

"Of course, living with a man who does some of the things he used to during the day and having to try and perform as a courtesan at night took its toll."

"She couldn't earn enough."

"Not even close," Yaru said, the sadness and pity making him sigh. "One day he lost his temper. I believe he beat her, after doing God knows what else. He finished his assault on her with acid. Gave her those scars you witnessed her covering up today. And sometimes her limp is more obvious as well."

"But surely she can be healed of all of that if they can fix something like my MND?"

"And who would pay for it? She already had more debt than most courtesans. She was fortunate enough that Daniel was willing to buy her."

"She doesn't earn back the interest, does she?"

Yaru shook his head.

"Is that why she is willing to paint me instead of working?"

"Yes. She may be maimed, but her mind still works. If you're as successful as we all hope, she'll raise her own fortunes once again. Not enough to see her healed, but perhaps enough to give her some dignity of a sort. After all, there will be many men willing to pay to spend time with someone who will be in your presence so much when they can't afford time with you."

I raised my eyebrows, not sure I could imagine such a strange desire, but there was a lot about this future that was unexpected.

"Perhaps I could—"

"What? Help her?" Yaru interrupted, his voice both harsh and shocked at the same time. "Give her some of the credits you're going to be working every moment to earn yourself?"

I shrugged, surprised at the vehemence of his reaction.

"Put the thought straight out of your mind. That's exactly the sort of sentimentality you won't be able to entertain. Not anymore. You must keep a firm hold on your emotions and your sensibilities. Love, affection, and even friendship will derail you and prevent you from earning your freedom."

I nodded, understanding why he would say these things, but I must not have been convincing.

"I mean it, Auralia. You cannot let yourself love. Or feel anything for others. Not even for those who appear to be helping you. At best it will only lead to pain for you, and at worst..." Yaru shuddered. "You cannot imagine it."

"I understand," I replied, doing my best to sound sincere. This time it appeared to satisfy him. He gave me a nod before pulling his crystal pad out of its usual pocket again.

Inside, I made myself a promise. I'd find some way of helping Mhairi. And I wouldn't lose my humanity. No matter what I had to do, I wanted to still be me at the end of it all.