Courtesans

The first dew of the light passed over his face. A young man drew open his hazel eyes and looked around. A white haze floated above his body. The air felt thin in his lungs. He could feel little droplets on his nose and cheeks. He couldn’t hear a single thing around him. But yet, the young man felt a strong sense of calm fill his body.

Where… am I?, he thought. Suddenly, his back felt a warm vibration under his back. His eyes trailed over to his left. A big, golden lion stood in the haze, staring at him. The young man’s felt his heart jump into triple beats.

Stay away! Stay away! The lion stared on at him. Then, the young man felt another warm vibration under his back. This time, his eyes trailed over to his right. A skinny white wolf stood watching him. Its silver eyes made the young man want to jump if he could.

What the hell is this?, he thought. Am I going to be eaten?

“Taiyo! Tsuki!” a woman’s voice yelled in the distance. “Stand down!” The young man’s eyes moved in front of him. The source of the voice walked forward in the haze. The sound of jingling trailed with her as she walked. She stood over him, looking down.

“Well, well, well,” she said. “What do we have here?” The young man kept his eyes on her. She looked rather cute. The pink and red kimono top drew heavy attention to her breasts. The black obi held it tightly together. His eyes trailed downwards on her body. Her pink fishnet stockings matched her top. His soft hazel eyes widened really hard. The young woman raised an eyebrow at him.

“Hm?” she asked. The young woman leaned her ear close to his lips. Her crystal blue eyes met his after a few seconds.

“You want me to let you up?” she asked. “You can blink once for yes and twice for no.” The young man blink once. The woman gave him a perky smile.

“Okie-dokie!” she cheered. The woman gently placed her right hand to his chest and chanted under her breath. The young man felt light enough to move when she drew her hand away. He quickly sat up and looked around. The young woman stood by, watching him.

“Better?” she asked. The young man turned to her.

“Yes,” he said. The woman smiled at him.

“That’s good to hear, honey,” she said. The young man blinked at her.

“Where are we?” he asked. “Why am I here? Who are you? Why do you have… those?” The young man directed his last question at the wolf and the lion. The woman put up her hands.

“Whoa there!” she said. “One question at a time, buddy.”

“Okay,” the young man said. “Where are we?” The young woman really perked up.

“Welcome to Love Heaven!” she cheered. “Where all of the dead virgins and lovers go at the end of the road.” The young man blinked at her.

“I’m…” he began to say. Then, his memory returned to him. I did die, he thought. The young man was hit by a car four months ago. He ended up on life support until his death last night. The young man looked up at the woman again.

“Okay, so I am dead,” he said. “But, why am I here?”

“You were here by request,” she said.

“By request?” the young man asked.

“That’s right,” the woman said. She looked up at the sky and blew out as softly as she could. The mist broke into a small circle. The young man turned and looked. An image of a black catgirl appeared in the middle. Her short black hair was pinned back into a bun. Her caramel eyes gave off a sense of warmth. The young man instantly recognized her.

“Midori-chan?” he asked. He turned back to the woman. “But, she’s dead!”

“Yes,” the woman said. “She sent me to come get you.”

“But how do you know Midori-chan?” the young man asked. The woman gave him a little smile.

“She told me all about you, Naoko,” she bragged. The young man blinked at her.

“Okay, so you know me,” Naoko said. “But who are you?” The woman smiled and cleared her throat.

“My name is Felicity and I am the guide to the entrance of this Love Heaven,” she said. “Pleased to meet you.”

“Okay…” Naoko mumbled. “And what are those things?” Felicity giggled.

“These are my pets,” she answered. Naoko gave her a puzzled look.

“Your pets?” he asked.

“That’s right!” the guardian chirped. “Aren’t they cute?” *Sweat drop on Naoko’s forehead* She’s joking, right?, he thought.

But instead he said, “Why do you have them?”

“Oh,” Felicity said. “They help me pick our lover from virgin.” Naoko blinked at her once again.

“Say what?” he asked.

“They use their sense of smell to spot out a virgin or a lover,” she went on. “Depending on which one a soul is, they go through different route upon where they end up.”

“Different routes?” Naoko asked.

“That’s right,” Felicity summed up.

“So where does that leave me?” he asked. The guardian smiled like a hyped up cheerleader.

“Let’s find out, shall we?” she asked. Felicity clapped her hands together.

“Tsuki! Taiyo!” she called. The loin and the wolf slowly walked towards the mouse boy. Naoko tried to crawl away in a sweat. Felicity placed her hand on his shoulder.

“Just relax,” she said. “This won’t take long.” Naoko panted as the two beasts walked closer. Then, they paused. The mouse glanced up at the guardian.

“What are they doing?” he whispered.

“Just watch,” Felicity whispered. The beasts stood still at first. Then, the lion stepped forward and sniffed at Naoko’s crotch. The mouse almost jumped.

“WHAT THE HELL?!?” he yelled.

“It’s okay,” Felicity insisted.

“But…” the mouse yelped.

“Just go with it,” the guardian insisted. Naoko looked up at her, then at the loin, and at her again. Then, the lion sat back and gave off a roar. Felicity clapped her hands together.

“Great!” she chirped. “We have our answer!” Naoko blinked at her.

“What answer?” he asked. The guardian smiled at him as she moved his head to her abdomen.

“You’re a lover,” she whispered.

“What does that mean?” he asked. “What happens now?”

“Well,” Felicity told him. “I take you back to my house, get you cleaned up, and send you on your way!” She grabbed onto his body before he could speak and disappeared into the sky.

They appeared before big, pearl white gates. Felicity let him go to stand when they arrived. Naoko looked around at their new surroundings.

“Wow!” he gasped. “You live here?” The gates stood in front of a lush, green lawn, marble walk way, and one hell of a castle. All under cotton candy pink clouds, no less. Felicity stood beside him, smiling.

“Yes,” she said. “Isn’t it a beauty?” The guardian walked forward and buzzed them in.

“Hello?” a British accent asked them.

“I’m back!” Felicity cheered. “And I brought a lover soul with me!” She backed away from the loud squeal that followed.

“Ooo!” the girl on the other cheered. “Cheers Felicity! Come right on in!” The gates opened wide as if looking for a hug. Felicity turned to Naoko.

“Come along,” she said. She and the mouse walked through the open gates. Felicity drew out her pink and gold key and unlocked the door. Ten courtesans in red and gold kimono greeted them.

“Welcome!” they all said with a bow. Naoko gave them a nervous giggle.

“Hi,” he said with a little wave. Felicity gave him a little smile.

“Take him girls,” she said. “He’s all yours!” The courtesans’ eyes filled up with little pink hearts at those words. Naoko’s face lit up in panic.

“Girls?” he asked. “Girls?” The courtesans sailed forward and playfully tackled him. *Sweat drop on the mouse’s head*

“GAH!!!” he cried out loud. They all dragged him down the bright pink wall to the bathroom. The courtesans happily ripped off his clothes and pushed him into the sweet-scented heated water. Two of the younger girls washed his body with pink kitty sponges. Naoko looked around bewildered.

“W-What is this?!?” he cried.

“We’re going to wash the outside down from your body,” one of the girls said.

“But why?!?” he cried. The child-like courtesan giggled at him.

“We have to clean you off to send you on your journey,” she said.

“What journey?” Naoko asked her.

“To find your Midori-chan!” the child-like courtesan replied. Naoko paused as those words sank into his head.

“Midori-chan…” he murmured. Then, another courtesan dunked his head underwater. After his bath, they dressed him in traditional Japanese clothes and showed him to his temporary room.

“Sleep well!” Felicity told him before closing the door. Naoko gave him a worn out, funny look.

“Night…” he mumbled. The mouse walked over to the futon, crawled into it, and went to bed. That was enough for one day of being dead.

Kiss Me