How Taylor Hebert Agreed to Be a Slut [Worm/Slut Life]

How Taylor Hebert Agreed to be a Slut

Part Two: Contractual Obligations



[A/N: I'm working off of the CYOA v3.1.3 for this.]



Taylor

According to the nameplate on his desk, Tori's boss was called Kenneth Arbor. The man appeared to be in his fifties or sixties and had the look of a quintessential bureaucrat, including a three-piece suit and glasses. He looked up at the three of us standing before his desk, pushed his glasses up on his nose and frowned. I was almost certain both the glasses and the frown were an affectation. For one part, with the tech they had access to, there should be no good reason to suffer any kind of bad vision. For the other part, the man had to have signed off on what Tori had put into motion. Still, as Dad had put so succinctly more than once, bureaucrats had to bureaucrat. If they didn't get the chance to put their stamp on events, they got unhappy.

“This is most irregular,” he complained. “People rescued in this fashion are invariably recruits, not adjuncts to recruits.” He peered at Mom over his glasses, then tilted his head. “You're not here to be a Slut Life Contestant? It would make the paperwork a great deal easier if you were.”

Beside me, Mom didn't change posture, though I was almost certain she'd tensed. “No, sir,” she said quietly. “I had no choice in the matter. My daughter asked for me to be rescued.”

“Hmm.” Arbor looked over the paper before him. “Irregular,” he muttered again, then looked up at Mom again. “Could I perhaps prevail upon you to become a Contestant? After all, you won't be getting anything except what your daughter shares with you. If you signed on as well, you could have a longevity treatment, reverse your effective age to whatever you chose, and spend the year in comfort. And of course, you wouldn't lack for agreeable male companionship.”

At that moment, a side door to the office slid open, and a dark-haired handsome young man entered. He cleared his throat politely, bringing Arbor's attention to him.

“Excuse me,” Arbor said to us, then turned to the young man. “Yes, Gareth?”

“Minister Page just called, sir,” Gareth replied. “It's about your five o'clock.”

Arbor nodded impatiently. “Tell him I'm busy. I'll call him back in a few minutes.”

“Yes, sir.” Gareth gave us an unreadable look and retreated back into his side-office.

“If it's not one thing, it's another,” muttered Arbor. Returning his attention to us, he frowned. “Where were we?”

“You were trying to convince me to sign up as a Contestant,” Mom said steadily. “I don't believe that was in my daughter's plan for me. Also, she tells me that my husband is still faithful to me, two years after my death. I'm not going to repay that by jumping into bed with the first handsome man I see.”

“Truly? You're so monogamous?” Arbor shook his head disbelievingly. “Suppose I offer you both a twenty-credit bonus on your contracts. A mother-daughter team, aged so that you appear as twins. I guarantee, the ratings would skyrocket. Especially if you could stage a little tiff over the same man once in a while.”

Mom's lips tightened just a little, and I blessed the fact that the (in)famous Hebert temper came from Dad, not from her. If he'd been in the room, he would no doubt have punched the man by now. As it was, I wanted to punch him “No, sir,” Mom said firmly. “I will fulfil the role of Taylor's mother within the show, and support her in what she does, but I will not take a contract with Slut Life myself. Once she's finished her stint here, we go home.”

Arbor sighed, apparently in regret. “Well, there's a slight problem with that.”

I glanced sideways at Tori. What's he talking about?

She widened her eyes fractionally. I have no idea.

“A slight problem?” Mom's voice never even quivered. “What sort of problem?”

Kenneth Arbor leaned back in his chair and steepled his fingers before him. “Well, you see, the kind of rescue we arranged for you—complete with fake body for the aftermath—is usually only carried out for people who've agreed to sign up for Slut Life.”

“We've been over this,” Mom pointed out. “These were special circumstances. If you hadn't done it, Taylor wouldn't have agreed to sign a contract with you at all. I never agreed to anything before I was rescued and rebuilt. I was in no condition to agree to anything.”

“True,” Arbor agreed with a dip of his head. “However, the irregularities were noticed, and I was ordered to go over the situation with Legal. They pointed out an aspect of the situation that may have slipped Ms Caswell's mind.” He gave Tori a pointed look. “Specifically, the circumstances of a Contestant being sent back are dependent on the terms of the contract that gets filled out and submitted before she begins her year.” A pause for effect. “People who aren't Contestants by definition haven't filled out a contract, which means we don't have any particular obligation to repatriate them.”

“What?” Tori's voice was full of outrage. “No! Sir, I told them she could go home with Taylor!”

“And she can, just as soon as she can arrange passage for herself.” Arbor's voice never rose at all. I figured he'd had this in his back pocket the whole time. Asshole. “Slut Life is not in the business of arranging free rides for anyone, anywhere.”

“And what if I told you to shove your contract up your ass?” I demanded. Mom put her hand on my arm, but I shook it off. “That's a dirty trick and you know it.”

“There was no 'trick' involved, Miss Hebert,” Arbor said blandly. “You took it as given that Ms Caswell had the authority to arrange something that she simply … didn't. As for yourself, when you stated you would sign the contract, you meant it, did you not? That declaration is almost as good as ink on paper for legal purposes. Walking that back now could just mean that you're out of a ride home as well.”

“But I didn't know Mom couldn't come home with me then!” I shouted.

Arbor held up both hands as if to say 'wait', then snapped his fingers. From hidden speakers around the room came Tori's voice. “Does this mean you're signing up?”

My voice followed. “Get my mom back for me, and you're damn right I'll sign up.” It wasn't hard to hear the sheer determination in my tone. I'd meant it, all right.

“As you see, we got your mother back for you,” he pointed out blandly. “We fufilled our end of the bargain, as indicated by your stated declaration.”

It was a good thing for both of us that he didn't even consider cracking a sneer or other triumphant expression, because I would've done my best to wipe it off his face if he had.

Mom wasn't done yet. “If you're stating that Taylor's words made for a binding verbal contract because she meant them, then so did Tori's,” she declared boldly. “That should make them equally binding.”

Arbor sighed. “Come now, Mrs Hebert. I could make a verbal contract to sell you this space station. I could even put it in writing. No matter how fervently I meant them, the words wouldn't be worth the breath I used to say them because I have no authority to do that. Seven different sensors picked up your daughter's declaration, made in front of a Slut Life employee, and an AI determined that she not only had the authority to make the statement but also that she meant it. That's what makes it binding.”

“So you're going to force Mom into the show just to be allowed to go home at the end of the year, all for extra ratings” I said bitterly. “I liked you guys up till now.”

Tori's boss sat forward, holding up his hands again. “I'm forcing nobody to do anything. This is what's come down from above. Your mother has been cleared to be a part of your contract and fulfil the role of an owner for you. That situation in itself is somewhat irregular, but it doesn't violate the spirit of the rules, so we're allowing it to happen. When your contract runs out, if you or she can arrange passage for her back to your home continuum, then she gets to go home. It's just that Slut Life won't be picking up the tab for that specific trip.”

Mom bit her lip and averted her eyes from me. “Well then, I guess I—”

“Stop!” Tori stepped in front of her. “Before you finish that statement, how about we go over the contract? Maybe there's a way Taylor can get you home anyway.” She gave her boss a glare. “Within the terms of the contract.”

“And if you can achieve that, go right ahead,” he agreed smoothly. “I'm not the enemy here. I'm just the messenger boy.” Which I somehow doubted, but I suspected I'd never be able to prove it. He was just too good at controlling his expressions. Or maybe I just didn't like him.

“Come on, guys,” Tori said. “Let's go look at the contract and see what we can squeeze out of it.” Turning, she headed for the door. Mom followed and I went last. I seriously wanted to slam the door behind me, but it was a sliding type, which kind of defeated the purpose.

<><>​

Tori's (borrowed) office space consisted of a desk that folded down into a bed, and a chair. She had a laptop which she lifted off the desk before verbally commanding it to fold away. It did so without fuss or bother, and Tori plunked herself down in the middle of the bed, scooting back and crossing her legs so she could rest her back against the wall with the laptop on her legs. “Gather round, guys,” she said. “Let's have a look at this thing. It's been a while since I filled out my own contract, but I seem to recall that there's a few options I never bothered taking.”

Mom sat down on the bed to Tori's left and I took the right. We had to get close to see the screen properly, but Tori didn't seem to mind at all.

The laptop took a few seconds to boot up, but the desktop screen was amazing. Each icon was a gently-revolving 3D hologram, and some were even animated. I watched as she muttered to herself about 'cleaning up the mess' and took what looked like a stack of papers between thumb and forefinger. With a realistic crackling noise, she rolled it into a ball of paper, then flicked it accurately toward a galvanised trash can. The can lid opened to allow the ball to fly in, then it clanged shut again.

“Okay,” she said. “Here's the draft contract that was forwarded to me for your use.” Taking what looked like a tiny legal briefcase between thumb and forefinger once more, she squeezed the sides until it popped open, then grabbed at the sheaf of papers within and spread them across the screen with a swiping motion of her thumb. They sat farther 'forward' on the screen than everything else; when she tapped the leftmost one, it unfolded with a realistic motion to become a full-sized screen of print. With, as it happened, a pen and an eraser hovering in front of it.

Mom and I pressed closer to Tori to read the contract. For legalese, it seemed to be pretty straightforward. Once the contract was filled out and signed, it couldn't be voided without falling afoul of some pretty strenuous legal penalties. Some of these, depending how blatant, could lead to criminal charges being laid. None of them had the option of being deported back to Earth Bet, which wasn't a huge surprise.

From what Arbor had said, I hadn't voided this contract by threatening to not sign up, but my declaration that I would sign and the rescue of Mom had moved us past the point where I could simply refuse and be sent back home. They'd performed a service for me, I'd promised payment (the 'payment' being my signature on a contract) and … yeah. I'd painted myself into a corner with that one. Note to self: if I make any more verbal contracts, make sure I've got all my conditions up front before I accept payment.

Of course, Mom was now alive, so that was a huge plus right there. The trick was how I was gonna get us both back to Earth Bet without signing myself up for stuff I didn't feel comfortable doing. I had the sneaking suspicion that this was gonna happen anyway before the year was up; I just wanted to hold that moment off as long as possible.

“Okay, so you're just … wait a minute. Why are you rated as Important?” Tori frowned. “You get five times the amount of money at the end, but …” She tapped on the wording, and another document opened. “Ah. Huh. Your powers. There are people who'll be wanting to talk to you about that. Anyone with extra-human powers gets slotted in as 'important', I guess.” She pouted slightly. It looked adorable. “I just got the 'random person' option.”

“I suppose I would too, if I joined,” Mom noted. Carefully, she tapped the little 'x' on the top corner of the explanatory page, and it vanished. Apparently some things didn't change. “I wonder if I could get your father in here for a Family setup.”

“I could ask,” Tori said, and grimaced. “I'm sorry, guys. I didn't know he was going to be that much of a dick.”

“Um, maybe not the best idea,” I said. “Bringing Dad in, I mean. This place just might break his brain.”

“Well, let's not rule it out, shall we?” Mom gave me a raised eyebrow. “It might break his brain, but I'm pretty sure I can unbreak it.”

“We'll cross that bridge when we come to it,” Tori said. “Let's see what you're comfortable with handling first, Taylor.” With practised moves, she flicked through the contract, pausing here and there to check on wording. “All right then, let's see. Body mods.”

“Body mods?” I remembered her words about how getting modifications was a perk of signing the contract. “What sort of body mods?” With her body pressing warm against me, I had to be careful not to plant my elbow into her right breast. With a grunt of irritation, I put my arm up behind her neck; a moment later, Mom did the same. Tori was shorter than the both of us, so this worked. It also seemed to suit Tori, because she managed to snuggle up against both of us at the same time.

“Okay, let's start with the basics; like, do you want to keep your old body and have a few add-ons like implants, or get yourself made over from scratch?” Tori wriggled against me; the T-shirt was thin and there was a certain amount of her to wriggle with. I was acutely aware of her breast pressing against my ribs. “I mean, check this bod out. I got the whole new body deal, and I've never regretted it for a moment.”

“Tori dear,” Mom said reprovingly. “Stop trying to seduce my daughter. I'm not at all sure she's interested in other girls, and I am certain this isn't the time and place.”

“Right, sorry,” Tori said, sounding just a little crestfallen, but she stopped wriggling. “You pick up habits around here. Casual flirting's just a way to say hi.”

I wanted to point out that I'd seen makeout sessions at Winslow which had been less definitive than Tori's idea of 'casual flirting', but Mom's future was in the balance so I kept my mouth shut. The chart of options, however, definitely claimed my attention. “This looks … interesting.”

“And it also gives you twenty credits toward the final total,” Mom agreed. “Normally I'd be dubious about getting plastic surgery of this level, but it's obviously nowhere near as crude as it is on Earth Bet. If you're comfortable with it, I'm not going to stand in your way.”

“Thanks, Mom.” I ran my eye down the list. “I think I'll keep me mostly the way I am … well, except maybe upgrade my looks a bit … ooh.” My attention was caught by the 'breast size' line. “Mom, what's a good size to take?”

Mom laughed out loud. “You're asking me? Sweetheart, I only graduated to a B-cup after I had you.”

I snuck a sideways glance at Tori's endowment. “Uh, what did you choose?” I asked the cat-girl who was contentedly sandwiched between us.

“Oh, this? This is a C-cup,” she replied proudly, arching her back to stick out her chest. “They do good work, don't they? Want a closer look?” Without waiting for an answer, she pulled up her shirt to expose her naked breasts. They were … impressive. Firm, rounded, with aggressively pink nipples that could probably put my eye out. And far sexier than I'd ever dreamed of having for myself.

“They do,” Mom agreed gravely. “You can put them away now.” Belying her tone, I couldn't help notice that her eyes lingered on Tori's endowment quite a bit longer than mine did.

Tori pouted, but she pulled her shirt down again. “You're no fun.”

“No doubt.” Mom's tone was dry. “Though, Taylor? I'd suggest making that your absolute upper limit, and perhaps sticking to a B-cup instead.” She cupped her hands in front of her and jumped them up and down. “If you're still set on being a superhero, your breasts will thank you if they're not bouncing everywhere when you're running across the rooftops.”

“How about a C-cup and a really good sports bra?” I argued. I was pretty sure Emma had a C-cup, and with my height and the body mods I was gonna get, I knew I could wear it better than she could. Petty? Maybe just a little. But if I couldn't use my powers to cover her in bugs (God knew I wanted to, but it would be a step too far) I'd destroy her socially instead.

Mom sighed. “I can't really argue against that, dear. Just remember, I did advise caution. Nothing higher than a C-cup.”

“Cool.” I tapped the 'C-cup' option, then went with 'normal' for 'ass size'. Anything was better than 'what ass?'. Everything else I picked was basically what I had already, until I reached 'general body type'. “Athletic,” I said firmly. I'd seen what Sophia could do with an athletic body type, and it was what I wanted for rooftop running anyway. Nobody argued; Mom obviously wanted the best for me, and Tori probably just wanted to see me with an athletic body. Me? If I could destroy Emma in her social clique and Sophia on the running track as well as being a kickass superhero, there'd be nothing I couldn't do.

After a brief argument about what my voice sounded like (Mom maintained my voice was 'girly', while Tori plumped for 'feminine' … well, she actually said 'sexy as fuck') we settled on 'girly' because I'd probably grow into the more mature one later on. Then we went on to the next section. This, according to Tori, was where the real points would be made and lost.

“Nope, no penises, thanks,” I muttered. “And I'll stick with the one vagina I have.”

“You know, you're missing out on some pretty intense experiences,” Tori ventured. “My girlfriend's a futa, and she says it's an absolute blast.”

That was the second time I'd heard her use that term. From context, I thought I had it figured out. “Uh, no,” I said hastily. “For one thing, I'm not hugely interested in having a penis. Second, I'm gonna be a superhero. Those tend to involve tight outfits. I don't want to have to worry about an inconvenient bulge at the wrong time.”

“Not to mention having to explain to your father how you ended up as a dickgirl,” Mom added in an amused tone of voice. “Your, uh, growth spurt will be just about explainable. But adding a penis doesn't usually happen in the normal run of puberty.”

“Oh, there's an option later on to make it retractable,” Tori pointed out helpfully. “And to have any testicles you choose to be tucked inside. You know, if you want.” From the hopeful look she gave me, it was clear what she wanted me to choose.

She pouted when I shook my head, but I was adamant. “No,” I said. “Just no. One weirdness at a time, thanks.” I kept reading down the list. “Techno … uh, no. I'll stick with the original equipment there, thanks. Implants? Don't need 'em. Hyperfertile? Wow, just nope. Hormones to make me more feminine? The new body should fix that.” I paused at the next one. “Hair removal?” That was tempting.

“One credit … hmm.” Mom had obviously been reading along with me. “If you think it's worthwhile, honey. God knows I'd pay for it.”

“Okay,” I said, mentally ticking my total down to nineteen credits. “Masochist … yeah, nope.” Then I read the next one, and found myself blushing. “Wow. Cum connoisseur? Nope. Just nope.” Any semen that found its way to my lips, I decided, would have to sink or swim on its own merits. So to speak. Not that I was planning to make anything like that happen. I blushed harder.

“I've got this next one,” Tori said proudly. “But I took all the options. It comes out to zero cost, but I can make any part of me erogenous if I feel like it.” She wriggled between us again. “So worth it.”

“Okay, I'm impressed,” Mom said. “You just managed to make sitting side by side fully clothed actually dirty. But can we get back to sorting out Taylor's contract?” Somehow, she managed to put a snap into her tone without actually raising her voice.

“... yes, ma'am,” Tori replied, her voice a little subdued. “I'm guessing you're not interested in being an amputee?”

I looked the option over. One the one hand, it was worth fifteen credits. On the other hand, I'd probably end up without another hand if I took it. Fifteen credits, I decided, just wasn't worth the hassle. “Nope,” I said. I skimmed over the next two before I hit another one I liked. “Menstruation control? For one credit?” That was even more attractive than hair removal.

“Take it,” Mom advised at once. “You'll only ever have this chance once.”

“Good point.” I was now down to eighteen. “Gag reflex … ugh, no.” Taking that was basically announcing that I was preparing for lots of oral sex. Giving, not receiving. And unless a superhero fight went really badly, I couldn't see how it would come in useful. “Wow … flexible holes? How flexible can they get?”

Tori cleared her throat. “One of the owner options is an honest to goodness dragon. He's … let's say, you need a certain amount of stretchiness to let him in. I've never been there, but I've watched it. If you don't know she can take him, it's pretty disturbing.”

I met Mom's gaze over the top of Tori's head, and shook my head. “Hell …” I began.

“ … no,” she finished. “Unless you intend to store things up there, I'd advise 'nope' to that as well.”

The mental image almost made me cross my eyes; it did make me wince. “Yeah, nope. And this next one, what the hell? Nope!” I moved on as fast as I could. “Ooh, tattoos and piercings add credit?”

“Lewd tattoos and piercings,” Tori noted. “Images that are 'dirty', as you call them. Or piercings in places that people consider sexy.”

I scanned the list. “I could get a navel piercing. It sounds less painful than some of them.”

Mom tilted her head. “I can tell you that some of them can be painful. And others can be inconvenient. The navel sounds fine to me, though.”

“Okay, navel it is.” I selected that one. Tori tapped an icon, and then typed in NAVEL. When it saved itself, we went on. “Okay … nope, nope, nope, wow nope … always perky? Never need a bra?”

“I'm reasonably certain that only applies to normal everyday movement,” Mom pointed out. “Feel free to take it, but you will need that sports bra for violent activities.”

“Sounds legitimate.” I selected it. “Okay, no, no, no … I don't intend to get pregnant, at least not here … there's your embedded testicles and retractable penis … hmm, Flexible.”

“Wait,” interrupted Mom. “Before we get bogged down in the cosmetic options, I believe we should go forward and look at what we require to get me home. Then see if it's feasible to take them.”

“Oh, yeah. Good point.” Tori closed that document and opened another one. “Okay, here we go. Scrolling down … okay, Teleporter and Personal Teleporter. As far as I know—and I will check, I promise!—once a Contestant is done here, they can choose to take a home here. If they do that and they have a Teleporter, it can be unlocked to let them 'port from here to their home planet and back, more or less at will. Well, teleport there, anyway. Personal Teleports are what's required to teleport back.”

“Why do we need it?” asked Mom practically. “The Personal Teleport, I mean? Once we're home, we're home.”

“A superhero base I can teleport into at any time, that the villains would never be able to locate?” I asked rhetorically. “Why would I ever need a thing like that?”

She gave me an appraising look. “That's a valid point of view,” she noted. “Of course, this means you'd be coming back here on a semi-regular basis. You're comfortable with that?”

“If I can control my comings and goings, then sure. It was only when I thought you were going to be stuck here because they wanted to be dicks that I was unhappy. I mean, wow. It's another planet. And once I'm not a Contestant, there's no pressure to do anything I might not want to do.” I shrugged. “Hell, they might even have tech here I could buy and use as a superhero.”

“Yeah, they do,” Tori noted. “But let's not count … it's count our chickens, right? I never understood that one. What's wrong with counting chickens? Is it bad luck? Is that why they don't let chickens cross the road?”

I chuckled. Sometimes Tori came across as not unlike Mom and me, and sometimes she said something like that. “The rest of it goes 'before they're hatched'. But you're right. Looks like the teleporter needs at least a small house. Where are the houses?”

“'Before they're hatched' … huh. That actually makes sense now.” Tori scanned the screen. “That'll be in this page,” she said, shifting the page aside and opening another. “Nope, sorry, that's owners. It'll be this one, then.”

The second time was the charm. I scanned down the options. “Dungeon … prison … wow, does anyone actually take those?”

“If they're into self-punishment, sure,” Tori said cheerfully. “There's a guy called Tyrone. He's an owner you don't call on unless you want to find out what it's like to be a prison bitch. People I've talked to say it's much more 'authentic' if they're actually in a prison cell at the time.” She shuddered. “I mean, I don't mind a little light bondage from time to time, but that sort of thing's way past my personal line. Just saying.”

“Yeah, pass,” I muttered. “Small house … huh. Mom, you figure we could live okay in a place like that?”

“One roommate, two if we don't mind zero privacy,” she noted. “Certainly, I believe we could survive for a year. And it would be more pleasant than a dorm room or a bunker. I'd prefer something like an apartment or a large house, but they're your credits, honey.”

“Well, it's five for the house, and five for shared amenities,” I noted. “Plus seventy-five for the Teleporter and Personal Teleporter. How much is it for the option to take a home here?”

“Forty credits,” Tori said promptly. “It's a bonus, not a cost. So we're down to forty-five credits in the red to get your Mom home, not counting body mods and stuff. And you said you wanted extra super-powers, right?”

I nodded, my interest piqued. “Yeah. Where's that?”

“Right at the end, with Rewards,” she told me. “Want to go see?”

“Honey, should you be jumping to the rewards just yet?” cautioned Mom. “It's probably not a good idea to grab the good stuff first, before you find out what it's going to cost you.”

“I'm not signing the contract yet,” I said. “I just want to see.”

“Your wish, my command, blah blah blah.” Tori pulled up the relevant page.

I read it, blinked, and read it again. “What the hell?”

“Language, dear,” Mom reproved me gently.

“Sorry, Mom. What the absolute living fuck?” I stared at the options given. “Tori, why didn't you tell me about this bit?”

“Taylor …” Mom had that 'I am disappointed in you' tone in her voice.

I sighed. “Mom, this company has 'Slut' as part of its title. I don't think the word 'fuck' is exactly a swearword around here.”

“Hm.” She considered that. “I suppose you're right. Even if I think you're pushing it just a little. Just remember, once we're back home, you don't want to be dropping words like that in polite company.”

I snorted. “I'm gonna be a superhero, remember? The people I'll be associating with will mostly swear worse than they do here.” I turned back to the computer. “Secret society? Speed runs? Perfect powers? These were things I would've liked to know about ahead of time.” My eyes dissecting the text, I stored away the tidbits of data. “Can I have a notebook or something? I want to write some stuff down.”

“Taylor …” Mom tried again. “Remember, the more you try to get, the more you'll have to do.”

“That's why I need the notepad,” I said. “I need to write down what I want, and what I'm willing to do to get it. Then I'm gonna see if what I want is worth what I'm willing to do for it.”

“Use my laptop,” Tori said unexpectedly, handing the device to me. “I'll take your mom for a tour of the station. Maybe get us something to eat. Want anything?”

“Pita wrap, if you've got them,” I said, but I was already distracted.

It was only vaguely that I noticed them get up and head out. “She gets like this sometimes …” Mom's voice faded into the distance.

Biting my lip in concentration, I imitated the hand gestures Tori had used, and went back to the first page. Then I found an icon that looked like a notepad and waved my finger through it. There was the tiniest resistance, which I found fascinating, then the pad opened; a page unfolded to cover a good part of the screen. Eyes flicking from the document to the notepad and back, I began to take notes.

<><>​

By the time they returned, I'd covered several pages with notes. Part way through, I'd discovered the dictation function, which made things go a lot faster. I'd also gone from mild curiosity to a dawning premise to a sharp determination. I can make this work. I know I can.

“Taylor,” Mom said. “Time for a break. Here's your pita wrap, and I got you some apple juice. At least, that's what it says on the carton.”

I looked up, and put the laptop to one side. “Thanks,” I said, climbing to my feet. As I stretched, my back popped in several places. “Wow, I was sitting there longer than I thought.”

“We got to talking in the Earth Lounge,” Mom said. “The view's amazing.” She shook her head. “And some people were just … ignoring it. Like it's commonplace for them. I suppose it would be,” she mused. “But still …”

“I do want to see that,” I agreed. “But first, I'm gonna need you guys to check my math. I think I've got it right, but I don't want to get in deeper without meaning to.”

“Sure,” Tori said, picking up the laptop and plopping herself down on the bed. “Let's see now … uh huh. Uh huh. What, really? You're going with that?” She paged all the way to the end, and her eyebrows climbed toward her hairline, while her ears couldn't seem to choose between flicking all the way forward and all the way back. “What the crap? How in Snarf's name do you expect to be able to afford all that? What did you take?”

“What?” Mom pushed the food into my hands and sat down beside Tori. I took the chair and leaned back, glad for the respite. It had been some intense mental effort, but I thought I had the math correct.

“Look,” Tori said, flicking between pages of the notepad. “Stamina booster with the nanotech option. You realise this will be on all the time, yeah?”

“A drug? An experimental drug?” Mom stared up at me from her seat on the bed. “Honey, are you sure about this?”

I sighed. “Stamina's good for more than in bed, Mom. And if I don't have sex, I'm not going to be worrying about the side effects.”

“Well, she's right about that,” Tori said. “But how you're going to get away without having sex, I'm not at all certain. Not if you're paying for all that.”

“What punishments are you taking, little owl?” Mom's voice had that certain tone that said: you've bitten off more than you can chew, haven't you?

As I'd actually just taken a bite of the pita wrap—it was really delicious—I couldn't answer, so I waved at Tori.

“Okay,” the cat-girl muttered. “Punishments … holy Snarf! Taylor, are you sure you can handle this? I'm pretty sure I couldn't handle this!”

“Let me see,” demanded Mom. “Oh, Taylor … what is all this?”

“An invitation for disaster is what it is,” Tori said flatly. “Music Hijack, that's no biggie. Censored with Purity is weird, but whatever. I mean, you're taking away all the fun, right there. Body writing with Souvenir? Are you sure? That can lead to some pretty interesting tattoos.”

I chewed the bite and swallowed. “Keep reading.”

“Okay, then,” Tori said. “Locked in heels. Seven inch heels. You do have high heels where you come from, right? They hurt like a bitch. And you want to sign yourself up to be permanently wearing them?”

“Look farther up,” I suggested. “Body mods.” I opened the carton of juice and took a drink. It was delicious.

Tori flicked back through the pages until she came to the right place. “Body mods … ah.” She rolled her eyes. “Duh. Reinforced tendons. With Enhanced. Smart move.” For Mom's benefit, she added, “That'll let her wear heels of any height, or flats, with no problems at all.”

“I could've taken just the reinforced tendons,” I admitted, “but I didn't feel like being forced to wear heels for the rest of my life just to be comfortable. As it is, I'll probably be ducking under doorways while I'm here anyway.”

“Hmm.” Mom gave me a long look, then nudged Tori. “Let's see what else she's picked out.”

“Yeah.” Tori flicked forward again. “Fresh Cherry? Curse?”

“If I don't have sex, I don't have to worry about the first one,” I pointed out. “And what's a few dirty dreams? I'm a teenager. It's almost expected.”

Mom reached out and scrolled the contract down until she found the appropriate part. She read it, and frowned. “Nanotech regenerating her hymen every night? That sounds … bizarre.”

Tori shrugged. “That's Slut Life. They go for the full monty, every time.” She went back to the list I'd picked out. “Forbidden contraception? Taylor, I know you're not expecting to have sex, but …”

I rolled my finger in midair. “Keep going.”

“Yeah, I saw.” Tori shook her head. “Breast expansion? Ass expansion? You're just asking for a clothing malfunction, aren't you?”

“I've got it under control,” I assured her. “Keep going.”

When she saw what I was getting at, she nodded. “Okay, I get it. You'll be wearing a chastity belt. Not so much fun to wear, but I guess the sex thing isn't so much of a problem then. Except, you know, if your owner makes you take it off.”

“Also true,” I admitted. “But I think I've got it covered. Anyway, there's more to go.”

“Right,” said Tori. “Collar, which you're forced to wear. With the shock, sleep and climax control options? Are you sure you want to give some stranger that much control over you? Especially if you've got breast expansion and ass expansion as well?”

“Well, that depends,” I said cheerfully. “I've got to give the control over all those to someone who's not me, correct? An owner, for instance. Such as a Married Couple. Which has already been set as … well, you, Mom.” I grinned at Mom. “So, do you think you'll have much in the way of temptation to shock me or make my ass grow?”

Mom gave me a dirty look. “Don't tempt me too much with the shock collar,” she mock-threatened. “But I see your point.”

Tori looked from me to her and back again, her mouth hanging open. “Wait, what? You're gonna … okay, that's just not fair. I wish I'd had my actual mom as an owner when I started. It would've made life a lot easier.”

“You do realise that you're still going to be wearing seven-inch heels and a chastity belt the whole time you're here,” Mom reminded me. “Over a year, that's going to get very old, very fast.”

“Oh, no,” I said, just as Tori opened her mouth. “I'll be done in a week.”

That got me a dirty look from Tori—she'd obviously wanted to say it herself—and a long, sustained blink from Mom. “That … how are you doing that?”

I shrugged. “By having three owners and five jobs,” I admitted. “It's a good thing I'm taking Reduced Sleep, because I'm gonna have no time to myself, even with a thirty-two hour day.”

Tori and Mom blinked in unison at that, then scrambled to flick to the relevant page. “Okay,” said Tori. “There's your mom, there's Cutie, and there's … a Magical Girl?”

I nodded. “As far as I can tell, they're basically superheroes. I've got powers too, so I figure I'd make a pretty good sidekick, even if it's only for a few days. And what better way to learn how to control bugs under stressful circumstances? Also, if I'm reading that right, Education will let me learn one course of study instantly. Such as martial arts.” Leaning back, I took another drink of apple juice.

For the second time, Tori's jaw dropped. “Okay, I'm calling bullshit,” she declared. “You're using Slut Life as your personal superhero academy?”

Mom chuckled. “Well, it's about time someone did,” she said. “I see you've got the Magical Girl for three days, me for three days, and the Cutie for one day?”

“Yeah,” I said. “I figure it'll be nice to get out and about, even for one day, with someone whose job it is to be my friend.” I'd been thinking about that. Whoever the Cutie turned out to be, they wouldn't be like Emma. They couldn't be like Emma. And in fact … “Actually, Tori … would you like to be my Cutie?”

Tori blinked a few times. “Um … me? You know I'd love to jump your bones, right?”

I grinned. “I figured that out. But that's not a Cutie's job. Right?”

Reluctantly, she nodded. “Yeah. I'd just be your gal-pal for the day. Twelve hours, right? I could show you everywhere in that time. We could go window shopping …”

It had been years since I'd been window-shopping with a friend. I wondered if she'd continue to flirt with me. Duh. Still, I figured I could handle it. “I'll let you think about it. No rush.”

She nodded. “Okay.” Then she grinned. “Oh, man. The places I could show you. I bet I could make you blush all the way down to your toes.”

“You'd lose,” I reminded her. “I'm gonna have censorship. I'm not gonna see a thing. It'll all be censor bars.”

“Are these the jobs?” asked Mom, just as Tori stuck her tongue out at me. “Internet celebrity … gravure model … Taylor, are you sure about that one?” She gave me a concerned look. “You do know what 'gravure' means in that context, right?”

“Yeah,” I said with a nod. “Pin-up girls. Swimsuits and so forth. They can't give me a G-string or make me go naked, because I'm pretty sure chastity belts are about as sexy as granny panties.” It had been a bit of a mental wrench to pick that job, but with the body I was going to have, I was going to be suffering a lot fewer issues. And if posing for the cameras in a swimsuit wasn't the best way to get over body issues, I didn't know what was.

Tori snorted with laughter. “I don't even know what 'granny panties' are, but I'm pretty sure you're correct.” She looked at the next job on the list I'd chosen. “Waitress in a maid cafe … okay. You're probably gonna get a lot of people being a bit demanding there. You have to treat the customers like you're a maid and they're the employer. Talk to them individually, sing for them, even dance for them if necessary.”

I gave her a level stare. “You said you'd read my file. I will see the shit they can pull on me at a maid cafe, and raise you a year at Winslow. For this I'm gonna get paid, and it'll be done in five days. Game, set and fucking match.”

Mom frowned. “So Danny sent you to Winslow after all? I didn't think it was the best idea for you, even if Emma was going there.” She turned to Tori. “Can I see her file?”

“I'm not sure,” Tori said, her tone doubtful. “There's a lot of private information in there.”

“I'm her mother,” Mom reminded her firmly.

“And I give permission,” I added. It wasn't as if I wanted Mom to know everything that had happened to me since Emma turned into a raging bitch, but I was pretty sure she'd get it out of me one way or the other.

“Okay, then. I'll check with Mr Arbor,” Tori said. She tapped something on the screen, then typed rapidly. “Oh, and that reminds me. You've still got to record the message you want to send to your father. That's a verbal we've still got to finish up with.”

By 'verbal', I assumed she meant verbal contract. Which, as I recalled, I'd actually made before I even knew about them. Of course, I'd also made the other verbal contract without knowing about it, so that kind of balanced out. “Sure,” I said. “Once we've got the contract sorted out so I know if it'll work or not in the time I'm looking at.”

“That's fair,” Tori agreed. “You don't want to give him bad information, after all.”

“Talking about that,” Mom said, “I'd appreciate the actual specifics to do with verbal contracts. How do they work?”

That was actually a very good question. Trust Mom to come up with it.

“Ah, yeah.” Tori shrugged. “It's really very simple. You've got to mean it. You've got to have the authority to make it happen. You've got to do it in front of the person you're making the contract with, or someone who represents them. And if it's not acknowledged in thirty-two hours, it's null and void.”

“Okay,” I said, “what if you make a promise and then say 'but I didn't mean it' to get out of the contract?”

“The station AI can judge whether anyone who makes a contract on here means it,” Tori said. “And while Slut Life personnel are allowed to lie, doing so while pretending to make a verbal contract is frowned upon. That sort of thing gets you smacked on the wrist, hard. If it leads to the other person coming to harm, criminal charges might apply.”

“Okay then,” I said. “So when Mr Arbor said Mom was going to be standing in for the Married Couple option, did he mean it?”

“Good question.” Tori typed rapidly on her laptop. “Sending query now.” Less than a second after she hit the last key, the computer pinged. Reaching to the screen, she did something; I figured she was opening an email or something. “Confirmed. That's a valid verbal.”

I grinned. “Excellent.” This meant I could go through with that part of my plan, at least.

“So where do we go from here?” asked Mom.

Tori set her laptop aside and stretched. “We fill in the contract. Taylor signs it. We arrange for your housing, and find a Magical Girl who's willing to be her owner. Taylor has the surgery for the various implants she's getting, as well as the navel ring.”

“And then I see if my plan actually has a chance of working,” I said, suddenly wondering if I'd left anything important out.

Tori nodded soberly. “And then that, yes.”

I swallowed. It was a big step. “Let's do it.”



End of Part Two

Taylor's Contract

VIP: 5x reward cash.

Age: 16
Height: 5'9"
Face: Beautiful
Breast Size: C-Cup
Ass Size: Normal
Genitals: Fertile Vagina
Hair Length: Mid Back
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Brown
Skin Colour: White
General Body type: Athletic
Voice: Feminine

20 New Body

Body Mods
-1 Hair Removal
1 Sensitive Body (Tori talked her into it)
>> 3 Erogenous Body
>> -3 Selective
>> -1 Right Moment
-1 Menstruation Control
-1 Flexible Holes
>> 2 Tight Fit
1 Navel Piercing
2 Nipple Rings
-1 Always Perky
-3 Reduced Sleep
-5 Perfect Metabolism
5 Reinforced Tendons
>> -3 Enhanced
-15 Repairbots

Accommodation
-5 Small House
-5 Shared Amenities

Clothing
0 Clothing Allowed
-1 Plain Closet
5 Walking Billboard
-15 Personal Stylist
>> 25 Insidious

Health/Hygiene
-5 Hygiene Essentials

Food
0 MREs

Roommates
Annette (see Owner)

Entertainment
-5 Cellphone
-25 Laptop
>> -5 Workstation
-5 Education (Krav Maga)
-5 Education (Parahuman Law)
-5 Education (Parkour)
-15 Outside
>> -15 Hoverboard
-60 teleporter
>> -20 Virtual Room
-15 Personal Teleporter

Experimental Drugs
-10 Stamina booster
>> 20 Mandatory
>> 20 Permanent

Owners
8 Married Couple (Annette) x 3
>> 15 Fun Time x 3
0 Cutie x 1
>> 5 Fun Time x 1
8 Magical Girl x 3
>> 15 Fun Time x 3

Punishments
5 Music Hijack
5 Censored (removed Purity because not being able to see peoples' eyes would make a lot of jobs really hard)
2 Body Writing
>> 8 Souvenir
10 Locked in heels
>> 6 Increase height +3 inches
10 Fresh Cherry
10 Curse
10 Forbidden Contraception
10 Breast Expansion
10 Ass Expansion
10 Chastity
>> 10 Full Chastity
1 Collar
>> 4 Forced
>> 15 Shock Collar
>> 15 Sleep Control
>> 25 Climax Control

Jobs
12 Internet Celebrity p/t (d/n)
>> 5 Part Time
15 Gravure Model p/t (d)
>> 5 Part Time
15 Waitress; Maid Cafe p/t (d)
>> 5 Part Time
12 Shitposter p/t (d/n)
>> 5 Part Time
12 Professional gamer p/t (d/n)
>> 5 Part Time
12 Street Cleaner p/t (d)
>> 5 Part Time
12 News Anchor p/t (d/n)
>> 5 Part Time
12 Bartender p/t (n)
>> 5 Part Time
12 Professional Cheerleader p/t (d)
>> 5 Part Time

50 Donator (100% of salary donated)
-20 Allowance

-150 Slut Life Done Quick
-150 Secret Society
>> Powers (one of which is Perfect)
40 New Home (plus $4M)


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[A/N: Read this before going any farther. The 'Part Two point Five' is the next section of the story. However, it's NSFW. You can follow the threadmark straight to Part Three if you want, but you'll miss out on a little bit of plot by doing so.]

Part Two Point Five (NSFW)
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