We were greeted at the Laughing Dragon by the shortest Japanese man I had ever seen. Though having not seen many in my lifetime, that wasn’t saying a lot. When he saw Sylvia, his grin widened, and he approached her with open arms. She bent forward a little to embrace him, and they brushed each other’s cheeks the way I’d seen Europeans kiss.
“Ah, Miss Sylvia. So good to see you. I hear you’re married now? My heart is broken. I thought you’d marry me! What will I do now?”
Sylvia, as always, relished in the attention. “Why, Lester, you old goat. You should have made me an offer.”
“I would, but my wife might have something to say about that.” Lester glanced over Sylvia’s shoulder to where Henry and I were quietly watching. “And Henry, is this your new woman? I may have to take her from you. She is beautiful, yes.”
He took my hand in his and gave it a cordial squeeze, flashing a set of the most perfect teeth I had ever seen, though they looked odd in his heavily wrinkled face. It was hard to tell how old he really was. “Nice to meet you,” I said.
Sylvia stepped in to prevent any misunderstanding. “Lester, meet Catherine, my new intern.”
“Please, call me Cat.” I wondered how often Henry came here with other women. I smiled, hoping Lester couldn’t read minds too.
“Come, I’ll find you the best seat in the house.” Lester linked my arm through his, and after doing the same with Sylvia, he led us all into the restaurant. I glanced over my shoulder and saw Henry right behind us, watching with amusement.
There was a sushi bar in the back, but Lester led us through a heavy black curtain to a much larger room. There were six teppanyaki tables set up in a hexagon, all filled with diners. In the middle of them all was a fire-breathing dragon. It was the first dragon I had ever seen, and I instinctively stopped in my tracks and drew back. The dragon had gleaming black scales and intelligent yellow eyes that fixed me with a curious stare.
Lester must have felt his arm pull because he glanced back to see why I’d stopped. He smiled. “Don’t worry. She’s friendly enough. She’s the cook.” Even as he spoke, a burst of flames left the dragon’s mouth, lighting up the table and cooking a round of shrimp instantly. As soon as they were cooked, the diners moved in with their chopsticks.
Partially reassured, I continued to our table, which, considering it was supposed to be the best in the house, looked just like all the others in the circle. I wondered if he said that to all his customers.
“This is wonderful, thank you,” Sylvia said, taking the seat Lester had pulled out for her.
Perhaps taking his cue from Lester, Henry did the same for me, and I cautiously sat down, waiting to see what the dragon would light up next.
“My pleasure. Let me just get you some menus.” And Lester was off.
A moment later, Lester returned and handed out the menus.
“Has anyone ever been burned?” I cast my eyes around the restaurant. All the other diners appeared happy enough, most of them wielding chopsticks like pros. I looked down at mine with some trepidation. They were still wrapped in their little white packet. I’d never eaten with chopsticks in my life.
“Not since a silly accident during prohibition, but they weren’t supposed to have any alcohol at the table,” Lester explained. “It was as much the bootlegger’s fault as the dragon’s.”
Lester was here during prohibition? Just how old is he?
“The special tonight is filet mignon and shrimp combo. For my friends, I give dessert for free.”
Sylvia opened her menu and smiled warmly. “You’re very kind, Lester, thank you. Can we order some drinks?”
“I get you your favorite hot tea. On the house.”
“Thank you again,” she said,
Henry playfully shielded his lips with his menu and leaned into me. “Sylvia brings a lot of business into this restaurant. He’s very grateful.”
I turned a little too quickly, not realizing how close his face was to mine. Our eyes locked for an instant, though Henry didn’t appear to mind at all. He was smiling at me. “Oh, I see.” I was suddenly very interested in my own menu. Though in truth, with my heart all a-flutter, I couldn’t think straight or read a word on it.
“It’s the first rule of business.” Sylvia closed her menu and watched as the dragon breathed the tiniest puff of flames to light a little girl’s birthday cake at the next table. “You scratch my back and all that. Networking is so important, my dear. We each have a limited set of skills, but friends can do favors. Remember that.”
I nodded. I tried to see what Henry was doing out of the corner of my eye. I didn’t want to look directly at him in case he caught me out again. Or maybe I did. I was so confused. “Um, now that you’re here, what’s next?”
“Excuse me?” He lowered his menu.
“In my training? Is there some kind of plan we follow? Or do we just wing it?” I didn’t want to remind either of them I came from a long line of earth witches, and bottling herbs wasn’t exactly tasking my brain. Sylvia especially had been so generous, and I didn’t want to appear ungrateful. Yet I was here to learn, not sight-see, and I was hungry for more.
Instead of answering, Henry looked over at Sylvia. He didn’t say a word, but she nodded. I wondered if they were speaking through telepathy or just knew each other so well that each already knew what the other was thinking.
“Now that Henry’s in town, perhaps we can kick things up a notch, to make sure you’re comfortable with everything before I leave. If not, there’s still time for you to come home with me. How does that sound?”
I nodded, glad we’d be moving forward. I hope it involved a spell book and telepathy and who knew what else they might be willing to teach me.
A waitress came over, and placed small pots of tea in front of us. Sylvia and Henry both opted for the special. Never having eaten at a Japanese steakhouse before, I played it safe and ordered the same. The waitress took our orders and left.
The dragon scuttled from table to table, emitting small bursts of fire when needed, cooking the food that appeared magically on the tables. Every now and then, she would entertain the diners with an elaborate show of onions, arranged in the shape of a volcano, which she would light on each table, all at once. Tiny dragons of various colors would fly out through the center of the volcanoes and then disappear in a puff of smoke. Excited, the younger diners clapped and cheered, a few small ones cried, and Henry and Sylvia watched, mesmerized, though I was sure they’d both seen the show dozens of times before.
As we settled in, I noticed Lester usher in a new diner, all on his own. He appeared to be about my age and was quite good-looking, enough so to draw the eyes of all the ladies in the room. He ignored all of them and focused for a moment on the menu Lester handed him. He had sandy-blond hair, full lips, and a very straight nose. His eyes, which were currently downcast, were almond-shaped and looked intelligent. He certainly cut a striking figure, but there was something about him that wasn’t quite right and put me off. The way he sat, maybe, casually lounging as if he were deigning to grace the restaurant with his exalted presence. It was hard to say. All the same, he wasn’t exactly hard on the eyes.
After seating his new customer, Lester returned to our table. “There is a guest at table four who would like to meet you.” He pointed to a table to my right, where a group of wizards were finishing their meal. I recognized them by their auras, though to an untrained eye, they looked like regular businessmen.
Sylvia smiled. “Ah yes, John Gates. I’d been hoping to run into him for some time. Excuse me, all. I’ll be back in a tick.”
Henry and I smiled at her as she took off and wandered over to where the group were sitting. They all seemed happy to see each other, and when Lester brought Sylvia a spare chair, I guessed she might be there for some time.
I stared across to where the newcomer had just lowered his menu and was talking to his waitress. After a while, she nodded and took his menu away. His gaze fell instantly on mine, and embarrassed, I turned away. Some universal power made me look again, only to find him still staring at me. I pretended to be interested in the dragon, though she’d resumed regular cooking and was not entertaining the diners like before.
Henry leaned into me again, smiling as always. “You should try the tea. It’s very refreshing.”
I nodded as Henry kindly poured me a cup. Grateful for the distraction, I took a small sip. It had a flowery taste I wasn’t familiar with. “This is nice. What is it?”
“Jasmine. Do you like it?”
“Very much so.”
“I’m guessing this is your first time in a Japanese steakhouse?”
I nodded again. “I’ve never used chopsticks before either. Is it hard? I’m frightened I’m going to look like an idiot. Maybe I should ask for a knife and fork.”
“You can if you want to.” Henry ripped his little packet and separated his chopsticks. “But you’ll be fine with practice.” He waited patiently, and I realized he wanted me to do the same.
Nervous, I opened my own and pulled them apart, as he had done. “Okay.”
Henry held his in his right hand. “You’re right-handed, so hold them like this.”
I watched as he held one stick only in his right hand and balanced it on his ring finger. I did the same.
He then took the second chopstick, which he let rest on his middle finger. I tried to copy him, but my control was poor, and the sticks were all over the place.
“No, your grip is a little tight. Hold them like this, see? Keep the bottom stick more stable.”
I focused hard but couldn’t quite get it. Henry covered my hand with his, and I kept my eyes lowered, hoping he sensed nothing of what I felt when he touched me. What in Gaia’s name was wrong with me? I wasn’t a little girl anymore. I was an adult, or at least I was supposed to be. Deep breaths, Cat. Ignore the warmth of his hand.
“Let your top fingers do all the work. Lift it up and down, like so.” He gave a small demonstration, his own sticks moving with ease and confidence, none of which I felt. “Now, see if you can pick up your napkin.”
I furrowed my brow and concentrated. It wasn’t easy, but Henry was patient, and when I looked at him for guidance, he gently corrected my position. After I while, I managed to get a reasonable, if not perfect, hold on the napkin and held it aloft.
“Excellent. The rest is just practice. Have a try with your dinner, but we’ll ask for a knife and fork for you just in case.”
I smiled gratefully, knowing I was going to need them. Straightening up, I noticed the lone diner still gazing my way.
“That man over there, do you know him?” I barely glanced at him as I spoke, not wanting to appear too obvious.
Henry cared less and looked straight over. “No, can’t say I do.”
“Why do you think he keeps staring at me?”
Henry chuckled at that. “I imagine he likes what he sees.”
My cheeks burned, and I wished I’d never mentioned it.
There was a shuffle and scrape of chairs to our right. Sylvia and one of the men were standing. They both seemed mighty pleased with themselves, so I imagined the meeting had gone well. She kissed him in her preferred European style and then rejoined us at our table. She sat back down in her chair, and Henry poured her a fresh cup of tea.
“Thank you, dear. Well, well, that was fortunate. I’ve been after that man for weeks. He wants me to go back with him in a few days to help with his magical realty company in Virginia. The people with him are investors, and they’re flying south after that. Henry, I know it’s a little sooner than we planned, but I need you to take charge of things up here. Would you mind?”
“Not at all.” Henry sat back and took a sip of his tea. I studied him, but he showed no signs of annoyance.
“What’s magical realty?” I asked.
“When there’s no more room in the city, it’s a way of maximizing the living space. It’s very big in New York now. You can triple the living area and make a fortune. I want to get in on it now, before everyone else does and the market is saturated.”
I must have looked confused because Sylvia added, “You’ll understand when Henry takes you to see the Abbey.”
Henry’s eyes widened with curiosity.
“I was telling Cat about your home the other day. She said she’d like to see it one day, and I said you probably wouldn’t mind showing it to her.”
Henry nodded. “Sure, if we get a chance.”
“Good, well, that’s all settled then. I should be back in time to greet Isabella. You don’t mind, do you, Cat? Only I’ve wanted a chance to move into real estate for some time, and I’d hate to miss out.”
I shook my head. “I don’t mind if Henry doesn’t. Or Matt.”
“Well then, that’s settled. I’m sure I can trust you both not to blow up the shop.”
As she said this, the food materialized on our table, signaling the show was about to begin. I sat back in my chair, not wanting to be grilled alive by the fire, however pleasant the dragon seemed to be.
For the moment, the young man across the way was obscured from view. Relieved, I put my chopsticks down in front of me and took a sip of my delicious tea. The scent of soy sauce, rice, and sizzling steak filled the air, teasing my senses and whetting my appetite. I had a feeling this was going to be an awesome week, and for the first time since arriving in the restaurant, I relaxed a little and began to enjoy the show.