Chapter Twenty-One
Victor and Leo arrive at the Kyoto Station by bullet train from Tokyo. As they make their way out of the exit, a woman in a black chauffeur’s uniform holds up a black sign with their names in white calligraphy. Victor raises an eyebrow when he notices it’s the same woman who met him at JFK Airport. Like before, she turns and walks away, making them follow her.
“Who hired her? She’s a terrible chauffeur,” Victor says to Leo.
“She’s the sister of a superior, and she lost a bet. So, there’s a sense of entitlement,” Leo explains.
“So, can you please explain why we didn’t just walk through a mirror to get here like we did to go from New York to Chicago?” Victor asks while placing his bags in the trunk.
Leo grins, “You didn’t enjoy flying in first class, and the views from the bullet train? Besides, we needed to give your instructor time to prepare for your arrival.” Victor gives him an unamused look. Leo’s smile fades as he softly sighs. “There might have beena rumor through the grapevine that going through a portal isn’t safe right now.”
“Should I be worried?” Victor asks.
“Nah, we’re good,” Leo reassures.
Victor tries to use his ability to see if Leo is telling the truth, but he still isn’t used to reading what he’s looking at. As Leo loads the trunk, Victor focuses on Leo’s aura. It swirls around, but Victor can’t tell if it’s a good sign or if Leo is deceiving him. Leo closes the trunk; the car drives off. Victor shakes his head in annoyance and then looks over at Leo.
Leo smirks with his hands in his pockets. “It’s a nice day. Let’s go for a walk.”Victor raises an eyebrow, still annoyed over the situation, but complies and follows him.
They hop on a train and head to the Gion-Shijo station. After exiting the station, they start walking toward the Yasaka Shrine.
“I visited Kyoto a few years ago,” Victor mentions as he looks around. “I came with my ex-boyfriend. We enjoyed our time, but unfortunately, it was raining most of the time we were visiting. We didn’t see that many geishas walking around. But we saw a small performance at this center, not far from here. It was elegant.”
They stop at a corner, waiting to cross. Leo looks down the street, which is blocked off to traffic. He places his hand on the small of Victor’s back. “Well, you’re in luck,” Leo mentions. “We’re going to see a tea ceremony.”
“Oh?” Victor responds. He looks down the same street as Leo and notices several geishas.
As they walk down the street, many geishas stand outside, greeting patrons as they walk into the establishments. Halfway down, they stop in front of a tea house. A geisha wearing a light blue kimono comes down the steps and greets them.
“Mr. Oliveira,irasshaimase.” She bows graciously. “We are pleased to see you again. This way, your favorite table is ready.”Leo bows and thanks the geisha before they follow her inside. They take off their shoes and put on house slippers upon entering.
Victor and Leo follow the geisha to a table in the middle of the room, a few spots away from the stage. They sit on cushions, and another geisha kneels in front of them and pours the tea. When she’s finished, she stands and bows before taking her leave.
Victor picks up his tea and inhales the aroma. When he takes a sip, the lights go down. The musicians start playing their traditional Japanese instruments. The air fills with the scent of cherry blossoms, even though it’s not the season for them. The music feels as if it’s surrounding Victor. As he looks onto the stage, two geishas start to perform their dance.
They move with poise and elegance. A few minutes later, another pair joins them on stage. The four perform an intricate dance with their fans. As Victor looks on, a bright red parasol opens in the back of the stage. It appears that no one is holding it. As the four geishas slowly make their way off the sides of the stage, the parasol moves closer to the audience. The parasol lifts, and a single geisha appears. The geisha is Chiyo Yamada.
Chiyo is dressed in a kimono in various shades of blue. The patterning resembles flowing water. Her obi belt is in various shades of gold, orange, white, and black, representing koi swimming.
Victor almost didn’t realize who it was until he made eye contact with her, and she winks back. He was so mesmerized by her performance, he doesn’t notice his tea floating. When he looks around, he sees water floating around like dragons flying.
Leo looks around and then over at Victor, who is amazed at what is happening. Leo smiles a little and can’t take his eyes off Victor. He looks away right before Victor looks over at him.
Victor lets out a little chuckle, knowing Leo is trying to pretend he wasn’t gazing at him before he looks back at Chiyo. The lightsstart to fade, and the music ends. The lights come back on, and Chiyo is gone. The audience applauds loudly.
Victor turns to Leo as a geisha pours them some more tea. “That was amazing. And I take it that everyone here are people of magic?”
“That’s correct, my young empath warlock,” Chiyo responds, sitting behind Victor and Leo, and has changed into a light red kimono with floral print, accessorized with a soft pink obi bow.
Victor jumps, startled, and holds his chest. “Why must everyone just pop up out of nowhere?” The geisha smiles gleefully as she pours another cup for Chiyo.
“I’m sorry, my young empath warlock, I didn’t mean to startle you,” Chiyo giggles as she takes a seat on the cushion beside Victor. “Did you enjoy the performance?”
“Yes, I enjoyed it very much. Everyone on stage was gorgeous, including you,” Victor responds.
Chiyo bows her head with gratitude. “Domo arigatogozaimasu, my young empath warlock.” Chiyo and the geisha both bow their heads to one another before the geisha takes her leave. “I heard that you had visited Kyoto before. Was there any place you would like to visit again?”
“How did you know I was here before?” Victor asks.
