The Tea Ceremony

By Donna

The raging storm going on outside of Kasumi’s house was in stark contrast to the atmosphere of peace and calm inside. As the rain pelted hard on the roof, and the wind roared and shook the building from time to time, Paul and Kasumi knelt on cushions on opposite sides of a small table.  Both of them were wearing traditional Japanese kimonos.  Paul had on one in a rich, royal blue trimmed with red and gold while Kasumi was wearing a red one, decorated with white cherry blossoms.  

They were alone in her private quarters. Hop Sing, upon hearing that Lupe was not at the hotel to feed all the people that had taken refuge in it to wait out the storm, had left Kasumi in Paul’s hands for safe keeping and had gone to see if he could help. She had first fed Paul a good meal from the Oriental Kitchen before taking him inside to her rooms. Now, as Paul knelt watching her, he couldn’t help but hope that she might have further plans for the two of them that night.   

Paul had never been alone with her before. Hop Sing was always around, usually with a mean looking meat cleaver in his hands, and there had been others that were actively trying to get her *attention*.  The girl was polite and pleasant to them all, but kept most of them at arm’s distance.   

Except for four of them.  Paul knew that he had some serious competition, namely from the English pilot, John Blackthorne, who wore the samurai’s garb and swords almost as easily as one born to that life and Montoya, who was admittedly obsessed with Oriental life. Samurai Duncan was also a strong rival. The Scottish immortal was very good at being charming to the ladies. Kasumi was attentive to everyone, but to Paul and the other three men, she was even more so. 

Paul was silently watching Kasumi as she performed the Japanese Tea Ceremony for him. They were in a tiny room devoid of any decoration except for an arrangement of flowers in a small alcove.  A kettle was simmering above the fire in a stone hearth and the low, wooden table was covered in a crispy starched white cloth.  When Kasumi had arrived on Edan, she had been carrying her suitcase, and in it were the simple, but elegant items required for making the ceremonial tea. They had been gifts from her teacher in Tokyo to take back to her mother. To Kasumi, these items were precious to her, because they were a link to her family, now lost to her. 

Using a fine silk cloth called a fukusa, which represented the spirit of the person preparing the tea, Kasumi purified the tea container and scoop. Paul watched in silent appreciation the way she carefully inspected, folded and handled the fukusa. Her concentration on every movement of her task was like a form of meditation.  She ladled hot water into the tea bowl and then rinsed the whisk. The bowl was then emptied and wiped with a bleached white linen cloth.  

Lifting the tea scoop and tea container, Kasumi placed three scoops of tea into the bowl. Hot water was then ladled from the kettle into the tea bowl in a quantity sufficient to create a thin paste with the whisk. Additional water was then added so that the paste could be whisked into a soup like consistency.  

Looking up at Paul, Kasumi smiled as she passed him the tea bowl. Paul bowed as he accepted it, and then raised the bowl to admire it, rotating it with slow, deliberate motions.  He drank some of the tea and then passed it back to Kasumi, who finished the rest. She then rinsed the bowl with great care before doing the same to the whisk, bamboo tea scoop and the tea container. Once the items were presented to Paul to admire and then placed aside, the ceremony was over.   

“It was beautiful,” Paul said solemnly. “But not as beautiful as the person who made the tea. She is a treasure beyond compare.” Kasumi ducked her head and blushed, thanking him for his kind words.   

“It has been a long day, Paul-san. Perhaps we should bathe and retire for the night?” she asked with a shy smile, the wind howling outside of her house. 

“A good long soak in the bath would be nice,” he said with a soft smile. “Especially if I was to have the honor of having you there with me.” He stood up and reached out for her hand, pulling her to her feet. Together, they made their way to the bathhouse. 

* * * * 

“Let me do that,” Kasumi said as Paul reached for the sash holding his kimono closed. Her hands lightly touched his, and he let go of the sash. She giggled slightly as she slid the garment down his body. “No piggies today, Paul-san?” she teased. 

“No piggies,” he chuckled.  “I wish I had more than one pair of them. I like the way they make you laugh.” It was funny in a way. Since he bathed there almost every night, he and Kasumi had already seen each other sans clothing.  But he had never touched her, much less kissed her.  Hop Sing’s meat cleaver was a pretty good deterrent! 

But this time, there was no chaperone. They were alone. And Kasumi had never undressed him before. As she slid his shorts down, Paul closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of her hands on his body. As she stood back up, Kasumi’s hand lightly ran up along his inner thigh, just barely missing his genitals as it continued up his body. “Sit,” she said, motioning to the stool where they soaped up and rinsed off before going into the soaking pool.  

He sat, watching as she stripped off her clothing as well.  That was yet another thing different about this night. Always before, Kasumi had changed into a terry cloth robe or towel in private before coming out to the bathing area, and the men always had a cloth over their privates while sitting there. None of them stripped completely naked until they were about to step into the pool. 

As he sat on the stool, his legs spread apart, Paul was acutely aware that his body was responding to the sight of her. She was so incredibly beautiful.  She picked up the bucket filled with hot soapy water and moved to his side. As she soaped him up and scrubbed his back thoroughly, Paul couldn’t help moaning softly, especially when she leaned him back against her to wash his chest and shoulders. The feeling of her breasts against his wet soapy back made his response to her even more obvious. 

To his surprise and delight, she moved in front of him. Scrubbing backs was just being polite. She had never offered to soap up any of the men’s front sides before.  Until now, that is.  She knelt in between his open legs and continued to bathe him, soaping up every single inch of him, from his fingers to his toes, and all the parts in between. 

Once he had been rinsed off, she handed him the soapy sponge with a shy smile before turning around and kneeling in front of him. “You are so beautiful,” he said as he washed her back, making her giggle.  He had her stand up so that he could get her legs before having her turn around so that he could do her front side. 

“You so beautiful too, Paul-san,” Kasumi said with a sigh of pleasure as he ran the soapy sponge over her body. They rinsed off and then hand-in-hand, stepped into the pool. 

* * * * * 

Hours later, the two of them were cuddling together, listening to the sound of the rain and the wind outside. “Thank you, Kasumi, for the gift you have given me,” he whispered to her in the darkness of the room. They had played together, getting to know each other’s bodies in the pool before moving from the bathhouse to her bed. When he had made love to her the first time, he had found that she was still a virgin.  

Kasumi snuggled even closer to him. “It is I who should be thanking you, Paul-san,” she said, raising her head enough off his chest to look him in the eye. “Both for the wonderful things you did to me tonight, and for understanding.” 

Paul nodded. Kasumi had made it quite clear that she wasn’t ready to settle down with him, even though she cared for him deeply. And he cared for her enough to let her have the time she needed until she was ready. He knew that in time, there was a good possibility that she would take some of the other men that she really liked to her bed as well. But he had been first! No other man would ever be able to say that. Paul Racine wrapped his arm around Kasumi and hugged her tightly as the sound of the rain slowly lulled them to sleep.