But there isn’t any roar when the clock strikes four, everything stops for tea

“…And tampering with the food as well?! I have half a mind to-!”

Rose and Dawn sat beside each other at the dinner table with heads hung while Mary to them all the problems she’d had with their little game. The seating had been shifted slightly, due to Mary no longer trusting either girl to be sitting next to Nick.

“We were only doing it because we thought he would enjoy it,” Dawn mumbled. She had been tempted to throw Rose under the bus by claiming (rightly) that the whole thing had been her idea, but she knew that wouldn’t exonerate her in Mary’s eyes.

Rose was less contrite. “I just wanted Nick to have a good time,” she said sincerely, looking past Mary and at Nick directly. “Yes, maybe I should have let him know that Dawn wasn’t in the dark, I can admit that I got a little caught up in the sexiness of the whole thing. But I knew that Nick would like that part the most!” She protested. “My plan was that if I let him think that Dawn was unknowingly eating his cum and enjoying it, then he’d be really turned on by the whole thing. And he was! You all saw that he definitely was!”

Nick couldn’t argue with that. As stressful as the not knowing had been, it was also incredibly exciting and arousing. Like having sex somewhere you weren’t supposed to; the thrill of getting caught was part of the fun- even if you were including other people in your sexual act without their consent.

In some ways, it was very similar to what had just transpired, had Dawn truly been in the dark about the whole thing.

But he didn’t say that. Instead, he said, “Mary, I think that’s enough. They were just trying to have a little fun.”

Mary ground her teeth together and sighed. “…I know that,” she grumbled, rubbing her forehead. Her frustration was overpowering whatever arousal she was feeling from proximity to Dawn’s pheromones. “But is it too much to ask for a little decorum and decency when we sit down to share a meal together, at least?”

Yeah, when she put it like that, it seemed pretty reasonable.

Nick sighed. He looked over at Dawn and Rose. If it was up to him, he’d be willing to just put this whole thing behind them and move on with the night.

They both seemed to agree.

“I can’t speak for Rose, but I’m sorry for fooling you, Nick,” Dawn said, choosing now to throw Rose under the bus.

“Hey!” Rose looked at her. “…Obviously I’m sorry too. But I did it because I thought you would enjoy it.”

“If you’re justifying yourself, then you’re not really sorry,” Dawn pointed out.

“You were justifying yourself earlier!” Rose protested.

“Okay, I accept both of your apologies,” Nick said loudly, putting an end to the discussion. “Come on, let’s not bicker, okay? We had a really awkward moment just now, let’s put it behind us, okay? And finish dinner? Please?”

“Yes,” Mary said. She sounded incredibly tired. With a sigh, she sank back into her seat. “Let’s. Please.”

“I thought it was hot, for the record,” Holly chirped. “Rose, any chance you could whip up another bowl for me sometime?”

Rose opened her mouth to reply but her eyes shot to Nick first, then to Mary. She closed her mouth and winked surreptitiously at Holly.

Mary rolled her eyes.

“Okay, I’ll go get the pheasant,” Rose said, standing up before Mary could lecture her again. “Oh, I almost forgot.” She paused halfway out of her seat, and sat back down. Her attention shifted to Nick again.

“Huh? What is it?” Nick asked. What were they forgetting?

“One of the other bounties I’m trying to claim tonight is the one where I’m going to copy a sexual transformation for tonight,” Rose reminded him, showing her bounty sheet and tapping the corresponding bounty.

Use Method Acting to Copy a Sexual Transformation on your Night with the Master – 500 BP

Nick blushed. He remembered the discussion they’d had previously. Rose wanted him to pick out what sexual transformation she would copy. And unlike with Dawn, there were a LOT of possibilities to choose from. He almost found himself crippled with decision paralysis.

Mary sighed. “Can it at least wait until after dinner?” She begged. All she was asking was to get through the rest of the meal with everyone’s clothes still on, and without any bodily fluids involved. Was that too much to ask?!

“Sure, sure,” Rose tittered. She winked at Nick. “That should provide plenty of time to think things through, don’t you agree, Nick?”

“…Yeah,” Nick said, nodding slightly. He could tell what she was playing at. He had the rest of dinner to come up with a transformation for her.

It wasn’t gonna be easy.

The rest of the meal passed without incident. Mary had relaxed considerably by then thanks to the taste of Rose’s cooking, and even admitted, much to Nick’s surprise, that she was quite a good chef after all.

Rose looked stunned.

“Really?” She asked, blinking. “You really liked it?”

“Yes, especially the dessert,” Mary said, nodding. “I’ve never had… what did you call it, again?”

“Clafoutis,” Rose informed her, holding her head up with pride. “It’s a french delicacy!”

“It kind of reminded me of a cherry crumble,” Dawn mused. “It was really good. But a little too dry for my tastes.”

“Well, it’s supposed to be served with cream,” Rose said defensively. “But Mary was raising a fuss, so I couldn’t…”

Nick looked at her. She giggled and shook her head. “I’m joking! I’m joking. Mostly.”

Mary frowned. “Well… it was delicious,” she said honestly. “When it comes to baking, you’re quite the expert, Rose.” She was a little envious. Slightly. Not that she would ever tell Rose that. And besides, envy was a sin! And Mary was better than that.

…Then again, so was lust…

“Nick, what did you think?” Rose asked, turning to him. Her eyes gleamed hopefully. “I hope the meal lived up to your expectations?”

“It was amazing,” Nick said honestly.

Rose frowned. “…That’s what you said about my soup,” she pointed out. “I was hoping you could be a little more… I don’t know… verbose?”

“He is a writer,” Holly unhelpfully pointed out. “And you should read his poetry sometime!”

Nick looked at her. “Thanks.”

Rose laughed. “Don’t worry, I won’t go that far with it,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m just teasing.” She let out a long exhale. “Honestly? I’m just glad you liked it.”

Dawn was silent as she watched Rose relish in the praise she was given. She’s got Nick’s full attention. I guess it only makes sense, after all, she did cook dinner for everyone. I wonder… if I tried my hand at cooking dinner on my next night with Nick, could that be me?

Of course, that was the hopeless romantic in Dawn talking. And that was a very small part of her. The rational side of her brain was busy reminding her that Rose was getting all that praise because she was actually good at cooking, and Dawn… was not.

Maybe I should start taking those cooking classes with more regularity, Dawn considered. It couldn’t hurt I guess.

Dawn had not exactly been Miss Suzy Homemaker. It definitely wasn’t her style. In middle school, she’d been required to take Home Ec. for a semester like everyone had, and while her pride and drive had not allowed her to get anything short of an A on her report card, that class had the dubious honor of being one of the hardest classes she’d ever taken.

It just wasn’t in her nature to do stuff like that. The cooking challenge Sylvia had put them through proved just how poor her talents were.

But she wanted to do something.

“Excuse me,” she said, standing up. “If we’re ending things here, I have a suggestion, before we, um…” She glanced at Rose and then at Nick. Her cheeks reddened. “…Move on.”

“Oh?” Rose looked a little disappointed. She wanted to get to the good stuff, and she’d figured Dawn would want the same.

Nick, on the other hand, was still at a loss about what transformation he should pick for Rose tonight, so any delay was a welcome one. “What were you thinking, Dawn?”

“Perhaps I could brew some tea,” Dawn suggested. “To help everything settle.”

“Tea?” Mary frowned. “It’s getting late, caffeine may not be the best thing…” She knew that there was little chance of her getting much sleep anyway; not with how Nick and the two women were liable to carry on tonight.

Dawn shook her head. “It’s hojicha,” she said. “Japanese green tea. The roasting process reduces the amount of caffeine. It’s a very popular drink with an evening meal.”

“Well, I’m not opposed to it,” Rose said, shrugging. She could wait a little longer. Especially since Nick seemed in support of it.

“Sure,” Nick said, nodding. He wasn’t a fan of tea, but he would give it a try. Dawn seemed very adamant about this.

And he’d just eaten a meal Rose had prepared by hand. It wouldn’t be fair not to afford Dawn the same opportunity to showcase her skills.

Dawn smiled, and relief washed over her. Some nice green tea was exactly what they’d all need to help calm their nerves and prepare for what was to come. The fact that it might ease some of the arousal she was feeling from Nick’s pheromones didn’t hurt, either.

“I’ll get the faeries to bring me some,” she said, heading to the kitchen. “Don’t worry, it won’t be more than a couple minutes.”

“A couple of minutes feels like a lifetime,” Holly mumbled, unable to hide her disappointment any longer once Dawn left the room. She had been looking forward to the sexy times, and wasn’t at all happy about being delayed even longer.

“Holly, be nice,” Mary said. “Dawn’s trying to do something nice for us.”

“I’m rather curious,” Nola said, excited. “I’ve never had green tea before! That sounds just lovely, it’s green, after all! I usually only drink coffee. ‘Cuz you know, irish coffee.”

Mary sighed. “Nola, we’ve been over this, irish coffee isn’t… oh, never mind.”

“Dawn is a pretty big tea connoisseur,” Nick informed everyone. “She does a lot of traveling, and she tries tea from a lot of places. So if she’s preparing something, then that means it’s going to be pretty high quality.”

“High quality tea, hmm?” Rose was starry-eyed. “How classy and sophisticated!”

Nick could tell by the look on her face that she was envisioning herself as an elite madam drinking tea all fancy-like in a parlor of some big manor. And as hilarious of a visual as that was, he doubted that Rose would like the taste of hojicha all that much.

He hadn’t had any himself, of course; but he didn’t like the flavor of tea. And Rose was the kind of woman who ordered her coffee black as a sign of class, before dumping in enough sugar to overflow the cup.

But he held his tongue and hoped that this nice little after-dinner treat would be appreciated by all.

A few minutes later Dawn emerged from the kitchen with a piping hot kettle and some cups. The tea kettle wasn’t a gaudy decorated piece of china like he anticipated, but rather a neat and elegantly-carved porcelain bowl. The cups were porcelain.

Dawn must have noticed him staring because she blushed. “It, um, it’s traditional,” she said, her ears twitching as a small smile touched her lips. “Apparently, they had one just like mine from home.”

Yeah, Nick could definitely see Dawn as the kind of person to buy a traditional porcelain pot for her tea.

“I also had them bring me a charcoal stove to roast it over,” Dawn added, unprompted. “You know. For authenticity.”

Say what you would about Dawn, but she didn’t do things in half-measures, that was for sure.

Dawn set out a cup for each of them, and slowly began to pour out the piping hot tea. Nick was amazed by her grace and the deftness with which she handled the pot; her focus was so precise he could have mistakenly believed that she did this professionally.

He looked down at the bright, almost golden liquid glistening clearly in his cup.

Nola was the first one to comment.

“I thought you said it was gonna be green?” She mumbled. “This isn’t green.”

Dawn rolled her eyes.

“You’re thinking matcha,” Holly said. “That’s the really bright green tea.”

Dawn looked at Holly in surprise. Her tail flicked behind her. “That’s right, matcha is very famous right now,” she said, nodding. “I’m shocked, I wouldn’t have expected another tea connoisseur here.”

Holly laughed and shook her head. “Not a tea connoisseur. A Japan connoisseur.”

“Hentai connoisseur,” Nick muttered under his breath.

She responded with a smirk aimed his way.

“Even I’ve heard of matcha,” Rose said, staring at the tea in front of her with a look of hesitation and slight distrust. “It’s all over social media. Very trendy and chic.”

Mary sulked a little, not able to join in on this conversation. She wrapped her hands around the cup for a second before pulling them back. It was still very hot.

“Why can’t we drink matcha, then?” Nola whined. “It’s green.”

“Because it’s filled with caffeine, that’s why,” Dawn said. “I told you, unlike other Japanese teas, which are steamed, hojicha is charcoal-roasted. It not only reduces most of the effects of caffeine, but the high temperatures reduce the amount of catechins, giving it a reddish-gold color and lowering the astringent taste. It should taste toastier than most other green teas.”

She looked at Nick as she said that, giving him a small smile. Nick smiled back. He knew that Dawn had done that for his sake in particular; she knew that he wasn’t a big tea drinker, especially the more plant-tasting green teas.

Nola just stared at Dawn with a glazed-over expression as the woman’s long explanation about tea went in one ear and out the other.

“…Still coulda made it green,” she said finally, picking up the tea and touching it to her lips. “It’s not like caffeine would affect me anyway.”

Everyone thought that was a very good thing.

“…Hey! This isn’t bad at all!” Nola said, looking down at her cup in amazement. “It almost tastes like caramel!”

“Oh, you like it?” Dawn could barely hide her smug amusement. “Even though it isn’t green?”

Nola ignored her and took another sip. She let out a refreshing sigh. “Mhaaa!”

That was enough to get Nick to try some himself. It was still a little hot so he had to blow on it, but he brought the cup up to his lips and fought the hesitation he was feeling. It helped that it didn’t stink of herbs like other teas he’d tried often did; it had a sweet, warm odor, very refreshing and reassuring.

He took a tentative sip.

“Well?” Dawn looked at him with expectant hope shining in her eyes.

Nick wished he could tell her he loved it, he really did. The taste wasn’t at all what he expected from green tea, it really was very mild, and lacked the usual bitterness that he had come to associate with tea, especially Japanese tea.

But… it was still tea, and tea was very much an acquired taste that he had yet to acquire.

“I think… it’s the best tea I’ve ever tasted,” he said honestly.

“But it’s not your cup of tea,” Dawn said, chuckling at her own bad joke.

Nick must have done a poor job of keeping his surprise off his face, because Dawn quickly clarified what she meant.

“I know you’re not a tea drinker,” she explained. “And it’s okay, you don’t have to like it, really. I just wanted you to try it, to see what you think. And since you didn’t immediately spit it out and fumble for a glass of water, I consider that a win in my book!” She said with a wide grin.

Nick sighed in relief. At least she wasn’t upset. “Sorry,” he admitted. “I wasn’t lying, though! It really is the best I’ve ever had. Normally when I drink tea… yeah, you’re right. Blegh. But this stuff… I don’t know.”

He took another sip just to be sure.

“…I could drink this,” he admitted honestly. “I wouldn’t necessarily order it at a restaurant, but if it was served to me, I could definitely finish it.”

That was the best he could do. The flavor was growing on him, but it was the kind of flavor that he knew it would take a long time to get to like.

Thankfully, that seemed to be enough for Dawn.

“Sorry, I’m not as nice as Nick,” Rose said, setting her cup down and making a face. “I tried to like it, really, but… I don’t know, it’s just too bitter for me.”

Dawn looked at her. “Really? Hojicha? That’s too bitter for you?”

“Rose can’t even drink coffee, she prefers hot chocolate,” Nick joked.

Rose shot him a look and puffed up her cheeks. “I can!” She protested. “I just like hot cocoa better, that’s all.”

“Part of being a good dinner guest is finishing what you’ve been served,” Mary said sternly. She raised the cup to her lips.

Nick noticed the way she shivered as she sipped from it. She didn’t like the flavor either. But she was smiling as she lowered her cup.

“…See?” Mary said through a strained expression.

Dawn gave her a smile that was equal parts amusement and exasperation. “If you guys don’t like it, you don’t have to drink it,” she said. “I know tea isn’t for everyone.”

“I’ll have some more!” Holly said cheerfully. “I drink the bitter stuff all the time; this is nothing compared to that.”

“I would have thought a farm girl like you would be a tea drinker,” Rose said snippily to Mary. “That’s the whole thing, right? A nice iced tea with mint julep or whatever?”

“I’m from Tennessee,” Mary protested defensively. “You’re thinking the deep south! And I don’t even know what a mint julep is!”

“It’s a cocktail,” Dawn informed her. “Made with bourbon and mint.”

“See? And I don’t drink!” Mary proclaimed.

“Still, Tennessee tea is a thing,” Holly pointed out.

Mary blinked. “…It is?”

“That’s another cocktail, actually,” Dawn clarified. “With Jack Daniels.”

Mary turned red. How much of her cultural heritage was just booze!?

“Well compared to all that, then, this is nothing!” Mary said, taking another sip from her cup just to prove her point.

Nick laughed. He appreciated this. All of them getting along, enjoying the evening… Dawn’s tea had done wonders for fixing everyone’s mood, and getting the night back on track.