Eggnog and Nutmeg
by Willow Mae

“Are you sure you won’t come with me?” Minako’s voice pleaded over the phone. “Come on, Mother would love the company, and you’ve never been out of the country before. It’d be a good experience for you!”

“How many times must I say no, Mina?” the woman on the recieving end of the line retorted in a soft but firm manner. Makoto Kino loved her friend dearly, but sometimes her persistance went too far. She relaxed into the large armchair in her living room and twined the phone cord around her fingers. “I have important things to take care of around here.”

“What could possibly deserve your complete attention when you should be on holiday?” Minako demanded in such a tone that her friend could just imagine the curvacious blonde putting one impatient hand on her hip while the other held the small cell phone to her ear.

“Well, the restuarant is still open, and someone has to...”

“Oh bother, Mako! You deserve to get away once and a while. Let someone else manage for the week, it wouldn’t kill you. No, leave that one, I’m taking it with me.” This last was directed towards her fiancee, who was traveling with her to England and who also happened to be part of the reason Mako declined her friend’s earnest invitation. Makoto hated feeling like a third wheel.

“Maybe another time.” Mako excused herself. “Besides, I wouldn’t be able to stand a week of sleepless nights listening to you two through the hotel wall. I’ll get some peace and quiet here.”

“Hey now!” Minako protested with a laugh, which was easily reciprocated on the other end. “Okay, you have a point, but I’m being serious. This is your last chance to come. You won’t regret it later?”

“I’m being serious too.” Makoto assured her. “Listen, you two go and have a good time. Give your mom a hug and kiss for me.”

“All right...” Minako sounded dubious, but was finally willing to let the matter drop. “Promise me you won’t work too much, though. It is the holidays, no matter what excuse you might conceive of.”

“I promise.” Makoto promised with a laugh. “Now go, before you miss your flight.”

“Right-o. Lots of love, hun.”

“Same to you. Bye.”

“Ciao!” With a laugh and a click, the phone went dead. Makoto rose with a sigh and hung up her phone as well.

Maybe Minako was right. Maybe she needed to get out of the house for a while. Since graduating high school, she had spent most of her time pursuing her dream, but very little time doing anything else. At twenty-two years old, she had spent two years in culinary school before moving north and opening a small restaurant in a remote city in the Tohoku region. Business was regular, but it was hard work keeping everything running smoothly. Her staff was small, and she took pleasure in cooking the meals personally, and with the little money she made it was vital to keep the restaurant open regardless of the holidays. Still, maybe she could close for a long weekend and spend some time relaxing... humming absently to herself, she poured herself some hot cocoa and stepped onto her balcony for some theraputic musings.

So this was her life. Maybe not exactly what she had envisioned, but pretty close. After the final battle with Galaxia, she and her friends had finally put away their henshin pens in favor of living their dreams. Not a bad trade off, though they all had a vague awareness that in the future, they would be called to duty again. Until that time, however, they went their separate ways. Ami was still in medical school; Mako rarely spoke to her anymore because of all the studying she was required to do. She didn’t really worry however, there was little doubt that Ami was at the top of her class as always. Ami had even made mention in her last e-mail about a young graduate student she had been conversing with in the library, so Makoto had very little worries about her friend’s life. Rei had become a secretary in Tokyo, starting her climb to the top of the business world. She was alotted holiday leave regularly, and would occasionally stop up north to keep her younger friend company, but Mako understood the need to remain professional, and stuck mostly to the occasional phone call to keep in touch with the raven-haired beauty. Unfortunately, Rei was rarely home due to work (or perhaps due to the handsome businessman she had met during lunch). In any case, there was little to worry about on that front either. Minako had initially moved north with Mako, but soon moved in with her boyfriend-now-fiancee and spent her time dabbling in various activities, as he made enough money to amply provide for them both. The two of them ate frequently at Mako’s restaurant, but quality girl-time had slowly been lost.

And Usagi. Usagi, who wanted to do everything and be everything had finally settled down with Mamoru and had begun taking things more seriously, in light of her future queenhood. Of all her friends, Mako missed seeing her the most. Like the rest, Usagi had her own agenda to tend to. The brunette swelled a little with pride as she thought of all her friends were acomplishing. It was wonderful to know that, even if they didn’t see one another as much as they would like, that they were all happy.

“So why can’t you be happy too?” she grumbled half-heartedly, slumping forward onto the railing and watching the clouds of steam spiral up from her mug and mingle with the foggy clouds of her breath. Here she was, living in a beautiful home, looking out onto the snow-covered scenery as the white of the world faded into blue at the horizon. Here she was, owning her own restaurant like she had dreamed, finally able to lead her life the way she had always wanted to. Here she was, living a life filled with friends she loved and who loved her, knowing that all was well in the world. What was wrong? Nothing really. She was happy. So then, what was missing?

“Sempai...” the word came out softly and unexpected on her breath. Upon realizing her mistake, she mentally kicked herself. How twisted was it to be clinging to a silly childhood crush. The time for fairy tales was long since over. There would be no Prince Charming, and even the Happily Ever After had a price. She was too old to still be clinging to that dream. After all she had seen, lived, and died for, she should know better. It was high time to leave the fairy-tales where they belonged: in the books. Besides, there was more to life than romance. She still had hundreds of years to live, it wasn’t like there was any rush. It didn’t keep her from feeling anxious about the now, however. That was part of what drove her nuts, knowing her silly obsession and yet not being able to drop the habit, to just move forward like everyone else seemed to.

Well, that settled it. It was wearing, analyzing and reanalyzing her life. It was exhausting, comparing everything in the world to her standards. It was tiring, clinging to childish fantasies and refusing, stubborn as ever, to let them fade away back into her childhood. With newfound determination, she straightened her spine and stiffened her will. It would do no one any good for her to spend her days obsessing and analyzing and dreaming. It was high time she stopped worrying and simply took things at face value. She vaguely recalled a time, before she knew of her fate, when she was always rational. Before she met Usagi and learned to dream again. But since that fountain became functional again, she hadn’t shut it off, and it was time to. There was too much going on in her life to fret over life’s “maybe”s.

Taking her new resolution seriously, she took another sip from her cooling cocoa and set her thoughts on other things. She ran a mental checklist of ingredients stocked at the restaurant, trying to think if there was anything she needed to order for tomorrow’s lunch special. She set her mind to dictating letters she intended to write, to her next shopping excursion, to the book she was reading. Smiling happily to herself, she began to hum again, loose from heavy thought. She had almost convinced herself that she did indeed have the strength to be free when all she had carefully assembled in her mind was shattered, concurrent to the explosion of a snowball next to her. She straightened with a start, eyes drawn to the mess of snow at her feet.

She stared at it for a moment, green eyes completely uncomprehending of what had just happened. After an eternal moment, she peered over the balcony to see if the perpatrator was still there.

He was. “There you are, back from the clouds.”

On the street stood a man who made her breath catch sharply in her breast. He was gazing up at her with eyes the creamy color of melted chocolate, and his walnut hair was pulled into a loose pony tail that hung past his shoulders. His light olive skin marked him as a foreigner, but his call to her had been without noticable accent. Makoto shook herself mentally as she silently gazed down upon him. Her silent appraisal of him had deemed him worthy of consumption, it was like gazing down at a walking, talking hors d’oeuvres.

She stared at him a moment, words escaping her. Finally, she managed, “Did you throw that?”

He just grinned a wide, contagious smile as he sent another snowball up at her. Makoto dodged it easily and looked down at him again, unsure whether to laugh or be upset.

“Come out of the clouds, Juliet.” He coaxed, dark chocolate eyes twinkling playfully. She looked down on him once more, not sure if the churning in her belly was fear, curiosity or excitement.

“Juliet?”

“The balcony.” he explained in an offhanded way that made her think there was more to his explanation than he admitted freely. “Come down to earth, Kino-san. The time for daydreams is over. I’m here to finally make those dreams come true.”

“You’re very presumptuous, to know me and my dreams.” she mocked. “I don’t even know you, and I’m not sure I want to either.”

“Both of these things can quickly be remedied.”

“Yes, but do I want them to be?” she challenged. “How do you know my name?”

“I’ve been looking in on you life for some time now.” He grinned at her panicked expression. “Makes me sound like a stalker, huh? Far from. My name is Nephrite Maxwell, and I’m a food connoisseur. I’m interested in your restuarant. Actually, I own my own business in America...interested yet?” she cocked her head at him, but didn’t respond. “Come down at talk, maybe over dinner? It’s getting about that time.”

“Excuse me, but I’m not quite sure how to be taking all this.” Makoto replied defensively.

“Take it however you like. But I would hope to talk to you more.”

She thought a moment. Maybe it wouldn’t hurt. He was a a flatterer, but seemed decent enough. Besides, if it was true that he was interested in advancing her restaurant in some way, she could hardly miss the oppertunity. She deserved to hear him out. The fact that he was really attractive didn’t hurt her motives either either. And, she reasoned, if things got too out of hand she still knew how to flatten an enemy in under ten seconds.

“Wait there, please.” she told him, then went back into the house to let him in. When she opened the front door, he was leaning suavely against one of the pillars supporting the small balcony, his hands tucked into his pockets.

“Ah, Kino-san, so glad you are willing to accomodate me. It was getting a little chilly out here.” she stepped aside without a word so he could enter. He looked around her house appreciatively. “This is very nice. Well taken care of.”

“I like things to be tidy.”

“I could tell that just from your cooking.” she rewarded him with another doubtful glance. He smiled. “I’m not a connoisseur for nothing. You can tell a lot about a person by the way they cook. I doubt you are a big fan of seafood dispite your nationality, but French perhaps? I have my car parked just up the street, if you would care to join me.”

“Um. Let me put something better on...” she managed to stammer out, suddenly very aware of her housewife-ly ensemble of a long brown skirt and heavy green turtleneck. He shook his head.

“ You look lovely. Just grab your coat, I would prefer if this business dinner lasted a while.” He gave her another brilliant smile and she humbly complied, grabbing her purse at coat from the entryway and following him out the door.

His ‘car’ turned out to be a stretch limo, looking very out of place on the small streets. When the chauffeur opened the door for her, she stepped inside awkwardly, feeling increasingly uncomfortable with the turn of events. She was silent for the ride to the restaurant, not daring to acknowledge the handsome man beside her whose knees kept bumping hers. When the chauffeur opened the door again, she quickly stepped out.

“You’ve got to be kidding me.” she said, eyes wide when she saw where he had taken her. He only smiled. “This is the most expensive restaurant in the district! I can’t go here!”

“Let’s just say that it is a...taste... for how desperately I’d like to do business with you, Kino-san.” He took her gently by the elbow and steered her towards the front door. “Come on, I’d hate to miss our reservations.”

“You made reservations?” she asked incredulously. “You didn’t even know if I was going to come or not.”

“Which is why I booked a table for the whole week, so I would have enough time to wear you down if you refused the first time.” His eyes twinkled. “I’m almost sad you said yes right away. Now I won’t have the chance to sweep you off your feet with my wit and charm.”

This got a scoffing laugh from her. “You certainly think highly of yourself. I’d have booked two weeks, if I were you.”

“Don’t underestimate me.” He teased, holding the door for her. She ducked past him hastily, reluctant to acknowledge the heat in her cheeks.

They were seated quickly, and he held the chair for her as well. Unwilling to let him know how hard her heart pounded, she daringly smiled up at him. He smiled back and seated himself across from her. Hastily she shifted her long legs, only too aware of where they bumped into his.

“So what exactly is it you wanted to talk to me about?” she asked boldly. Nephrite shook his head at her.

“So anxious, Juliet.”

“Kino-san.” She corrected.

He seemed unphased and shrugged his shoulders, handing her a menu. “We haven’t even ordered yet. You never start business deals until dessert.”

“Oh.” Makoto bit her lip in embarassment. “I didn’t know that.”

They ordered quickly, and made small talk as they waited for the food to come. It made Mako slightly nervous, being in this situation. Or maybe it was excitement that made her belly knot up. In either case, this whole venture could prove to be a wonderful asset to her business. If only she were more of a businesswoman...but Nephrite (no, Mr. Maxwell, they were still one business terms) seemed perfectly at ease. Determined not to look the clueless bubblehead she felt, she braved further conversation with a cheery smile.

The appetizers arrived, and as they started to eat she braved her most intimate question yet. “So, Nephrite is an interesting name. How’d that happen?”

Mr Maxwell put down his fork and looked at her, his eyes crinkled at the corners and the lights dancing with amusement in their chocolate depths. He folded his hands under his chin and leaned towards her on the table. “Oh, getting into personal history now. Will we quiz each other later on, Kino-san?”

She narrowed her eyes at him and frowned, though she felt heat rising rapidly from her neck into her cheeks. “It was only a question. You don’t have to answer.”

He laughed a deep hearty laugh at that, his eyes still smiling openly. “No no, I don’t mind at all! I’m just amused because so many people just raise an eyebrow and let it pass. I’m honored you’re interested.”

“Let it pass? Forgive me if I’ve been rude. I don’t understand.”

“American thing, I guess. I’m what you call a ‘flower-child’, a child born in a specific generation to a pair of hippies.” He noted her blankly curious expression and laughed again. “I’m sure none of this means anything to you. Well, in summary there was a period in the 70s when a lot of people did a lot of drugs and were quite, how shall we say... Earth-centered. And when those people had kids, they had killed off too many braincells to realize that naming children after the Earth was just more likely to get the poor kid beat up at school than anything else.”

“Kids beat you up because of your name?” she asked, mildly shocked. “I know first-hand about how petty schoolyard fights can be, but a simple name?”

“No worries, Juliet. I didn’t let them get the best of me.” He winked. “Anyway, I think my mother ran out of ideas when she got to me. I’m the youngest of five, you see. All sisters. It’s much easier to name girls after earth-type things. Opal, Ruby, Crystal, Pearl...those are my sisters. But trying to find a precious stone to name a boy after is a much more daunting task. So she settled on Nephrite.”

“Wow.” She took a bite of her salad and chewed on both the lettuce and her thoughts a moment. “I don’t know if that’s more or less than what I expected.”

“Well, is there any significance in your name?” he prompted, taking a bite of his own food. She wrinkled her nose and gave an apologetic smile.

“Not particularly. I suppose it’s mildly ironic that I love plants so much, but that’s about it.”

“How do you mean?”

“My name literally translates into ‘Sincerity of Wood’. Aside from cooking, my other passion is plants.” She shrugged her shoulders and looked away, embarassed by the simplicity of her own story.

“I could have guessed that too.” Nephrite grinned, seemingly unaware of her discomfort. She raised an eyebrow at him.

“From my cooking?”

“No.” He reached across the table and brushed her hair behind her ear (he smells like nutmeg, Mako thought dreamily). His touch sent shivers up her spine, but he just smiled. “From these beautiful earrings you’re wearing.” He let his fingers dwell a moment longer than necessary in her soft hair before reluctantly drawing them back and resuming a casual air. “Where did you get them?”

For Makoto, the conversation suddenly became ten times more uncomfortable. She shifted in her seat a bit before responding. “From a friend.”

“A boyfriend?” He pressed, only slightly teasing.

“Ex.” she replied tightly, chewing her lip. Beneath the tablecloth, she rubbed sweaty palms on her skirt and wrung her hands nervously. She didn’t like talking about Himoshi. Especially today, when she had been daydreaming about him when Mr Maxwell had first arrived.

“Glad of that.”

“Pardon?”

“Oh look, our food has arrived. Good timing too, I was starting to get hungry.”

The dinner continued as course after course was brought out. Everything was delicious, and under the influence of the vintage wine, her sated stomach and Nephrite’s charm, Makoto found herself loosening up considerably. Conversation flowed freely between them, but each time she tried to breach the subject of business Nephrite changed the topic with the teasing reminder to wait until after dessert.

When she had finally cleaned the coux a la creme off her plate, she looked at him with such an expectant look as to entice another rich laugh from him.

“All right, my little Juliet. I can see you’re very ready to talk business.”

“Indeed I am.” she replied with a complacent smile, folding her hands in her lap. “Mr Maxwell, I thank you for the dinner and the company. But with all of this extravagance, I hope that your offer turns out to be equally stunning.”

“Are you taunting me, Kino-san?”

“It’s your own fault for raising my expectations.” she replied with a shrug. He chuckled again.

“Rightly so, rightly so. Very well, here is my offer.” He leaned under the table and withdrew a thick portfolio from his briefcase. With a ceremonial air, he handed it across the table to her. “Take your time in looking over the details, but my basic proposal is to fund your restaurant for expansion. Only in the surrounding districts at the moment you understand, but if the chain grows as my investors and I hope, you might expect international chains within the next 5-10 years.”

Makoto stared at him, agape. True to his word, he had just offered her all of her dreams on a silver platter. She thumbed through the files, too stunned to comprehend half of the terms in front of her.

“Wow. Mr Maxwell, I...this is amazing. Never have a recieved such a generous offer. May I ask, why me? Out of all the small restuarants dotting Japan, why choose mine?”

“Juliet, don’t take this the wrong way, but it wasn’t just yours. My company has been endorsing Japanese chains for the past ten years, hoping to internationalize food consumption. You wouldn’t believe the lack of variety in England. Still, we are careful in what we endorse. Kino-san, your food is like nothing I’ve ever tasted. You keep the traditional Japanese style, but your use of herbs and cooking technique expands your food into something beyond the tradition. Your ability to mix genres is astounding and frankly, it’s a shame to see all of that talent confined to a single store.”

Makoto blushed freely under the praise.

“Of course, there will be some investments required on your part as well, but I firmly believe that this has the potential to become something large.”

“I...thank you. What sort of investments?” Makoto asked, tucking away the praise in her mind and returning to business.

“Well, you will have to train in new employees, teach them how to cook in your style. That itself could take some time. There will be a financial deposit to help cover the launching fees, but my company is fully prepared to help cover as much of the costs as we can. Then there is the contract with the company, ensuring a percent of profits...”

“Yes, I see.” Makoto could feel her elation draining away, being quickly replaced with dread. She really wished she had stayed awake during her international business courses in college... Nephrite seemed to sense her anxiety and sat back.

“You don’t have to answer right away. In fact, I encourage you to please take your time in looking over the terms and agreements in the file. If you have questions, I would be happy to help explain things. Perhaps over dinner another time.” He smiled at her again, and she returned the smile with relief behind her eyes.

“Thank you. I would like to have time to review the extent of your offer.”

“Of course. Shall I take you home now?” he rose and offered his hand. She took it unconsciously, until her quickening heart beat brought her attention to the warm strength of his grip. He escorted her back to the limo and Makoto found her attention split between Nephrite and the portfolio in her lap.

“Well, we’re here.” he broke her out of her revere, and she was shocked to find she didn’t want the evening to end so abruptly. He walked her to the door and she fumbled with the keys before stepping inside. Standing in the dark entryway, with his silhouette in the doorway, Makoto became astonishingly aware of how lonely her house felt. She turned shyly back to him.

“Would you...would you like to come in for some coffee?” she offered, before realizing that since they had just come from eating he probably wouldn’t be terribly thirsty anyway.

“Thank you for the offer, but I’m afraid I must go back to the hotel.” his smile was truely apologetic. “I hope the offer stands for another time though, I’ve had the most enjoyable evening.”

“Yes, so have I. Thank you, Mr Maxwell.” She mostly succeeded in hiding the disappointment in her voice.

“Nephrite.” he corrected.

“Y--Yes. Nephrite. Thank you so much.” She held her hand out to shake, caught between the uncomfortable mix of business and casual. He took her hand in his firm grip, but did not immediately let go.

“I meant it when I said I’ve enjoyed the evening.” he said earnestly. Was it her imagination, or could those chocolate eyes see straight into her soul? Whatever he saw there made him smile so earnestly she thought he must be floating as high as she was. He kissed her hand then, and when the warmth of his lips brushed against the softness of her skin she was overwhelmed with the urge to kiss him fully, to realize the fantasy of his lips on hers and to capture that warmth and tenderness for herself. “Aure revoir, Juliet.” he murmered affectionately, making her heart speed slightly more. “I’ll keep in touch. I hope you’ll consider my offer.”

He turned from her doorstep. She watched him go in a dreamy daze, her hand clasped over her heart, trying to keep the lingering heat of his lips with her for as long as possible. As she watched the limo pull away, his words echoed in her ears.

I’m here to make all your dreams come true...