Prasadi Tea Ceremony

"Ring the bell, honoured guest, let the spirits know of our request."

I rang the small squarish bell, its ring rang out over the courtyard, as the smell of the cheese cooling atop the pastries flared into my nostrils. I had come to this house to make a request. And this scion of house Akatha, a canny political operator if I ever saw one, kept me waiting. The Spirits she had just mentioned were capering in the garden, some of them jumping over the big squash, flattened on the ground in the setting sun. "It is done, honoured host."

"Thank you."

The tradition of the tea ceremony was especially annoying, I couldn't breech any topic of consquence until we had shared a tea cup, a cheese-smothered pastry, then another tea cup, to do otherwise would be very gauche, and subject me to the attentions of the spirits. In the courtyard of someone from House Akatha, those spirits were not just little capering spirits. Terrestrial Gods could be scary. And as I said that... A figure stepped into the garden, from elsewhere.

"Blessings from the Gods upon this house." Jade-Tongue, The Dyed Queen, a powerful goddess, draped with golden chains, festooned with jewels had just stepped in.

"I come with a message, Burano Namika Jahan."

She had named me, despite my disguise, and my own exalt powers, she had seen through all that...

"You are to be sent to Nexus, you are to bring them Prasad's blessings, and treat them as friends, but be wary. Not all of them are our friends."

The Goddess swung around, her purpose clearly fulfilled, and forgive me, but I spent a few breaths admiring the rear side of her, for it was ... splendid, I am old, but not so old I can't enjoy... perfection. The Akatha woman, clearly used to spirits visiting, just quirked an eyebrow at me.

"What is there to do but obey?"

"When the Dyed-Queen, propitiator of all prosperity, calls you out? No, indeed, there is nothing for you to do but to obey." She was biting her own lip, clearly trying not to laugh at me.

"Is it acceptable to shorten the ceremony thus?"

"She suggested that to interrupt the ceremony would be an offense to her, when she wrote it. To prevent her from doing so. Few know it, but you are in the clear, and not even the Rani-Satrap could call you to account for this, for indeed, it is her own signature that made it into spiritual law of Prasad."