When Kalli and the boys excused themselves and wandered off, Wendy spoke to me in group chat. Well, that was unexpected. I figured you and Kalli would leave together.

She had to go exercise with those guys after school.

The green-haired girl suddenly had a wicked grin on her face. I guess that means that I have you all to myself, doesn’t it?

I wasn’t entirely sure what she meant about that but at the moment, my immediate plans to hang out with Kalli had just gone up in smoke.

I suppose it does. Was there something that you wanted to do?

Wendy rubbed her chin theatrically as she thought about it. Well, how much of Los Angeles have you seen?

Not much. I’ve been to Disneyland.

She giggled out loud. That’s not in L.A. silly.

I shrugged haplessly.

I guess I haven’t seen anything except for the area around The Academy.

Wendy smiled. Good. There’s a place close to campus that I wanted to show you. We will have to take the bus though.

Two elevators and a hike through the bowels of the Los Angeles Times, and we were standing together on the crowded street outside.Wendy grabbed my hand and walked me over to a blue sign that turned out to be the bus stop.

She handed me a small plastic card that said ‘Guest’ on it. Normally you can use your student ID to ride the bus in town for free but since you don’t have one you can use a guest pass.

Do you always carry one of those around?

Wendy fidgeted with her bus pass and refused to look at me. No. I borrowed this one for today.

Did you plan to bring a guest on the bus?

She pouted and pinched my arm. Are you going to make me say it? Fine. I planned to show you Little Tokyo.

We were spared the awkwardness when the bus arrived. Wendy climbed on first and showed the driver her card. I followed and did the same. The two of us made our way to the back of the bus and I sat down beside her.

For a while, we sat in silence with only the rumbling of the bus engine and the hiss of the air brakes for background noise. I tried to break the awkward silence.

Tell me about Little Tokyo.

Wendy looked up and beamed at me. It’s the best place ever. They have so much good tea and snacks. Mostly tea though. There’s also a book store with all kinds of fantasy novels and manga. Manga is a sort of comic book.

I know what manga is.

She smiled. Oh, right. Kalli is the only one that isn’t from around here. That reminds me, its kind of weird how much she doesn’t know. When I asked her she said she’s from a land far away. When I asked where she wouldn’t tell me.

I’m sorry. That’s her private business who she tells.

She looked at me curiously. But you know, don’t you?

I sighed and shrugged.

That’s not my story to tell.

Wendy’s eyes narrowed at me. The look didn’t last long because she suddenly shot to her feet and pulled a cord that ran along the ceiling. This is our stop.

The brakes on the bus hissed loudly as the driver slammed the brakes and pulled over. We weren’t even fully stopped before Wendy grabbed my hand and dragged me to the rear exit of the bus. When the door opened we stepped off onto a rather normal-looking city street in front of a large building.

She walked me through an entrance with a Japanese gate. Once we entered the inner courtyard, I was speechless when I first saw the garden that flourished in the middle of the inner city. I turned to Wendy and smiled.

This is incredible. I can see why you like this place.

Wendy winked at me and tugged me toward a row of restaurants. You haven’t seen anything yet. Wait until you try the tea.

While I wasn’t a big fan of tea, the ramen was amazing. Wendy brought me to a restaurant called Suehiro Cafe. The owner personally came out to greet Wendy. They bowed to one another and exchanged quiet words before the owner had a waitress bring a special teapot out for the girl.

She sat on her knees in front of a table on the ground. I had never seen a table like that before and it took me several tries to sit properly in front of it. Wendy smiled politely and chatted once I was settled. I come here several times a week to unwind. Sometimes I read or just think about my day. The tea is really good too.

I slurped my ramen as I listened.

I can see why you like this place. It’s very relaxing. I need to find a place to get away from school.

Wendy looked at me over the top of her teacup. I don’t mind sharing my spot with you if you want.

The ramen caught in my throat and I spluttered a bit as my face begin to burn. I couldn’t think of anything to say, so I blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

Thanks.

She seemed to ignore my embarrassment and set the teacup down and started to eat her ramen with chopsticks.

I always wanted to learn how to use those.

Wendy paused and gently set her chopsticks down, picking up another wrapped set and handing them to me. I can teach you. It’s easy.

After ten minutes of patiently trying to help me learn to control my clumsy hands, she suddenly laughed. Okay. Maybe it’s not so easy after all.

Either that or I have zero coordination.

Wendy laughed harder. Or that.

Looking down at the chopsticks that refused to obey my fingers, I decided that I needed to help myself out. I was a mage after all. Focusing mana through my channels to the hand holding the chopstick, I allowed the mana to coat both utensils.

When happened next surprised me. When the mana from the chopstick touched the broth, the murky liquid absorbed some of it. It shimmered for a moment before becoming clear, almost as though the broth had been purified.

Wendy watched me intently as I pinched some noodles with the chopsticks and willed them not to slip off with my mana. When I tasted them, I noticed that the flavor had changed. My mana imparted a sweetness that hadn’t been there before. I picked up the bowl and sipped some of the broth to be sure and discovered that the flavor of the entire dish was different. I still enjoyed it. The flavor was unique. The flavor was me.

Well, that was interesting.

The green-haired girl leaned over my ramen. Your mana did that?

Kalli told me that this could happen. When she uses her fire to cook something, her mana permeates it and makes it spicy. I guess that’s what happens when you infuse food directly with mana.

Wendy reached out to my bowl. Can I try some of that?

While I didn’t think it would harm her physically to eat something my mana had touched, I hesitated.

I think I’d prefer it if you didn’t. Kalli says it’s gross to eat somebody else’s mana.

She raised an eyebrow at me. You tasted her mana though, didn’t you? How else would you know that it’s spicy?

How did this conversation turn into something so weird? I sighed.

Yes. When she cooked a hot pocket, the fire alarm went off and she dropped it. I didn’t know about the mana and picked it up to eat it. I was new to magic and wanted to see if magically cooking made it taste better.

Wendy laughed nervously. Did it?

Yeah. Kinda. Kalli’s magic tastes spicy.

The girl tilted her head. That sounds like her. Melvin, can I ask you a question? Do you like Kalliphae?

A vacuum from somewhere sucked all of the air from my lungs. I wanted to breathe but worried that Wendy would notice my panic. What was the point of lying? To Wendy? To myself? I was crazy about Kalli. One word escaped to confirm.

Yes.

Wendy crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. I thought so. Have you told her how you feel?

Of course, Kalli knew how I felt. Wasn’t she always telling me that I’m not her boyfriend? She even kissed me before. I racked my brain trying to make excuses about how Kalliphae knew exactly how I felt. We were in mate chat for crying out loud. I sighed again.

Not exactly.

Her face was unreadable. Are you planning to?

I groaned audibly, attracting unwanted attention from around the restaurant.

I don’t know. What if she doesn’t like me? What if I tell her and she gets upset?

Wendy relaxed and leaned back, blowing a wisp of green hair out of her face. You know, I think I would be very happy if you told me that you liked me. Girls like to hear that sort of thing..

If there was a maximum level of embarrassment that a person could feel, I was rapidly approaching that level.

Do you, um, like me? Wendy?

She wagged her finger at me and tutted. You don’t get to ask me that question, Melvin. You can’t have it both ways. Come. I’ll give you a tour now.

I made sure to order an extra bowl of ramen for Kalli, which I stowed safely in my fanny pack. Byakko was being strangely quiet. I had no way of communicating with him. Kalli had finished her workout and headed back to her room to shower. I decided to give her some space so she wouldn’t accuse me of peeking.

Wendy grabbed my hand and led me around the courtyard. The next place we visited was a bookstore called Kinokuniya. She held the door open for me and motioned to the books when I walked inside. This is one of the biggest book stores of its kind in America. They have books in both Japanese and English.

I immediately gravitated toward the manga section and gasped.

Hey, I’ve been looking for these titles.

The girl tugged my hand toward the back of the store. That’s nothing. Back here there is a special section with books written on ancient magical lore. Only awakened can get into this section.

We walked through a curtain with kanji on it that I didn’t recognize. Wendy narrated. That is a ward that will prevent normal people from getting in. Come over here. There’s a book I want to show you. Look, it’s all about Byakko.

That got his attention. Byakko emerged from his tattoo and bounded over to the book as Wendy lowered it so he could see. Our antics got the attention of the proprietor. An old man hobbled angrily over to us, “Excuse me. Children. We do not allow pets in here Magic or not.”

Byakko turned to the old man who began to back away uncertainly and chuffed, “Mortal. I am no mere house cat. I am Byakko, White Guardian of the West.”

The man moved with speed that I didn’t associate with old people and fell to the floor prostrated before the white tiger cub, “Please forgive me, Lord Byakko. I did not recognize you. Please accept my humble apology.”

Byakko looked up at me and said, “Witness this, my bond. This is how you show proper respect to one of the four celestial guardians. Now, rise mortal. You have brought honor on yourself and your family.”

Wendy and I helped the proprietor back to his feet and walked him over to his chair in the corner. He never took his eyes off of Byakko and asked, “Is there anything else I can do for you while you honor us with your presence, Lord Byakko?”

Byakko chuffed again and made his way over to the old man, “How skilled are you at scritching?”

We left Byakko in a book store with an old man. He assured me that if I got too far away from him that he would be forced back into my tattoo. So we didn’t need to worry about leaving him behind.

The next stop was hidden behind a garden. Wendy beamed at me as she introduced the place. This is the workshop of Masamune Chogu. He is a descendant of the legendary sage of the forge. He uses an ancient tempering technique that folds the metal thousands of times over itself while imbuing it with mana. He can produce a blade that starts at level 100. Additionally, it will only accept someone he chooses as its worthy owner.

I looked around at the outside portion of the forge. If I wanted to learn the proper way to infuse my wand with mana, this was going to be the best place to learn it.

Is the master here? I would love to meet him?

We looked around, but the master smith seemed to be gone for the day. She sighed. Oh well. I guess you’ll have to come back.

Just then, Kalli’s voice flooded my mind. Mel, where are you? I don’t recognize that place.

Oh, hey Kalli. Welcome back. How was your workout?

She made sure I could feel how sore she was by stretching her legs. Ugh. Don’t remind me. I don’t know if I’m cut out for physical combat. I’m not going to give up though.

I was mildly frustrated that Kalli was tired after spending all day with her new friends but I didn’t want her to push herself too hard.

If you need to rest we can hang some other time.

Kalliphae practically growled at me. No. You promised we would hang out today. Alone. Just the two of us.

I found myself grinning foolishly. Wendy was studying my face as I stood there like a statue locked in a private conversation.

I’d love that. Where do you want to meet?

She was already making her way outside. Don’t worry. I see you on the map. I’ll be there in just a moment.

We had just made our way back to the courtyard when I felt Kalli approaching. I barely had a chance to say one word before she came crashing down on us.

Incoming.

Suddenly a massive glowing red phoenix landed gently beside us in a rather large fountain. Kalli hopped off of it and the phoenix swirled around her flowing red dress.

Several people who were in the area applauded the girl as she stepped from the fountain, the water evaporating in a geyser of steam as Kalli emitted fire from every pore on her skin.

Wendy’s mouth dropped open. “How…? …Every time? How did you know where we were?”

Kalli flashed the girl a smile and replied, “Obviously, I put a magical tracker on Mel. I always know where he’s at.”

Wendy looked back and forth between us, “Really? You have a…? Well, never mind. We were just about to go to Max Karaoke Studio. Do you want to come too?”

Kalliphae frowned and replied, “Actually, Mel promised we could spend a little time alone tonight. We haven’t had much time together since we got to school. Do you mind?”

I was a little worried that Wendy would be upset that Kalli showed up and tried to force me to abandon her. It was kind of mean of her considering she kept blowing me off for her friends. However, a wicked grin flashed across Wendy’s face. She winked at me and announced, “Even better. Come with me. I’ll get you all set up then I can go back to the cafe. I want to practice that thing you taught me with the mana earlier anyhow.”

Kalli gave me a confused look as the green-haired girl dragged us across the courtyard to the karaoke studio. What did you teach her about mana?

I accidentally infused my ramen with mana and it changed the flavor. You know, like the way you make food spicy with yours?

Her eyes widened. Did she actually eat some of your mana?

She wanted to but I told her no.

I felt a sense of relief from Kalli. I wanted to ask her if she wanted to eat my mana, but that sounded wrong so I bit my tongue.

When we got to the karaoke studio, Wendy hugged the receptionist behind the desk and whispered to her before returning to us, “Okay you two. It’s all set up. I’ve rented you a room for two hours. Just go in there and have fun.”

I felt Kalli start to panic, “Wait, I can’t do this. I’m too young.”

Wendy blinked and hesitated before turning to me. What is she talking about?

I sighed.

She doesn’t know what karaoke is. She probably thinks you rented us a hotel room.

Wendy gasped and laughed out loud before covering her mouth. She turned back to Kalli and whispered, “This is a karaoke bar. People come here to sing, not…”

Kalli turned beet red and muttered, “Oh. Right.”

The green-haired girl walked us to the door of our room and pulled it open for us, saying, “Okay, you two love birds. Go ahead and get started. They will serve snacks in a bit. If you two need me I’ll be at the restaurant.”

She sent me a simple message as she passed me on the way out. Tell her.

Then she was gone, leaving me all alone with Kalliphae.