Yunohana set her cup down and considered the request with complete seriousness. With her hair unpinned she looked years younger and far less official, and what she looked like most of all was a woman delighted to be asked.
"Then let us start with serving, since you watched me do it all evening," she said. "When you bring a man his tea, come around and offer it from beside him, never from across the table."
She mimed setting a cup down at an invisible elbow.
"From his side you are close, your shoulder almost at his, inside his world for a moment. From across the table, you are simply staff delivering a cup."
"Wait, it's starting." Sarah sat up straight. "It's actually starting."
"The second lesson is attention. Suppose your hands are busy pouring when he begins speaking to you. Do not drop everything and stare at him like a startled maid. Finish the pour calmly, set the pot down, and only then raise your eyes to his."
