AROUND THE WORLD WITH MY LITTLE SECRET "Spaghetti Sushi" 1 Bologna is not the first name that comes to mind when talking about Italy, not even about its north. Yet, with the secret and fascinating mystery that awaits us round every little corner in life, it is exactly in this city that the following story took place, not long ago. I had to go to Milan to see a couple of clients on a business trip that wouldn't take long but that I was planning to extend -if I could-, as I usually do, to tour a little around, see a couple of galleries and, hopefully, get to know a few new ones. I had nearly decided to pay a short visit to Florence or Venice again -cities to which I've been many times in my life and are so full of beautiful memories- when I had the fortunate idea to book a hotel in Bologna instead, a town that had been highly recommended to me by my bank manager in Milan. Evasioni, my travel agent, had eventually suggested the Grand Hotel Baglioni, right on Via dell'Independenza, not far from the train station and exactly in the middle of everything of interest in Bologna. I had three or four days at my disposal, which I was intent on spending slowly but surely getting to know a new city in my repertoire of so many others along my trips round the world. You see, I'm a thorough traveler as well as a pedantic tourist. I find it hard to understand how people jump desperately from country to country, town to town, site to site, over their short holidays. I might be a biased judge, though, as -I must admit- not everyone is in a position to take enough days off, and enough breaks along the year to fully enjoy, experience and understand the immeasurable pleasures of every little spot the world has to offer, especially in the Old Continent, and even more so in such a unique country as my dear Italy. But enough of my ramblings about the ideal tourist and the perfect trip as no one is reading this to learn how to program a vacation. Besides, I've wondered many times whether I would get the enjoyment I'll tell you about if it weren't for my little secret. I was perfectly happy with my hotel and, as you'll see, I had made sure to be under the best of terms with the assistant manager, a fine and slightly overweighed man named Girolamo. Having seen his inconspicuous body I had been right in striking a casual and friendly conversation with him about Italian food, of which my knowledge is considerably poorer than on French. His lively explanation about the world famous Spaghetti Bolognese was most instructive. "But you, sir," Girolamo told me, "are too thin to be a pasta lover". "My body, my dear friend," I told him with a smile, "would deceive the most professional cook". 'And scientist', I added to myself. My first day in Bologna was a complete delight. I walked about town holding a street map and local colored guide I had acquired at a nearby tourist information center. I marveled at the striking red and pink hues of most historic buildings and stood in awe both in front and inside the impressive, albeit unfinished, cathedral. It was also comforting to confirm that my memory hadn't misled me when I remembered Bologna had been the first university in Europe. But what really attracted my attention was when, rather late on that first day, I suddenly found myself standing right across from the leaning tower, not that of Pisa, but the one of Bologna, which for me (as surely for most of you), was a completely unheard of site. Yet, as the lover of heights that I've always been, it was the taller, much straighter, tower next to the leaning one that bought me over. My booklet on Bologna said it was possible to climb to its top for a reasonable fee although, somewhat to my disappointme! nt, closing time was already over. I immediately made up my mind to come back next day and, after a rather uneventful evening, it wasn't long before I went back to my comfortable hotel room, worked as little as I could at my laptop, and fell peacefully asleep in this city of dreams. For understandable reasons, as every tourist will agree, I found it hard to accept when, next day, I woke up to a rather gray, cloudy day. I am not easily deterred by adverse conditions, but I thought it just wouldn't be the same to tour the city under a drizzle, let alone the blurred view of Bologna I would inevitably get from atop the tower. My fears proved to be wrong, as I ended up owing to the stormy weather the unforgettable time I had over there. It was precisely that gray sky that revealed the woman to me. After a delicious breakfast at the hotel I decided it was the ideal day for a museum, which also left some hope for a clearer afternoon and outdoor activities. As it happened I invested most of my time touring three or four of the palazzi, including the famous Palazzo dell'Archiginnasio, which was the seat of Bologna University for three hundred years before it moved to the Palazzo Poggi, at the beginning of the nineteenth century. About four o'clock in the afternoon I looked up at the sky and saw that the annoying drizzle seemed to finally be giving way and I made up my mind to go for the two towers I had seen the day before. I was there after a few minutes' walk, as everything is so delightfully close by in all these medieval towns. I stepped into the taller tower (and only one open to the public, as the other one is ridiculously tilted) through the iron gate and bought my ticket at the rather deserted window. The guy behind looked very bored indeed and made no great effor! ts to appease my concerned expression when I looked at the ancient and frightening stone walls, nowadays reinforced everywhere with sturdy metal stripes. Looking up into the wooden and equally old staircase, which tapered away into an invisible spot somewhere above, I realized the huge sign warning that the tower was 97 meters high (about 300 feet) was quite justifiably there. Now, I'm a fit man, still young, and nothing whets more my appetite than a fair physical challenge. Besides, as I took my first steps into the stairs I heard voices of a few people coming down, including a child's. Then I knew it would be all right. The climb turned out to be a tough one indeed. What I had seen from the bottom wasn't but the first stage of steps of five or six more I encountered along my way up, ever narrower, steeper and more dangerous. I did cross my path with two or three more people or tiny group of them climbing down, all of us invariably panting and stupidly smiling at each other, as we squeezed our bodies to make way. Long vertical slots along the tower let light and a refreshing breeze through the thick walls. Finally, after what seemed a never ending amount of time, I reached the last flight of stairs. Wiping the sweat off my brow I made it to the narrow wooden door that led into the roof. I must say my effort was absolutely rewarded. The cool, clean air and, above all, the fantastic view from the top was a sight I'll find it hard to forget, in spite of the heavy clouds. You could see the entire red city from the best spot in town, and far into the surrounding hills with all their constructions, new and all, scattered over them. It was a glorious moment, one in which you feel united with the world, its people and history. I made sure to go round all four sides of the tower and appreciate the different angles of the view before I took a few minutes to relax and decide when to get back down. I found my own space on one of the corners and placed my body against the wall from where I could also see the people around me. There weren't many, maybe fewer than a dozen. I saw a mother speaking in perfect Italian to her two sons of maybe fourteen and nine, who answered her in perfect English with British accent, I saw a German couple in their mid fifties hardly exchanging a word but very seriously appreciating the view and taking selective pictures with a sophisticated camera. There were also two Australian youngsters with long blond hair and beard, smoking away and chatting quietly about girls, and a lone tourist of unknown origin as he didn’t speak and was dressed as any Western man would be. So what really attracted my attention was the only odd one out: a Japanese woman of thirty, or less, of very white complexion and quite elegantly dressed, as I always am myself. Now, as the big traveler I've been all my life, I consider myself to be a citizen of the world. Japan is a country I also have some business with and I've been to more than once. Yet my knowledge of it is still quite scant. Its people remain a bit of a mystery to me and, to be honest, I've never developed a taste for its women. As we all know this is a matter almost impossible to tackle without admitting in the end that it all boils down to a question of personal taste, upbringing and social and cultural patterns. The only reason I'm putting this down is not to justify my likes but to enhance the fact that the Japanese lady in question did exercise a strong drive on me. I've learnt to never question my instincts in life. They are my best friends, they are the sensors that know me as nothing else does and, to sum it up, they are the real me. Like it or not, when I feel something is right (or wrong) I just go by it. And this is precisely what was occurring right now. I kept stealing glances at the woman, who was quietly enjoying the view -as we all were- with a pleasant smile on her oval face, giving tiny steps in her fine clear shoes on the ancient stone floor. Within a few seconds I had made up my strategy. All I needed was a little eye contact, maybe a slight physical touch and, hopefully, some good luck. Slipping my hand into the pocket of my jacket I drew out a small camera I usually carry on me on pleasure trips even though I'm not a keen photo taker. After making a couple of pictures myself I bided my time and casually turned round when she was right behind me. Facing her straight, I put on my most winning smile and said in a gentleman! ly fashion, "Would you be so kind as to take my picture?" and stretched out my arm offering her my camera. The lady smiled in turn and, most naturally, said "Of course". I liked her pose, her response and her perfect accent. Then the first sign came in. When depositing the camera into her hands I felt both the softness and firmness in them, and saw at close range her perfectly manicured nails, of medium length and delicately polished. They were warm and nice to the touch. Things were definitely going well. A lady with good hands is an unsurpassable starting point for me. I knew I'd still have to go some way before knowing for sure that she was what I had an instinct she would be, and I was ready to act and wait. But, then, luck was on my side. For as she put the camera to her face and I was looking in its direction, just a split of a second before she presser the button, a lightning flashed across the gray sky, right behind the woman's head, and for a fleeting instant I saw her in all her glory. As clearly as you see these lines I saw her beauty, her mind and her spirit. I saw her power, her force and her will. I saw her knowledge, wisdom and determination. I saw her nature, forgiveness, and compassion. She, of course, couldn't know it yet; but I had seen all I needed. For she was a natural, born giantess. 2 After my sudden yet sure discovery I knew the road to befriending the woman was well paved. Once I detect a giantess, especially one of the highest quality as this Japanese lady was, there is very little that can stand in our way. For example, I first feared she might be accompanied by a husband or, at least, a boyfriend or family of some sort, given that you don't see that many oriental women traveling by themselves. The fact that there was no one there on top of the tower didn't mean that there might not be someone waiting for her downstairs. As I soon discovered I shouldn't have worried at all, as she was alone all right. But I must confess to you that even if she had been in good company, the mutual attraction is just too great to be easily challenged and, more often than not, restraint will stem out of some moral objection either from me or from the woman, as it's happened more than once along my particular career. On getting my camera back and smiling again at each other I made a casual comment about the beauty of the city scenery from our vantage point together with some funny remark about how unusually hard the stair climb had been and how everybody looked pretty tired after it. She responded to my simple initiative with gentle agreement and attitude. I could read her interest and curiosity in her body language. She had a mellow, extremely well articulated voice; her English was impeccable, with hardly a trace of the Japanese accent. It actually seemed to have a mixture of all accents (which is a bit like my own case), that gave her language a neutral and refined turn. After a few minutes of showing each other from our roof the little we had learned about Bologna and commenting on how marvelous it was, I asked her whether she would climb down the stairs now. Then we started our way back down, carefully stepping on those narrow treads, inevitably joking at how thoughtful we all seeme! d about placing our feet in the right place. Within a few minutes we had reached the bottom of the tower again and stepped out of the main entrance into the busy street. Facing each other and after a brief hesitation I stretched out my hand and said, "James." "Mariko," she answered. By then I had my plan drawn. Pulling out of my pocket the city guide I suggested having a look at the Piazza Otto Agosto, which I hadn't seen yet in detail and, since Mariko had spent but a few hours in town and had seen far less than me, she agreed to walk with me in that direction. The weather was stable, albeit cold and gray, but even if it drizzled again it wouldn't prevent anybody from a lovely little saunter to the park. We spent the next hour together chatting away on this and that. After the usual pleasantries Mariko told me she was touring Italy alone on a short holiday she had managed to scratch out of a trip for work. She had a fairly important job at a small company based, incredibly, in South Africa. "You seem to have an amazing globe trotting record," I pointed out. "Well," Mariko said, "my father was with the Japanese diplomatic service for over twenty years, especially when I was growing up." She had been brought up in England as well as in France and Austria, with stints in the States and South Africa, where she had finally established. "I guess mine is a bit of an unusual story for a Japanese woman," she went on. "Something like Mitsuko Uchida's case." If she was tasting my cultural knowledge, she had definitely chosen the right path. After a rapid memory search I asked, "The pianist?" She smiled. Mariko was an enchanting lady. She possessed the refinement and balance of speech and judgment that not many have. She was meticulously yet naturally and elegantly dressed. Her clear beige suit of knee length skirt and jacket fitted her graceful body superbly. Her hair touch was done to perfection and her gait and movement were extremely feminine. The modest amount of makeup she had on was so tastefully used that you could hardly notice it. And her smile and pleasant facial expression were constantly making you want to look at her more and more. Mariko was a true lady. You see, any female can be a woman, but not many can be ladies. Whether it's a question of birth or acquisition is an open debate I'd be the last person willing to go into, but the fact itself shouts out its truth to the four winds and there's nothing anyone can do about it. Women are a race; ladies are a class. The late afternoon quickly turned into evening and, before we knew it, it was dark and slightly colder. Sure of not getting rejected I suggested having dinner together. She accepted in a most natural way. We felt at ease with each other, experiencing that marvelous sensation of having known one another for a long time, even though we hadn't spent but a couple of hours together. The day before I had noticed a lovely restaurant a few blocks away from the historic center, but had thought it a waste to go there to dine alone, as it saddens me beyond words to find myself in a romantic environment when I'm by myself and, as much as I can, try to avoid such situations. Tonight, though, the scenario had changed quite radically and I was ready to take full advantage of it. When Mariko saw the luxury of the house she gave the smallest sign of hesitation, but my encouraging smile showed her dinner would be my treat. We walked into the "Me' Gusta di Porta San Felice" about nine o'clock in the evening. The ambiance was warm and relaxing. A soft music played lazily in the background. Tables were spacious and chairs wide and comfortable. In spite of the restaurant's sophistication we decided to try the famous Spaghetti Bolognese, which -as Girolamo, the hotel assistant manager, had explained to me the day before- here is called 'Spaghetti al Ragù'. I have to say it was delicious, as was the Chianti we ordered and the prize winning tiramisu the waiter brought as dessert. Our conversation continued to develop. I'm a good listener and have quite a reputation for letting people express themselves as they wish and for as long as they want to. I usually ask the right questions and have people opening up and letting out certain bottled up energy of desires, opinions and confessions. I also contribute my bit, but my peculiar life on our beautiful yet cruel planet has taught me to keep to myself things better left in the dark. Of course, as you'll soon see, on the rare occasion I do reveal my little secret, I usually become a center of attention I've dutifully learned to escape from. Mariko was twenty nine years old, and already divorced. She had married quite young 'for the wrong reasons to the wrong man' as she put it. Thank God, always in her opinion, she hadn't brought any children to the world, so splitting up had been a fairly easy matter. I didn't ask much, but it was obvious she had lived some very unpleasant experiences during her marriage, as she had no words of sympathy whatsoever for her ex husband. I thought to myself, although I'd never say it to her, than any man having the privilege of marrying such a lady and not managing to keep her had to be an ass, completely unworthy of her. By the time dinner was over I felt my body in all its demanding strength claiming for the beauty I had in front of me. As the waiter brought back my credit card and gratefully accepted my generous tip, Mariko placed a vibrant, delicate hand on mine and simply uttered, "Thank you, James." I liked her attitude as much as I liked all of her. And I could also sense she was burning in desire as much as I was. We went out into the fresh night and, suddenly and simultaneously, placed our arms round each other's body: me, over her shoulder; she, around my waist. We hadn't walked but a few yards before I stopped under the shadow of a dark corner and faced Mariko with shining eyes. I felt my blood warm up my body and took the woman in my arms. Within a second we were kissing frantically. I slipped my right hand behind her rear and brought her tightly against my manhood. Before her hips reached mine she had quickly lowered her hand to my hard-on. We rubbed and massaged every part of each other's body as it was possible under the unsafe protection of a dark street and it wasn't long before we started moaning and panting. My tongue had gone deep into her sweet mouth and hers into mine. I was also gently biting her lower lip, which she corresponded massaging my crotch. Af! ter quite a while of this maddening frenzy I looked at her with serious expression and asked her silently whether she'd come with me to my hotel. Her equally mute response found us walking to the luxurious Grand Baglioni tightly hugging each other. Getting Mariko into my hotel room wasn't a problem. And an exchange of glances and quiet gestures between me and Girolamo, the assistant manager, indicated clearly that breakfast and other arrangements wouldn't be a hindrance. He knew I pay well. The woman and me, burning with desire, went up to my room and didn't take long in finding ourselves lustfully undressing each other with hardly restrained passion. She possessed a most beautifully proportional body. It was lean, young and gracious. Her limbs were flexibly sculpted, her legs -imperceptibly arched- perfectly shaped, her feet white and warm. Her arms had the appearance of a ballerina's, her bony hands deserving of a poem. Her lean, tapering fingers ended in delicately polished nails that she proved to be a real master at using them during sex. As we finished taking each other's clothes off, I started kissing her small yet immensely attractive breasts. They were perking, desperately calling my mouth and lips. She went d! own on her knees and started licking my groin and then my behind. We soon rolled into bed and gave our beings to the secrets of love. I tried on Mariko a lot of positions I knew would please her, and left out a few others I thought might clash with her love making style. She was incredibly responsive and turned out to be an amazing partner. Her own initiatives, as when she climbed on top of my chest and took charge, or when she wrapped my upper body and neck with her long, elastic leg, adapted utterly well to my taste. We held our coitus for a very long time, which really proves the lover's quality. After turning round in bed, touching, kissing, licking, and teasing each other for what seemed to be half the night I penetrated her for the fist time. I felt my waist fit gloriously within her hips, and was right in guessing Mariko's flexible young body would permit lots of possibilities, lifting, turning and twisting her fabulous limbs. I inserted my penis into her vagina from the front, from behind and from the side. Her legs could be stretched out to form a straight line, which let me go to the very end and! feel my testicles get drunk with ecstasy as they tickled against her triangle. When I was sure I couldn't reach any more pleasure I still felt her firm and soft index finger find its way into my anus, which nearly drove me crazy with lust. Yet I waited till I saw she was cumming and held it to the very last second. We came together in a climax of absolute madness as our bodies shook vibrantly while strongly holding each other. It had been one of the best sexual experiences of my life and, believe you me, I've had many. The rest of the night was but an uninterrupted sequence of sleep and sex, of the sweetest dreams and the best intercourse. Morning still caught us playing away, and unbelievably happy. And, more importantly although hidden to her, I had seen enough along the night to confirm once and again my primal instinct when I had first seen her the afternoon before on the tower. We took our time and slept a bit more, but I've been a morning bird all my life and would get up even if I haven't winked an eye all night; and apparently so is she. After showering together with more hugs and kisses we were ready for breakfast. We descended into the luxurious morning room and immediately ordered. Mariko looked radiant by the window side, her eternal smile turned into a totally happy face. And, as we had our breakfast I started to wonder when it might be a good time to finally stating showing my other, realer self to her. My first opportunity didn't take long to arrive. Mariko having just finished her café latte, usually served on a tall, slim glass, playfully slid it across the small table to my half of it. Taking the challenge I placed two fingers on the glass top and pushed it back to her, leaving it quite near her body. She looked at me naughtily and dragged the glass in my direction again. The glass height was the perfect excuse. Putting a finger on the rim I asked, "What would you do if this glass were a little man this high trying to move toward you when you don't want him near?", and swiftly slid it until it nearly touched her blouse, never taking my eyes off hers. I saw the sparkle on her face as the idea took shape in her imagination. Taking now the glass from the top with all her fingers, Mariko said, "I would show him exactly where he should stand," and proceeded to move the glass to an indefinite spot on the table. "And where would that be?" I asked curiously, my six senses on high alert. "That would be exactly where I tell him to," said the woman slowly, her face suddenly betraying a different smile. At last I knew it. I had been right! 3 The day appeared cloudless and sunny, although it wasn't precisely warm. Mariko and I went out to the street and she expressed her will to go back to her hotel, not far from mine, to change into some new clothes. We started to walk that way along Via dell'Independenza when I suddenly had the idea of presenting her with some new clothing. She hesitated for a little while but I insisted. There's nothing like accompanying a lady to buy clothes, especially if they're ready to follow your advice, which is usually what happens to me, as my taste is not bad at all. We looked at the various fashion shops in the area and soon decided to go into one that had a young but elegant line on display. Their clothes bought us over, especially as we discovered our tastes were much akin. I thought Mariko could go for a shorter skirt than the one she had on, as her legs really deserved an even better exposure, always within the good taste I knew she'd favor. She went for a navy blue one, with a ! short cut on either side that marked her beautiful legs even more when walking. Then she accompanied it with a pink and delicate silk blouse, which was exactly the right size for her moderate cleavage and I insisted on buying her a white fine sweater too. Once she had all that on I found her even more attractive than the day before. Mariko really possessed a fine, awesome figure. The only item missing now was a good pair of shoes, my very specialty. For a moment I saw her having a hard time accepting dear presents from a man she had just met, but my manner reassured her. I've always managed my money pretty well, allotting not little of it to charity as well. So I feel completely justified in spending it as well as I see fit, even if it's to please something as frivolous as a whim; and even more so when it can represent a valuable gift to someone else. At the shoe store next door I saw Mariko wisely diverting her eyes toward the high heel section, as nothing would have fitted the clothes we had just bought better than a three or four inch high shoe. Then, obviously, as the tourist she was still planning to be for the rest of the day, I saw she was having second thoughts. "Who's gonna walk a lot today, anyway?" I whispered into her ear, while gently biting her lobe. Mariko let a little laughter out and stepped into the greatest pair of high heels you can imagine to walk out of the shop in them. She was a vision! I was very well dressed myself and, I'm telling you, our presence didn't go unnoticed that day in Bologna. First we continued on to Mariko's hotel, the Savoia, in order to have her stuff sent over to my very room in mine. Then I would have gone back to the Baglioni to have more of my lover's art, but I knew a little walk in the park would end up enhancing ten times as much the pleasure we both wanted. All I needed was a little time. As we walked hand in hand like a couple of teenagers, I wasn't wrong in guessing that, with a little guidance, it wouldn't be long before we talked some more about the 'tiny naughty man' idea I had first mentioned earlier on during breakfast. "So, where is it exactly you'd tell that little man to stay in case he still wanted to impolitely grab at your breasts?" I asked after the issue had been brought up. "What's with you and that idea?" she inquired curiously, pinching my bottom with her fingers. But I knew she was interested. "Oh, nothing. Just forget it," I pretended to dismiss the subject with a wave of my hand. Within a few seconds she looked at me and said, "Anyway, how could he try to touch me when I'm now standing and he's down there on the floor?" "Maybe you should take him into your arms and lift him off the ground a little," I suggested. "Well, he's been ill-disciplined, hasn't he?" the woman replied. "So he should learn his lesson first." "And what would that lesson be?" I wanted to know. "Well…," she was pensive. "First off, he'd have to stay down there for as long as I think it adequate, maybe a few days," Mariko said. "He'd have to get used to look up at me and respect my presence. Only when seeing a change in his disrespectful attitude would I consider letting him back on a chair or even table and allow him to look at me from a somewhat higher position." "And if he refused to obey and continued to misbehave?" I poked her on. "Then I'd tighten my grip proportionally to his rebelliousness," she said as a matter of fact. "Technically, he doesn't have a chance, does he?" "I guess not," I considered. "And, how do you feel when imposing your rules on such a defenseless fellow?" I asked, very interested in her answer. "Well, if he's in such a disadvantageous position," Mariko reasoned, "what's he doing trying to challenge such much bigger a force?" Logical as her reply was, I still expressed, "Maybe he really wants to get that reaction from you." "So I'm giving him exactly what he's looking for, aren’t I?" and she winked at me. I'm telling you, she was a born giantess. Because women might be a race, and ladies sure are a class. But giantesses, my friends, giantesses are a caste. "If, for some weird reason, you were stuck together with a tiny fellow," I continued. "How would you like him to be?" "Friendly, I guess," she responded. "And maybe useful." "Which means…" "Well, I wouldn’t like to find myself having to help him with every little thing in life," she said. "I guess we'd strike a kind of deal on how to live together." "For example?" "I don't know…," Mariko doubted. "He'd have to take care of small chores around, or make sure to keep things and paperwork organized…" "Have you ever thought about the idea?" I approached the situation. "Not really, but sounds interesting," was her reply. "How about the possibility of being next to a man, albeit little, that is constantly under your sight and supervision?" I asked. "Hmmm…," Mariko looked at me with curious and mischievous eyes. "I might like that!" she winked at me. But…," she added, "where are you going with this theory?" Taking her beautiful, delicate hand I led the woman to a bench, where we both sat down to rest a little. "Mariko, there's something I need to tell you," I opened up. The thirty minute or so conversation that ensued was along the patterns I know so well by now. Revealing my secret has never been easy, but considering that at the beginning it had been almost impossible I think it a big achievement to have been able to sum it up within around half an hour; and that only in instances where I decided to prepare the lady, as in Mariko's case, because many times I have just plunged into my thing, sometimes scaring the hell out of the huge woman. She looked at me with a confused face. "Just what are you talking about?" she cautiously said. I gently took her hand and made her stand up and look me into the eye. Without a word I started a slow but steady march back to the hotel. The woman was meekly following me, I guess waiting to see where exactly I was headed. I could feel her understandable mistrust and couldn’t afford to waste much precious time. When entering the Baglioni I told the receptionist we were not to be disturbed under any circumstances and quickly led Mariko into my room. Her belongings had already arrived, and were orderly arranged by a wall, next to a small table, although we didn't need them for the time being. The woman looked at me full of anxiety and a pinch of fear as she saw me carefully lock the door and tidily get undressed. Within seconds I was standing naked and extremely aroused in front of the attractive, elegantly dressed Japanese lady. Being naturally tall and in heels, she was almost my height and looked at me with an enormous mixture of curiosity and confusion. For a split of a ! second I thought I had lost her, in which case I wouldn't be able to perform my trick, but I realized we would survive the second she started to respond to my caresses. Slowly but surely we began to kiss again, to fondle and to rub our bodies against each others'. My eyes shut, my mind increasingly trying to find the 'spot', I kissed and hugged and stroked until I felt I was ready. As predictably as ever, I lost consciousness for a few seconds and only retained the faintest sensation of falling into the abyss as I plunged into a semi trance. When I opened my eyes I saw a huge Mariko holding me in her gigantic hands and looking at me with the widest slanted eyes the world has ever seen. I had turned into a twelve-inch-tall mini man, light as a feather, fearful as a mouse, happy as paradise, horny as hell. The woman had turned into a giantess like she would have never dreamed anyone could be, and was holding in her suddenly and amazingly empowered hands a living, thinking creature from an unknown world of myth and fantasy waiting for her much expected reaction. My secret, my little secret, had worked once again. "Holy Mother of Christ!" she pronounced very slowly. "How do you do it?" she whispered in awe. And, within a few moments, the most tender, maternal smile had formed in her lips. Now she knew I hadn't been lying. Now she was mine… and I was hers. 4 After recovering from her initial shock, Mariko proceeded to gently deposit me on the carpeted floor. I had turned into a tiny, twelve-inch-tall man, completely naked and utterly defenseless, in front of a tall, slim, beautifully proportioned Japanese lady of thirty, wearing the sexiest outfit and looking down at me in total amazement. Much as I had prepared her during our little talk in the park, I knew it wouldn't make any sense to her until she actually saw me. I smiled up at her to show both my friendliness and reassurance. Mariko stretched a careful finger toward my head and very gently removed a lock of hair from my forehead with her delicate nail. "How do you do it, James?" she asked for the second time. "How I do it is a very long story, Mariko," I answered her. My voice was louder than usual, which is the only way I can be heard by someone so many times my size, although I knew it wouldn't be but a squeak to her. "The really important thing right now is to fully enjoy the privilege this will give both of us!" The maternal streak was the first to surface to Mariko's approach, as it happens all too frequently with good giantesses. Almost dismissing what I'd have to say she slid her hands under my armpits and gracefully lifted me into the air, making me feel the inevitable yet intoxicating vertigo. Her touch was electrifyingly arousing. My tiny penis was fully stretched and kept its stand even more so once she sat down on the edge of the double bed, crossed her magnificent legs, and placed my naked tush on her bare knee. The contact of my soft butt cheeks against her firm round kneecap pushed my hard-on even further. If I had been right Mariko wouldn't pester me with questions. She'd take me -and my transformation- for what I am and go along with it. After silently looking at me for what seemed to be a very long time she must have concluded that experiencing such a total overpowering sensation was well worth my privacy. Once accepted my condition the woman apparently felt compelled to get some tactile assessment of the little man. She brought her glorious fingers into the scene again and started rubbing every part of my little body. She slid them over my chest, behind my back, under my cock and between my legs. Wherever deciding it was safe enough, she also used her hard and cool nails to get me going. Thus, she gently scratched my skull, played around with my nipples and had a go at tickling my feet. As if to test my endurance she stayed at my feet for a while longer, secretly enjoying my futile efforts to try to wriggle myself out of her powerful tickle. Mariko was quickly getting the ! grasp of what to have a mouse of a man in her hands was, learning fast the boundaries between pleasure and pain, exactly as she had done the previous night, and which sets the quality of the real love maker. After quite a few minutes of that she decided to let me find my own way about her body. The woman slowly withdrew her fine hands from my trunk and made me balance on her knees as I waded my way across her crossed leg and onto her lap. In spite of all our talk about the little naughty man (and his punishment) trying to touch her breasts, Mariko sexily started to unbutton her pink new blouse as I reached her chest. Hardly changing her erect position, she also undid her bra from behind and let it land aside. Finding myself in front of the perkiest pair of tits you can imagine I plunged lustily into them, sucking them both in turns while, alternatively, roughly kneading the other one with all of my hand, which wasn't but a pleasant caress to her. The giantess's moaning didn’t take long to come and, together with it, she let her upper body lean gently back on the big bed. I stretched horizontally on her and continued my frenzied business on her breasts. Then I saw her wet her finger with saliva and bring it behind my ass, which she started to massage. It felt like warm oil and I thought my dick was going to take off from my crotch, such was the erection it gave me. I was still busy in the chest department when Mariko softly but assertively lifted me up and placed me on her panties. As a little employee who's been assigned a different but equally interesting task I started to work my way into it. Before I knew it she had taken her skirt off and rolled the panties down her glorious legs. I found myself bouncing in the mattress that her dark pubic hair formed and deftly inserted my arm into her pussy. Finding instantly her clit, I grabbed the thing in my hand and pressed hard with all five fingers. Mariko let out a heavenly cry and I hoped no one would be walking past our room door then! In response to my pleasure giving, she roughly passed her nail over my back. I felt the terrible tension on my flimsy skin resisting her very special rub. We were getting mad with desire but we knew we had just started our act. Leaving her center for a while, I swam my way down her shapely legs and soon found myself reaching her knees again. Then the woman lifted her body again and slowly started to get up on her feet. The vertical position she adopted speeded up my way down her legs and very quickly I was standing by the giantess's huge high heel shoes. I looked up at her impossibly tall body and met the sweetest smile on her face. Wondering what she'd do next, I rapidly realized she wanted to stop fondling for a little while and get pleasure of another kind. I was right, for calling me with a silent gesture of her finger she crossed over the big room (the size of a small football stadium to me) and went to stand in front of a full body mirror on the wall. Watching her walk in the room, every one of her steps an impossibly long stretch for me, was the mental equivalent to the physical pleasure I had felt so far. But, after running across the room and standing right next to her feet, I got not only! the mental, but also the very spiritual reward. Just imagine for a second what to stand next to a thirty-five-foot-tall naked beauty in heels would be and you'll get an inkling of what I felt then. Mariko was also reveling in heaven. She looked at us from the front and from behind. Then she turned her back on me and told me to measure my back against her shoe. My bottom reached her upper heel, by back touched the leather of the actual shoe. "God, you're tiny," she marveled. Then she suddenly crouched down and took me in her hands again. A few steps brought her back to bed and she put me on the pillow. My giantess took off her shoes and lay back naked on her side next to me. I attacked as much of her body as I could at my tiny size. I went all over it and, wherever I went, I was followed by Mariko's hands, legs, feet or face, as she saw fit. We tossed around in bed for a long time that noon and drove each other crazy working on the sensitive points, as we had learnt to do the previous night, when we both were the same size. It was absolute bliss and we knew the sky was the limit. Finally I went first. Finding her clitoris again I repeated my trick as before, only that this time I grabbed it between thumb and one finger only, as I knew it would provoke a sharper feeling. After a couple of minute in which the woman stretched her holding power for as much as she could, she came amidst shouts and panting, while pressing my entire body against her triangle with the palm of her hand. I was terribly sweaty and aroused and had to make a huge effort myself not to cum there and then before she could choose how to make me to. Once Mariko calmed down a little, she suddenly lifted me into the air and saying "Come here, you little clown," placed me with my belly right under her nose, my penis completely taken between her lips. Her mouth was wet and her lips were sticky. She trapped it in such a way that I thought they had been created to form the perfect sheath to my dick. Her sucking was relentless and bordering on the painful. This woman was the perfect giantess down to the last detail. I tried and resist it a bit longer but had to let go lest my head would blow. When I came my shaking was so powerful that, in spite of my tiny size, Mariko had to steady me against her mouth with the palm of her hand. I stayed there for endless minutes while the happy woman sucked away every little drop that continued to come out. Utterly content yet incredibly tired, I quickly found my niche in my goddess's breasts, and fell peacefully asleep. 5 We must have been sleeping for something like two hours when I woke up placidly on Mariko's body. She had fallen asleep on her back and I was comfortably lying on her bosom. One of her hands was near me and I approached and kissed it delicately. The woman smiled and stretched her arms aside. Then she looked at me at close range and said, "Who are you, little man? Where do you come from?" All she got for an answer was my happy face and lots of little kisses all over her chest. I knew she was still enchanted with the idea of interacting with such a small person and more than willing to explore it further. Seeing my own desire manifest itself in my little penis's growing erection, Mariko sweetly took me in one of her hands and said, "Come here, little fellow, you and I need a bath." I was very happy to be taken to the bathroom and see the lady turn on a powerful stream of warm, clear water to prepare our next scenario. While the bathtub quickly filled up, she stood me on the toilet seat and held me there for me to pee. Then she gently placed me inside the sink while she sat for a minute on the toilet too. While in there I found myself surrounded by the sink's pale pink walls, seeing but Mariko's face. I tried to steal a peek at the rest of her body but found that I had to stretch well beyond my height to do that. On seeing my puny little efforts, she winked at me and said, "A man should never see a lady in such a prosaic position." Mariko was obviously getting a taste of how overpowering she could be, even when only teasing. After flushing the toilet and seeing the tub half full already, the giantess took both my hands in her fingers and, suspending me over the water -which was like a huge swimming pool to me- said, "In you go, sweetheart." And with that she let go of me and I plunged into the warm tub. My feet touched the bottom but I was unable to stand if I wanted to breathe too, so I had to tread water and wait for Mariko to step in, which happened immediately after. The tub was pretty large and the woman stretched her legs across it while sticking her back to the oval side. I soon found myself floating between her shining knees and placing my hands on them to gain balance. Mariko was in heaven with the scene and playfully started tickling my little armpits and teasing me in other ways. We laughed a lot as I tried to keep a vertical position and she boycotted against it in every possible manner. Then I plunged down into the warm water and made a go for her pussy. I nearly reached it when Mariko's huge hand appeared out of nowhere and carefully blocked my way to it. "It's about time we draw some distance between us, little man," she said naughtily as I surfaced up again. A mischievous smile was drawn on her face, waiting to see my reaction. She had obviously taken in our role play of earlier that morning and was trying to act it out. I must say she was doing it to perfection. Under water and all, my erection was already making me drunk with lust. "Oh, yes?" I took the challenge. "We'll see about that," and I plunged again in. I tried to dive my way behind her bottom to find an exit under her arms but found the woman's rounded hips blocking most of the tub width, let alone her hands and beautiful fingers, constantly following my every movement and preventing me from operating freely. She was being extremely careful and none of her actions could have possibly harmed me. It was, then, a supreme game of strength in which I could use all my capabilities. Eventually I came back to my starting point between her legs and thrust my little body up to hold on to one of her knees as when someone tries to climb on a rock in the sea. By then the tub was almost full and I found the amount of water being more of a hindrance than before. Mariko slightly shook her leg and made me fall clumsily down into the water again. "Poor little man," she pouted and smiled. "He doesn't know how to stand firm in front of a woman." "He doesn't, eh?" I still showed myself confident. Making a total turn I swam toward the feet end of the tub and tried to climb on top of it, out of the reach of Mariko's hands, with the intention of edging the border and 'attacking' the woman from the side. But the minute I tried to get out of the water a huge and white foot gently touched my back from behind and I immediately made me fall back in. I quickly looked back to see Mariko sticking a funny tongue at me. "Oh, n, n, no," she said shaking her head negatively. "You'll have to try harder, dear." "You'll see, you!" I braved her, and turned back for the tub edge again. But the second I thought I might be getting out her foot came in again and down I dived without a chance. God, she was really getting the taste of it. And it had me rocking. Once I stuck my head out of the water again, Mariko placed her flexible foot behind my back and steadily pushed me toward her body. It felt as if a strong wave were forcing me from behind. Thus I arrived to her chest, no longer controlling my own movements. I thought she'd give me a break now but she had more in store for me. "Let me show you, little man, how easy it is to make it out of the water," she said. The giantess grabbed my tiny body with her soft hand of steel and, lifting me well into the air, proceeded to place me on the tub edge. I was still getting hold of myself and dripping all over when she said, "You see how easy?" she teased me. "Now, you try!" Then, as quickly as she had gotten me out of the 'pool', she put her finger behind my tush and started to push me toward the water again. Suddenly I was skating with my bare feet on the slippery surface of the tub edge and, in no time, flying into the water. She had completely overpowered me and was utterly enjoying her game. She was calm, confident and expectant. I was in total heaven! Once more I tried to reach the rim by myself to be gently knocked down again with her feet. She playfully turned me around in the water and eventually slipped three fingers around my little feet, one between my ankles, the other two at either side. My body was free, but my feet were cuffed. The giant woman held me at the right height to leave my body submerged into the water but my head out. I still used my little arms to keep balance and was ecstatic waiting for her move. She crooked her long arm a little and brought me closer to herself. She spoke sexily, "Now you are in my power, aren't you?" Trapped at my feet, my tiny body clumsily fighting to stay erect in the water, I answered, "Always, my queen." "That's a good answer, little man," she was satisfied. "But, just to make sure that we understand each other…" she said, and started to lower her hand, making the water reach my chin, "I'll give you one small assignment." The giantess lowered me even more. I felt the water reach my upper lip and eventually my nose. Now I wouldn't be able to breathe unless Mariko eased her grip on me a little. I had to crane my neck and push my head forcibly back to catch a last inhalation before the water reached my eyes. I instinctively tried to free my legs only to find that if I insisted the huge finger pressure around them prevented me from even budging. "You are to go down to my feet and kiss them both before coming back to me," she ordered. "Is that understood?" I tried to answer but my mouth was under the water already. Lifting me immediately she assertively asked, "What's that, little man?" "Yes, my queen!" I answered, in awe. "That's a good boy," she concluded, and let go of my feet. I slowly swam my way across her legs and reached the woman's feet, so clean and wet, and started kissing them frantically. I went about those heavenly feet, one by one: ankles, heels and toes. I sucked and licked at her toes and strong nails and wallowed in them for an eternity. I don't even know what Mariko did while I was in such a trance. I guess she just looked at me and marveled at the whole thing. Hopefully, it aroused her too. The thing is, when I finished and 'came to' so to speak, I found her looking at me and smiling. Then, seeing my red erection, she suddenly said, "Come here, now, you little clown. I think you've earned your reward." The woman proceeded to soap all of my body and massage every part of it. Her touch was so incredibly angelical, and I was so desperately horny! She tossed me around in her masterful hands and made sure I was presentable enough, for she asked, "Are you clean enough for me, little man?" Then, she grabbed me with one hand, sliding her thumb across my little chest and gently pressing my back against her other fingers. Once secured in her grip, Mariko did what I had experienced only in but a handful of occasions before. She took my penis with two fingers but not in a pinching position: her index nail, strong and hard, went under the lower, softer, part of my dick, and her middle fingertip, firm but soft, came on the upper part, harder and less sensitive. All of a sudden my penis was in what seemed to be its natural habitat. It felt protected, it felt at home. The woman started to pull back and forth those two fingers with my little member in them while tightly holding all of my body in her other hand. I almost fainted with pleasure as this massage went on forever. I closed my eyes and saw the colors of the world parade in front of my imagination. Mariko was a gift from paradise. When I came my little white drops covered every corner of the tub. "That's a good little boy," Mariko said encouragingly while I desperately discharged my lava. She continued to hold me like that for very long minutes, patiently waiting for me to calm as I shook and panted away. Finally I came to the end and the woman slowly released her grip. She had an amazing ability to read my every need and act accordingly. I lay back comfortably on the water and took a few seconds to relax before starting taking care of the lady's crave, whose turn was up. But, to my surprise, Mariko gently lifted a finger and turned it in the air, indicating that she would need me, but only later. For the time being, she brought her left hand to her clit and, never taking her sight off me, worked at it for a couple of minutes before exploding in one of the hottest masturbations I've ever witnessed. 6 It must have been around three or four by the time we finished our bath and were back in bed. Sex had been fantastic and exhausting and I would have killed for a little nap, but we wanted to eat something first. Mariko picked up the phone and ordered a snack that didn’t take long to come. Of course she took care of bringing it in, as I remained under the covers not to be seen by anyone. She also ate with good appetite, and so did I, only that, at my tiny size, any scrap of food is enough to fill me up. I thought we'd still talk a little, but we both fell fast asleep soon after the meal. About a couple of hours later I woke up to a somewhat darker room and, after slowly opening my eyes and regaining my senses I saw Mariko sitting on an armchair by the bed and looking at me intensely. She had obviously been up for a while and had even taken a silk robe out of her luggage which suited her great. It opened in a big cut under the belt and you could see a beautiful, long leg sticking out of it, leisurely swinging while she contemplated me. "How's my little prince?" Mariko said playfully. I sat up on the bed and looked at her. "You are incredible," I said. It was her turn to smile. "So are you, little James," she responded. "How do you feel with it?" I wanted to know. "I feel like I don't think any woman has ever felt," was her clear cut answer. "Tonight's our last," I said, looking carefully at her. "I know, sweetheart…," she sounded sad. "Let's make it perfect!" I said, louder. "I know it will be," she said. "You're full of surprises." Her leg was swinging faster and I could see she was as excited as me. I quickly thought of a course of action, knowing Mariko would be a faithful partner. She had definitely enjoyed our little game in the bathroom and I had an instinct it could be exploited a bit more. Her eyes were shining, her body language showed her desire. I looked at her intently and I felt my heart bump with vigor. Her eyes closed a little, sharpening her sight, quickly reading my mind. There passed a few very quiet seconds in which neither of us moved or pronounced a word. "You better come here", I finally opened up. "And who are you to tell me what to do?" my giantess smiled willfully, picking up the gauntlet. "Well, if you want to save yourself some trouble," I still said from my sitting position, you have better not question me." The gigantic woman ceremoniously uncrossed her legs and very slowly got up to her feet. Her armchair was very close to the bed and she came to sit next to me in a controlled, yet menacing way. When she put her massive weight down I could feel the mattress giving way and forming a slope toward her body. I had to hold onto the sheet with my arms not to roll down against her huge hips. "You, little piece of nothing, are trying to give me orders?" she asked seriously but almost betraying a smile. "I think it's about time we clear a few things up here." By then I was standing on my little feet and thinking about running away, but even the indifferent movement of her arm was faster than any possible attempt of my part. Before I knew it, the woman was firmly holding me in her hand. Her grip was tighter than ever before. I realized she was completely into it, and I started to feel the dizziness that accompanies the greatest moments of sex with a giantess. Bringing me up to face level with her, frowning and with an earnest expression, she asked quietly, "Who do you think you are, little man?" and pressed a powerful thumb against my belly. I felt her strong pressure almost cutting my breath and tried to answer what I had in mind, but she squeezed even more, making it almost impossible for me to talk. "I don't want to hear what you have to say, mister," she said with a suggestive, sexy voice. "I want you to repeat with me. Is that understood?" The giantess was totally into it, there was no way back now. I nodded affirmatively, as her increasing pressure didn't allow me to do much else. "Say that you are a little nothing," she commanded while slightly easing her finger grip. "I'm a little nothing," I heard a squeak of a voice come out of my mouth. "That's good, little fellow," she seemed satisfied. But then she fired her next question, "And what am I, little mouse," she demanded while closing in her fingers on my tiny body again. "You are…, you are…," I was finding it hard to speak. "Yes, little man, what am I?" she sensually looked at me. "You are a queen!" I shouted in glory. But her face showed disappointment, then restrained anger. "Wrong answer, tiny man!" As I was still trying to guess at where Mariko might be taking all this, she turned me down with my belly on her knee and said, "Let me show you what I do to little naughty boys who give wrong answers." And, with that she began to pinch one cheek of my little bottom with her fingers. Her movements were regular and, in principle, pleasing. It felt like a heavy massage being administered by a big, bulky person using two strong arms. But soon the pinching started to feel uncomfortable and, after a minute or two, the uninterrupted kneading of my delicate flesh turned into pain. Soon I began to wriggle in the vice-like grip of her strong hand but there was nothing I could do. A well of tears flowed up to my eyes and I also started to shout a little. Kicking came soon after but her wicked massage was steadily going on. When I felt I wouldn't be able to take it any more, she suddenly stopped and started pinching my other cheek. First I felt relieved, as my hot half of my tush was left alone. But soon I went through exactly the same in the other half. Mariko was a mistress of organized pain. Hardly opening her mouth, let alone betraying any body stress, she quietly and steadily turned my ass into a red battlefield. But once she finished her peculiar massage I realized that it had been only the introduction. For she began to slap me first slowly then more rapidly until I couldn’t hold it any more. "Oh, Mariko, please stop, please stop, Mariko," I was crying like a little baby, sweating copiously from bottom to top. As her spanking wouldn’t finish I found myself grabbing at her quiet leg with my hands and digging my teeth into her skin, knowing she would hardly feel it. Suddenly coming to a halt, brusquely turning me up again, Mariko asked, a winning expression on her face, "What am I?" "You're an Empress!" I screamed trying my best, crazy with pain. "Wrong answer, little man," she said aloud. I felt my heart sink, my hopes shatter. "But before I'm done with you," she added, "let's see what slaves do for their empresses. Give me pleasure," she ordered. And, leaning back, roughly put me on her chest and closed her eyes. I threw my tiny body onto her huge tits and started sucking like mad. My entire body, small as it was, turned into a sucking, licking and kissing machine. Horny as hell but knowing holding my cum was the only way to freedom, I explored the giantess's body down to the last bit, the last corner, the last curve. Partly taken by my own impulses but also constantly guided by the huge woman's hand, I landed in every piece of flesh there was along that heavenly surface and gave it as much as I possibly could. Mariko accompanied my peculiar dance with all sorts of arousing sounds and moans. I thought she would come any second now but, to my complete surprise and with an incredibly agile movement, she jumped on her feet onto the mattress I suddenly found myself clumsily bouncing on and, before I knew it, she had placed her huge foot on me. I was lying down on the enormous bed, my back plastered to the mattress, my limbs aside, totally immobilized by the giantess's humangous bare foot exercising an unbearable pressure on my chest. In spite of my surprise and fear, I couldn’t but marvel at the unique sight of this queen of giants looking down at me suddenly with a calm expression. "I'm hot and mad," she said slowly. "I'm horny and desperate," she stressed her words. "And I demand that you tell me what I am!" she almost shouted. "Think well, because this is your last chance," the giantess concluded. I felt her might come onto me with the surreal weight of her statuesque body on my tiny self. She had been right, it suddenly occurred to me: she wasn't a queen. "What am I, little man?" she repeated her question. She pushed down so hard that I felt my body creak under her foot. God, she was right: she wasn’t an empress. "What am I?" her voice had turned into a menacing whisper. She pressed even harder and I felt my blood racing desperately to every end of my little body, as if trying to find a way out of its walls. I was going to explode. Scared to death, with the last streak of voice I had in me, I faintly said, "You are a Goddess." A few seconds of expectant silence ensued… "That's better," I finally heard in relief. And then, still smashing my body against the bed, this Japanese woman educated in Vienna, Paris and London, for the first and only time during our days together, pronounced the following words with an unknown voice, "Anata ga watashiwo anatano megami ni shitakara, Anata wo Ikasete Ageyoo." The pressure stopped. The giantess changed her expression. She slowly sat down on bed, a mixture of pride and shame painted on her face. We looked at each other silently, and I showed her with my expression that I was all right. Delicately drying my painful tears with the tip of her glorious finger, Mariko took me in her hands and started cradling me against her bosom like the baby that I was. The giant woman wetted one finger with saliva and carefully refreshed my butt, which only increased my huge erection. Then she lay down again and proceeded to open up her legs in a 'V' shape. Gently standing me between them, my erect penis reaching right up to her bushy hole, we started moving together, her controlling hand always behind my tiny back. I fully stretched my arms across her triangle and stuck my little feet under her bottom cheeks. I saw the woman massaging in ecstasy her own tits while moving up and down as my tiny dick was effectively securing her clit. I don’t know how! long we went like that for. But I remember we came together and for me it felt like the threshold to Eden. Happy as a teenager on his first night, my ass burning like an oven, my entire structure sweating like a dead bull after the fight, I slowly climbed up Mariko's giant body, reached her smiling face, kissed long and lustily her fleshy lips, and fell asleep like a happy prince in fairy tales. 7 After a few comforting hours of sleep, I woke up on Mariko's gigantic belly. It felt soft to the touch and it soothed properly my aching butt. The woman was fast asleep and I knew we had but a few hors left together. She had been fantastic and it wouldn't be an easy farewell for us. I carefully stood up on the bed and made my way up to her face. A blue glimmer came in from the dark window, falling right on the woman's beautiful face. I gently removed a lock of hair from her brow and this flimsy movement made her turn a little toward me. I wasn't sure she was awake, but time had come and I was ready. Standing on the tip of my toes, my little mouth looked for her huge lips. As she felt my presence, Mariko immediately placed her hand behind my body and brought me even closer to her. We kissed for a long time and I started to concentrate and look for the right colors, the right sensations, the right 'spot'. Within a few moments I had found it. I plunged into it as I had done so many times and, soon, I lost consciousness. For the next few seconds I only had a general perception of me coming back to my normal size and Mariko suddenly getting frightened. By the time she was fully awake I was holding her tight in my -now once more- strong arms. Our silent eyes met, and we melted into one embracing body. I believe we still made love twice more that night, now at normal size. If there were still tricks we hadn't tried the night before, we sure went for them now. In spite of an extremely active night we got up pretty early in the morning. We didn't say much as we went about packing our individual suitcases, which didn't take long. We went downstairs for breakfast and exchanged a few pleasantries as it was hard to find something to say. Like the day before, Mariko finished her café latte, but this time around there was no mood for little jokes. I saw her eyes fill up with tears and knew the terrible moment was coming. "Who are you, James?" she asked once more, this time pleadingly looking into my eyes. I didn’t say a word. "Is your name James?" she tried, putting a hand on mine. Again, there was silence. "Will you at least tell me your name?" My eyes got wet too. "Will I ever see you again?" she sounded distressed. All the sorrow of the world was hanging from our shoulders right then. Finally, she let off a big sigh. Then she opened her purse and jotted down something on a piece of paper and handed it to me. I looked at it with care. It was her e-mail address. I folded up the note tidily and put it into the pocket of my jacket. "Everything will be fine, Mariko," was all I could think to say. "Yeah, it will," she compromised, and smiled a little. After a few more minutes she got suddenly up and prevented me from doing it too. "I'll have my luggage sent downstairs," she said. "It's time for me to go." Taking a few moments to look down at me from her standing position, the fine lady I'll never forget put a hand on my cheek and said, "Whoever you are, my great little man, you're the most beautiful thing that ever happened to me." I took her hand in mine and kissed it twice in recognition. "Good bye, love," she said, and began to turn around to leave. But before she could complete her action I still held her hand and asked, "Mariko, will you tell me the meaning of the sentence in Japanese you said to me last night?" The lady paused for a second, tossed the phrase around in her head, and said slowly and with subdued voice, "Because you've made me your Goddess, I'll let you live." I nodded imperceptibly and held my sight. The woman gave me a final, dear look, turned around and left. Her body crossed the doorway with the gait of a goddess walking back to her mountain. THE END