I remember little of that day now, except that I was too excited to sleep when I went to bed, thinking that my time had finally come. Years later, when reflecting on that day, the old saying, "be careful what you wish for" comes to mind. But back then, I was too young to ever consider that I may regret having the life of a geisha. All I knew was that my life was finally going somewhere.

I spent the next week attempting to think of a reason to go back to Mameha's apartment that didn't invoke suspicion, but to my frustration, I thought of nothing. But it turns out I needn't have worried.

"There you are, Chiyo," mother greeted me exactly one week after seeing Mameha, as I emerged from the kitchen to the dining area after helping our okiya's cook prepare breakfast. "Mameha sent for you this morning, along with some money. Apparently she was impressed by your work at the Ichiriki Teahouse emergency and wants to pay me to hire you sometimes. She has already asked you to go to her apartment and discuss arrangements for helping her sometimes."

"And you believe her?!" Hatsumomo barked, suddenly appearing from behind the corner, always lurking. "Mother, Mameha has no need for Chiyo as her maid. Clearly, she is trying to use Chiyo to spy on me by giving her information!"

"And what would Chiyo say, Hatsumomo? That I have one old geisha who is getting past her prime and another young geisha who is less than successful, both not bringing in the earnings they should be? Ha! All of that is hardly a secret."

My face turned red and Hatsumomo frowned. It was indeed well known that neither her nor Pumpkin were fairing particularly well these days. Pumpkin's problem in particular was that she unfortunately never managed to escape her clumsy awkwardness from childhood. But her and Hatsumomo's fortunes were not entirely their fault. From my time learning about the economy from Mikio, I knew that by the prosperity Japan had experienced immediately after World War I had receded by the time I had begun coming of age in the late 1920s. By that year, 1927, it was a struggle, though the worst of it was yet to come during the 1930s after the American great depression. Many of the largest businesses in Japan, which employed many of Gion's top geisha patrons, were struggling as industries were losing exporting profits to competition from other emerging economies. This had resulted in fewer parties, and fewer danna to go around.

But I didn't dare say any of this at the time, lest anyone ask me why I knew all of this. And besides, why would I come to the defense of Hatsumomo?

"I don't care why Mameha wants her," Mother continued. "She can be Mameha's whore for all I care, with the money she's sending, especially with these hard times and you and Pumpkin being close to useless. Chiyo, you can go."

"And who will be taking her place to help around the house while Chiyo is being Mameha's lap dog?"

"Maybe you can pick up your own clothes and clean your own dishes, Hatsumomo, since you have less to do."

I hurried away before Hatsumomo could take her rage out on me.

It was storming rain so hard that day that my umbrella had not helped me, and by the time I arrived at Mameha's apartment, I was drenched in water. That should have been a sign for me that my day would not go as expected, but all I could think about was how close I was to getting what I wanted.

"Chiyo, I'm glad to see you return," Mameha greeted me as her maid escorted me to where Mameha was sitting in her apartment. "Oh goodness, Tatsumi, get Chiyo some towels, and some tea."

After Tatsumi brought the tea and towels and I had dried off, Mameha gestured for me to sit next to her.

"Chiyo, last week you told me you wanted to be a geisha because you wanted to be free. I want to ask you what you meant. What exactly do you wish to be free from?"

I paused to think. It was a really thoughtful question, one that I had never considered. The easy answer was to be free from the drudgery of being a maid, and if anyone had asked me the question years ago, that is what I would have said. And it was still true.

But now, as I had gotten older and watched Pumpkin go through the process of becoming a geisha, and could see all of the work her and Hatsumomo were doing, I knew how hard, unglamorous and even painful the life of a geisha was most of the time, and how dependent they were on the whims of patrons, mostly men, and their money. It was a volatile life, one where you could be famous one day - and subjected to the constant humiliations that even the best geisha couldn't escape - and a discarded afterthought the next day. I didn't love being a maid, and I often felt lonely since I rarely had anyone else to talk to except for the other Nitta okiya staff, but sometimes I was relieved not to have anyone to answer to except Mother and Auntie, especially since they had grown to trust me and outside of my long working hours, I could be to myself.

Even so, I would have made the trade from maid to geisha in an instant.

"Well, a geisha is more respected than a maid," I began. "But, also, after everything I've been through...I lost my home, and my family, you see. Both of my parents are dead, and my sister is gone. I have not seen her in over eight years. I do not believe all of that happened so I could be a maid. I feel like I owe it to them to make sure something becomes of all this suffering."

I was worried I had said too much. I hadn't intended to be that honest. But Mameha had a way of being that made anyone feel like they could tell her anything. Soon I learned that was one of the things that made her so popular. But it also made us close, a closeness that would help me more than once over the years.

"Good, very good," Mameha nodded. I am not happy to hear about your suffering, and I am very sorry about what happened to you. But I am glad to hear you speak of this motivation, and what really drives you. It is an instinct that can help you be successful. Sometimes, young girls who are brought to Gion to be made into geisha don't understand what this life is really like. They see the jewels, the kimono, the attention, and they mistake this for a happy life. But the life of a geisha is a hard one, one that gives you less power than you think, and can bring much pain. A lot of girls aren't ready for it, and when they finally experience it, it derails them. But I think you understand enough to know what you would be getting into, and have the fortitude to overcome it."

I perked up, thinking that now was the time where Mameha would talk about helping me start training.

"Here is what I believe, after giving it some thought. I would like to help you. I can tell, even from our short time together, that you are quite smart and driven. However, I know you understand the world of geisha from living with Hatsumomo and Pumpkin, and you probably don't need me to tell you how difficult the times have been for our world, and how hard it would be for an upcoming geisha to make a name for herself."

I could only vaguely hear her, still stuck on 'however.' Had Mameha decided not to help me after all?

"Tell me the truth," Mameha said, her voice suddenly more stern. "Do you still have your mizuage?"

My virginity. I knew that most young geisha were expected to sell theirs to go towards their debts, and I had made a big risk and sacrifice by not keeping mine. But after seeing Pumpkin go through the experience, I knew I had no desire to go through such a thing. "No ma'am."

Mameha's face softened and her lips turned up ever so slightly in what could have been a smirk. I never learned what she was feeling at that moment, but given what I later learned about how she felt about auctioning mizuage, I always hoped it was relief, even if she was also disappointed at losing the opportunity for the money.

"It is just as well, and please, Chiyo, call me Mameha. A mizuage auction does not make a geisha. But given how difficult it has become to find patron support right now, and that you have no mizuage to at least make a profit from and to pay debts I'm sure you have, I must be sure before I try to help you that you can be successful. Specifically, I need to know that you can become a star. A successful geisha is more than beautiful. It is an entire way of being, when she is performing, when she is speaking, even when she is doing nothing. There are beautiful geisha all over, and many beautiful women who are not geisha who will sell themselves for far cheaper than geisha prices. Despite the fact that sometimes geisha do have arrangements with a danna that may look like something in Miyagawa-cho, geisha are not courtesans, and we need more than our looks to be successful."

"I have a test for you. Sometime in the next few days, we are going to have afternoon tea here, at my apartment, that absolutely no one is to know about. You, me, and one of my long time patrons. I want to see how you are with a man. Just a little test. I don't need to tell you that you are far older than when most girls start geisha training. The arts and performance, I believe you can learn, even though it will be hard. But what I, nor anyone else can teach, at this point, is how to be. Your personality is formed now, and if you do not already know how to be enticing in social gatherings, you will be a poor investment of time and money for me and anyone else."

Everything Mameha said had made sense to me, but it didn't stop me from panicking on the inside. I didn't really fear the idea of socializing with someone; I was actually excited. I had felt a void since Mikio's death, and had been quite lonely. I also felt overly confident - the way young people often did - about my ability to be an interesting host. But the fact that this tea would determine my future had made me feel a level of stress I had never previously not experienced. But I didn't convey any of this to Mameha.

"I understand Mameha. Thank you for this opportunity. What will I wear?" I asked nervously.

"The way you look right now is how you should look then."

"Mameha wants me to entertain a rich man in maid's clothing?"

"Chiyo, think about the women you know who are geisha. Is it their makeup and kimono that makes them successful?"

I thought about Mameha, who was always enchanting, regardless of what she was wearing. I also thought of Pumpkin, who never left our Okiya without wearing one of Arashino Isamu's creations, and how looking so magnificent had never seemed to help her. I also thought of Hatsumomo, whose beauty, wit and talent should have made her one of the most successful geisha in the country. But the sharp edges of her personality had made scores of enemies over the years and prevented her from being as successful as Mameha.

"No," I conceded.

"No, indeed. Our appearance is part of the performance, the illusion, but a star shines regardless of how she is dressed. There's no need for you to worry though. I feel confident, maybe more than you, that you will do just fine, and I'll be there so you won't be alone. I will arrange everything and send for you when tea is arranged, so be ready when you hear from me." I nodded, still feeling queasy on the inside over what was being asked of me.

"Finish your tea and then you may leave to go back to your okiya. Tell Mother I was talking to you about potential responsibilities I might have for you. I imagine Mother suspects this is all a ruse, but we don't want Hatsumomo to know what is going on, so we'll keep the ruse for now."

We talked for a few minutes as I finished my tea. When I stood to leave, it occurred to me I should ask a bit more about what I was getting into.

"Who is the man we will be entertaining?"

"An ornery businessman with little patience for most geisha."