At one of Chandresh Lefèvre’s irregularly scheduled Midnight “Circus Dinners” in London, Mme. Padva attends with the Burgess sisters, Lainie and Tara. Mr. Barris is absent, reportedly in Germany searching for a clockmaker to commission a circus piece, and Mr. A. H- is not present.

Unexpected entertainment arrives when Marco brings in a woman who gives her name as Tsukiko. Chandresh, perplexed but intrigued, allows her to join the dinner and perform. As Marco takes Tsukiko’s oversized dark coat, he notices a striking tattoo across her neck and shoulders: a flowing collage of alchemical, astrological, and cultural symbols. Tsukiko quietly frames it as part of her past, present, and future.

In the dining room, Tsukiko performs as a contortionist, moving with the poise of a trained dancer and displaying rare flexibility in both forward and backward bends. The guests fall silent and captivated, imagining music in the stillness as she twists into seemingly impossible poses without losing her calm smile.

Chandresh declares that Tsukiko’s act embodies exactly what the circus should be—unusual, beautiful, provocative, and elegant—and insists they must have her. Over a long dinner filled with wine and wide-ranging conversation, Tsukiko is persuaded to accept an invitation to perform in the circus, even though it does not yet exist.

Afterward, Tsukiko leaves Marco a card with contact information. She soon becomes a regular presence at the Circus Dinners, performing around the meal, and Chandresh repeatedly cites her as his defining standard for the circus’s intended “flavor.”