One day, Cuisinella was running her weekly cooking class in a large tent in the marketplace. None of her students knew that she had eaten a goblin, but she was a superb cook, and her classes were particularly popular with married women who had families to cook for. There was also an 18 year old boy who attended them regularly.

On this day, she decided to approach him after the class had finished.

“I thought I’d come and say hello to the only boy in the class,” she said.

“It’s an honour,” said the boy, “I’m Button Bright, and I’m your best fan. I love watching your cooking classes.”

“I’ve noticed,” she said, “I’ve seen the way you seem to pay particular attention, whenever I’m licking the spoon.”

“Oh,” he said nervously.

“Don’t be embarrassed,” she said, “I’m glad you like it. It’s nothing to be shy about.”

“Thank you,” he said, “It’s hard to explain why I like it. There’s something about the sight of a special tongue doing such frequent licking that looks so nice.”

“Well I’m pleased that you think my tongue is that special,” said Cuisinella, “How would you like to come over to my place and I’ll give you a private lesson? You’d be the only student who’d be told my address.”

“I’d love to,” said the boy.

She wrote down her address and gave it to him and said, “I’ll expect you tomorrow just after lunch time then.”

He arrived at around two o’clock the next day. Cuisinella welcomed him into the house, closed the door and gave him a long hug.

“I think I like your cheek as much as you like my tongue,” said Cuisinella at last, and suddenly turned her head and licked his cheek a few times.

“I like your tongue even more now!” said the boy.

“I had a feeling you would,” she said, “You’ve had a long walk here. Would you like to relax in the sauna for a while, and I can be setting up the kitchen for your private lesson?”

“Thank you. That sounds nice.”

She showed him into the sauna, closed the door and turned it on from the outside. The heat made him drowsy, and he soon fell asleep. When he awoke to the sound of the door opening, he looked up and saw Cuisinella coming into the room. She looked much taller.

“No, I’m not a giant,” she said, stepping towards him and lifting him up gently, “My sister built this sauna using the same principles that she’d incorporated into something she designed for herself. The sauna bathes you in a radiation that reduces your size.”

“That’s incredible,” said the boy, with no thought to the possibility of reversing the effect. He was now more fascinated with Cuisinella’s achievements than ever, as she took him to the kitchen and placed him on the bench.

“I’m sure you’ll have a clear view of today’s lesson from there,” she said, “Today I’m going to show you how to make a creamy mushroom casserole.”

“It sounds delicious,” said Button Bright.

“It will be,” said Cuisinella, “Now the first thing to do is boil some rice. You tip one cupful into a saucepan, and add two and a half cups of water… There. I’ll just leave that on the stove to boil, while we work on the sauce. Here are some freshly picked mushrooms I gathered and washed this morning.”