Fiction – An Unexpected Reading

“Welcome, kind sir, enter. Enter into my realm of clairvoyance. I’m Lady Harmony Maleficum. Please take a seat and allow me to guide you through the wonders of what is to come.”

The bells next to the opening of the tent tinkled as the large man entered her domain. The dark-haired man with grey eyes looked more in place in this environment than she herself did with her black wig and heavy make-up. Harmony did a slight mental shake. This was an act, and she had to sell it well. People were gullible and would believe what you told them. And with what she had earned so far this weekend, things were working out well.

“Well, Lady Harmony, what do you have to offer me?” the man asked with an amused grin.

“The mystics of the future, kind sir, if that is what the spirits will allow me to channel.”
Harmony began to shuffle the stack of tarot cards. She was glad to have something to be busy with, a task to escape his piercing eyes.

“Very well,” he nodded but watched her closely.

“Do you have any pressing questions you would like to see answered?”

“Oh, plenty, but not all open to discuss, I’m afraid. Tell me.” He tapped on the small table. “What do you see in my love life?”

“Ah yes, matters of the heart, that’s often question number one. Let us see if the cards will divulge an answer for you.”
She shuffled the cards an extra time while focusing on the man’s question. Even though she was inexperienced with Tarot, she discovered doing this helped her get helpful cards from which she could interpret.
Something else helped even better, but with this man, she was hesitant to do so. She had the distinct feeling this mystery man would not accept her interpretations without this gesture.

“The cards call for your specific energy.” She placed the stack of cards on the table. “Please, place your hands on them to infuse them with your life force.”

He did as she asked. Static electricity was released the moment her hands touched his.
“See, that was my life force jumping over,” he said.

Harmony could have sworn the statement was more sincere than he was letting on. She grinned uneasily before closing her eyes.
“Please, sir, close your eyes and focus on the partner you are hoping to allow into your life.”

“All right.”

Harmony counted to sixty in her head. It was a long time to wait while holding a stranger’s hands, but she had found that people required this as a necessary part of the ritual.

Images began to flash in her mind.

Two people making love, intense love. The dark-haired man holding a blond woman down while kissing her wildly, fondling her all over. The blond woman giving herself up to passion, throwing her head back in ecstasy, wanting more of the man, needing all of him. Their fornication was primal, instinctive. The lovers’ faces had been blank until the final moment. Harmony now realised she was the blond woman.

In shock, she withdrew her hands. She was breathing deeply. She rubbed her face and quickly took a sip from her water bottle. It had been just a fantasy. This man’s eyes were too intense. That was all. She should do a quick reading and get him out of there. The atmosphere in the small tent stifled her. She needed fresh air, to finish the reading and get away.

“Right, let’s see what the cards have to tell us today,” she remarked letting out a nervous giggle, which turned into a gasp of shock. The first card was ‘The Devil.’

The man in front of her nodded knowingly.
“At least we know who we’re talking about here,” he remarked.

“The cards should be seen as a symbolic representation, not literal,” Harmony recited as she had done dozens of times but couldn’t resist the next question. “Do you really see yourself as the devil?”

His expression turned serious. “I’m not a demon of the prime evil kind, but there are people out there who might view me as one.”

A tingle shot through her stomach. This man was dangerous, and he knew it. She quickly turned the second card.
“Ah, the eight of Staves. It’s not part of the Major Arcana, so it’s not as significant as the first one, but it holds a clear message nonetheless. This card is about action, taking action, doing things swiftly. Don’t wait for your loved one to show up, but go out there and take the initiative.” The card showed a drawing of literally eight wooden staves at an angle and little else, only a blue background and some grassland underneath.

“I’m not the waiting type,” he replied.

Harmony turned the third card. “The Queen of Staves, a court card. Often signifying a person, possibly the one you had in mind for the reading. You’ve drawn an interesting spread here. It’s almost a complete story. You need to take action to find the woman or man you want.”

Her heart skipped a beat because the man took hold of her hand. “Woman, definitely. And, as far as I know, this reading has only one interpretation. The devil is going to have sex with a willing woman.”

Harmony’s cheeks flushed a bright red. “Where…well…how can you…” she stammered.

“I know a thing or two about the Tarot and about reading palms.” He turned her hand, so her palm was facing upwards. He let his finger trace the various lines. “You’ve led a quiet life, too calm, and are now looking to break free from that way of living. You hide your true self and gift with this costume. You are prettier with your natural blond hair. You long for adventure, but be careful. I see a split here. It can go either way. The one line leads to happiness and joy, while the other one leads to despair.”

She blinked in confusion. How could this man be so accurate?

“Who are you?” She asked when she had found her voice again.

“My name is Zohar Grim.”

Harmony gasped. She had just had her fortune told by the Zohar Grim. He was a well-known name within the world of the occult. It took weeks to get a consultation with him, and it cost a lot of money. And now he was here, in her small fortune teller’s stall at the market, reading her palm for free.

“Why are you here? You could have done this reading yourself instead of asking an amateur like me.”

His expression softened, and he looked friendly. “I asked the universe the same question I asked you earlier, and my pendulum pointed to this location.”

“This little stall here?”

He grinned. “No, that’s not how it works. But I was guided to this part of town, and when I saw the services you offered, I took it as a portent.” He stroked her hand with his thumb. “The universe has led me well.”

“I suppose you must think me a fool, with how I read the cards.”

He shook his head. “Not a fool. Come, I want to show you something.” He rose and held out his hand.

Harmony, too, stood up and made her way over to him, wondering what he could have for her to see.

The moment their hands locked, Harmony was whisked away. Like the visions she had experienced earlier, wild images of love-making overwhelmed her.

In her vision, she was standing as she was now, though she was naked. Zohar was with her, naked as she was. She reached out and stroked his face. She sensed he wasn’t a stranger; he was her lover, her long-time lover. He placed a soft kiss on her hand.

“Welcome back, beloved one,” she heard his words deep inside her head, his baritone voice strumming her insides.

“How, Zohar?”

He placed his finger on her lips. “Ssh. Different lifetimes, different bodies. It doesn’t matter. We’re together now.” He bent forward, and she lost herself in his kiss. It felt so familiar. She recognised his taste, the way he moved, all of him.

“Czar, I need you. I crave you inside of me.” It seemed so natural that her pet name for him came back to her.

He stroked her face. “Do you now, my love? Are you certain?”

She kissed him again with everything she had. He was what she had missed. All this time, she had been looking for him.

In the next instant, he had sat down on the chair, and she was on his lap, straddling him.

“Please, Czar, please.” In her desperation for him, she was riding him already, eager for their union.

“My beloved is as impatient as ever.” He parted her pussy lips, and she happily sank down upon him. His big shaft stretched her deliciously, reaching spots only he could reach. She threw her head back in desire.

They moaned in unison while she rode him lovingly.

“My lover, I missed you so,” he said as he stroked her pert nipples.

She rode him harder and harder, wanting more of him, needing all of him.

His face, too, was intent with desire, focused on the passion between them.

Their merging went on and on until finally, they reached the destination at the same time. Their screams of release pierced the silence

Zohar released Harmony’s hands. She blinked in confusion, her face still contorted from what she had just experienced.

“This…I…what was that?”
She quickly looked down, but the two of them were dressed as they had been when he entered the tent

“That was the joining of our souls. We have met many times before, my dear, albeit in different lifetimes.”

Harmony rubbed her forehead. How could this be? Had this really happened? It had felt so real.

“I’m glad to have you back, my lover.” There was another spark of energy when he stroked her cheek.

“But what do we do now?” Harmony asked, faintly rubbing her cheek, still confused.

“I suggest we see what spending this lifetime together will bring us. We still have lessons to learn and to teach each other.”

A shy smile suffused her face. “Well, if making love in reality is only half of what we just did…”

“More, lover, a lot more. Together we can reach heights you never even imagined.” His expression was one of both joy and promise.

“Let us begin our journey then.” She kissed his lips.
Harmony had no proper understanding of what had just happened, but she did long for adventure. And this tall, dark stranger felt like the perfect answer to her dreams. Everything about him felt true and familiar. She couldn’t wait to see where he would lead her.

The three of Swords was the only card left on the table. Heartbreak and sorrow foreseen but not heeded.

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