"Are things going okay with your class's project?"
"We ran into some conflicts along the way, but everyone managed to cooperate in the end."
Reika was engaging in some friendly conversation with Irie, the Student Council President. The Nanairogaoka Middle School culture festival had begun just a couple hours earlier and visitors were now roaming the school grounds in large numbers. As a member of the student council, Reika was to help in whichever way she can, from working at the information desk near the front of the school building to directing family members to their children's classrooms to getting supplies for the food stands. She had just finished another task and was making her way back to the information desk when she bumped into Irie.
"That's good to hear. I'm interested to see what you have planned."
"Please look forward to it!"
"Hey, Reika!"
Reika turned around to find Miyuki running towards her. "Oh, Miyuki! How are the preparations going for the fashion show?"
Miyuki took a moment to bow towards Irie before giving Reika a big thumbs up. "Things are going a-okay! We just did the last revisions to the clothes just like you asked. All that's left for us is to do the real thing!"
"Great! I'll be sure to drop in to see them when I get the time."
"Actually, about that. It's almost lunch time, right? Akane, Yayoi, Nao, and I were planning on going to the food stalls to get something to eat. We were wondering if you wanted to join us."
"That sounds lovely, but I'm afraid I'm still on student council duty…"
"Go ahead and join them."
Reika turned to the tall boy next to her, surprised. "President Irie?"
"I think it's always a good idea to take a moment to rest up before a big show, especially something as extensive as a fashion show," he reasoned. "Besides, I'm sure seeing the hard-working vice president relax for a change might ease up the atmosphere around here."
Miyuki nodded excitedly in agreement. "Yeah, yeah! What he said!
Reika produced a sigh of defeat, although a part of her also found it amusing to see the leader of the student council and the unofficial leader of the Smile Pretty Cure agreeing on something. "I suppose I don't have a choice, do I?"
"Nope!" Miyuki energetically took Reika's hand. "Thanks for letting us borrow her, President Irie!"
The brown-haired boy gave a small chuckle. "Always a pleasure to help."
"I-I'll try to be back within the next hour or so!" Reika managed to say before Miyuki sped off with her hand in tow. "Miyuki, don't run so quickly in the hallway!"
*Scene change*
And thus began Reika's "break". After she chastised Miyuki one more time about the importance of not running in the hallways, they met up with the rest of their Pretty Cure teammates and headed towards the food stalls. They first stopped by an okonomiyaki run by none other than Akane's family before going through the rest of the stands and eating whatever they could find. Once their stomachs were filled, the girls decided to drop by their classroom to look at the clothes each of them would be wearing for the fashion show before they went to check out the attractions made by other classes. One class was doing a maid cafe, another was performing a short skit in their classroom. Various clubs were also taking part in the culture festival as well, with the chess club teaching people how to play chess and the photography club displaying all of the photos that they had taken over the school year.
Eventually, they came to the art studio, which, as expected, was hosting a gallery of various art pieces painted and drawn by students. The theme of the gallery was "Nature's Highs and Lows", and the pieces depicted things from high mountain peaks to vast plains to deep canyons. In addition, the pieces were placed relative to their elevation, meaning that the images that had focused more on mountains were placed higher than those that focused on the plains. There were even some fake trees that were brought in to further accentuate the theme of nature. Off to the side, there was a paper mural that was large enough to separate one section of the art studio from the other. The mural depicted a valley in a mountain range that reminded the girls of when they went to visit Miyuki's grandmother. Green landscapes with forests and fields of flowers dotted the sides of the valley as they converged into a river that separated the two sides. In the distance were two mountain peaks, with the sun rising overhead in a bright blue sky.
"Unbelievable…" Yayoi remarked as she stared at the mural in both awe and jealousy. "The people here really are leagues ahead of me. I can't do something like this!"
"Come on, Yayoi. You can't go comparing yourself to something that was made by a whole group of people," said Nao, trying to cheer up her artist friend. "But I gotta admit, it is beautiful. It makes me want to jump in there and start running across it! Although, I'm curious as to why it's so big."
One of the members of the art club who happened to overhear the conversation spoke up. "That's because the other half of the room is reserved for fortune telling."
"Fortune telling?!" Miyuki's eyes immediately started sparkling. "You guys are actually doing those?"
"Well, technically it's not us. One of the people in our club knows someone who does and brought up the idea as a side attraction. We were a bit tight on space, though, so we ended up dividing the room. We had just started working on the mural back then, so it wasn't too hard to add some more things to it."
"But this is just a big sheet of paper, correct?" Reika asked. "Won't the commotion over here get noisy for the fortune teller?"
The boy crossed his arms. "She said not to worry about it, so we let just let her be. Apparently, she did something on her end to block the sound."
"Is there technology that makes that possible?"
The boy shrugged. "Dunno. You're going to have to ask that yourself."
"Hey!" said Miyuki. "We should totally get our fortunes read!"
"I was thinking the same thing!" Yayoi agreed. "It's been forever since I did something like this!"
"I don't know," said Nao. "Something about this reminds me of a certain old witch we happen to know…"
"Nah, you're probably overthinking things." Akane put her hand on Nao's shoulder. "It hasn't even been a week yet! I doubt she's gonna come back before then."
"Regardless, this could be an enlightening experience," said Reika. "I've never had my fortune read before."
Everyone turned to look at Reika in shock. "Really?" asked Miyuki. "As in 'never' never?" Reika nodded her head.
Akane put her hand to her head. "Man, I knew you were sheltered, but I didn't know you were THIS sheltered."
"Well, I guess we know who's going first then." Nao gave Reika a small nudge. "Go ahead and get in line first. We'll be right behind you. Now as for the rest of us…"
"If that's the case…" Yayoi had a determined look on her face.
"Yeah, there's only one way to settle this…" Akane cracked her knuckles.
And so Reika exited the room to get in line for the fortune teller as the yells of an intense rock-paper-scissors match started to arise from behind her.
*Scene change*
After a bit of waiting, Reika was at the front of the line. Behind her were, in order, Yayoi, Akane, Nao, and Miyuki. There was a curtain that hung from behind the door that prevented outsiders from peering in. Eventually, the door opened and a student emerged from the it, her face indicating that she had received a favorable fortune. The student who was handling the line told Reika to wait for a moment before ushering her in, closing the door behind her.
Reika took a moment to look at her surroundings. She had always heard about how dark and dimly lit a fortune telling room was, presumably to give off that air of mystery that was commonly associated with the art, but this room was different. While it was still predominantly dark, it wasn't just dark for the sake of being dark; rather, this little alcove was seemed to dedicate itself to showing the splendors of the dark. If the other side of the art studio depicted nature during the daytime, then this side would be nature during the nighttime. The lights were turned off and a curtain hung over the window, but there was just enough light let in for Reika to see. The paper mural that divided the alcove from the rest of the studio hung to the side, only this time the setting reflected the change of time. The bright blue skies and sun replaced with dark blue skies and a full moon and various dots of glitter that represented the stars were also dotted around the landscape. It gave Reika an odd sense of comfort.
Before Reika was the fortune teller, seated at a desk with two decks of cards set parallel to each other and two small fluorescent lights on either side. As Reika moved closer to the fortune teller, Reika could see that fortune teller was just a small girl. She was wearing a purple hooded robe that appeared too big for her body, with the shadows of the hood almost covering her face entirely. She then opened her mouth and spoke in a voice that seemed to cross the line between a child's and a young adolescent's. "Welcome. Are you going to keep standing there or are you going to sit down?"
Reika blinked. "Oh, sorry! I was just looking at the mural. I didn't imagine that there would be another side to it."
"Hmm, yes, the artwork." The girl glanced at the mural. "It's not the kind of setting I would have hoped for, but the children here wanted to make the atmosphere more open and inviting. They wished for everyone to experience the wonders of both the high and low points of the day, and since they were the ones who lent me this space…" The girl gave a small shrug. "Who am I to complain?"
Reika gave an amused look. "'Children'? I don't mean to be rude, but you appear to be a child yourself."
The girl gave a small snort. "I'm older than I appear. So, shall we get started?"
"Alright." Reika sat down in the chair across from the girl. Now that she was closer to her, Reika could see that the fortune teller had strands of black hair coming from her hood and dark brown eyes that seemed to spark with intelligence.
"So, how you like your fortune to be read today?"
"Um...I don't know," said Reika. "This is the first time I've had my fortune read."
"Ah, a first timer. Well, there are several ways of having your fortune read, but I'll be using these." The girl waved her hand at the decks of cards on the table. "Are you familiar with Tarot cards?"
"I've heard about them, yes."
"Well, using these cards, I can perform a reading about specific things such as romance, finance, health, and career. Or, I can do a general reading about your future. Which would you prefer?"
Reika took a moment to consider her options. "I think I'll have a general reading, please."
"Very well." The girl set the decks before Reika. "Please shuffle these cards individually."
Reika was confused. "You're asking me to do it?"
The girl nodded. "The idea is that you're transferring your own energy into the cards so they can get a better grasp at interpreting you. If I were to shuffle the cards, they would reflect my perception of you instead, which defeats the purpose of telling someone else's fortune." The girl shrugged. "Whether you actually believe that or not is up to you, of course."
"Okay."
As Reika expertly shuffled both decks, the black-haired girl explained how the fortune telling was going to work. "The smaller deck contains the Major Arcana while the larger deck contains the Minor Arcana. Each card carries its own weight and meaning, but generally the Major Arcana are more important than the Minor Arcana. Normally, I would draw ten cards from a combined pile, but then I would have to take the time to interpret and explain all of them, and unfortunately I don't have the time to do that." She gave a nod to the line of people waiting outside. "So instead, I will draw one card from the Major Arcana deck and three from the Minor Arcana deck. This form of reading isn't as precise, but it's still very versatile."
"I see," Reika said. "Then I suppose depending on the kind of reading you are doing you would have to use a different way of drawing the cards?"
The girl nodded, a slight smile appearing at the edge of her lips. "That's the basic idea. You catch on quick."
"Thank you for the compliment." Reika finished shuffling the decks and handed them to the girl.
"First, I'm going to draw one of the Major Arcana. This card will tell me a little bit about the kind of person you are." The girl drew the top card from the smaller deck. The card showed a woman in blue robes sitting down and holding a scroll. "The High Priestess," the girl stated. "She is a symbol of wisdom and balance. You seem to possess great intuition that assists others on the outside, and yet you also carry your fair share of mysteries on the inside." The girl looked up to Reika with a curious look. "Perhaps you possess hidden knowledge that is unbeknownst to everyone else?"
An alarm went off in Reika's head. That hidden knowledge could very well be referring to her activities as a Pretty Cure, which was kept secret from everyone in this world who wasn't Miyuki, Akane, Yayoi, or Nao. Reika was initially skeptical about fortune telling, but now her doubts had started to lessen greatly. She quickly thought up a response. "Well, I am part of the student council, and we do come up with plans for the student body that aren't disclosed right away. Could it be referring to that?"
"The student council, eh? I suppose that could explain a few things." The girl put the smaller deck to the side and placed the High Priestess card in the middle of the table. "Still, the Tarot are not so easily defined. They may have their own meanings, but they can be interpreted in many ways. They're not unlike humans in that aspect." She then took the larger deck, divided it into three smaller decks, and arranged them in a triangle around the High Priestess card. She proceeded to draw the top card from one of the decks, revealing two people walking in the snow in front of a stained glass window with five coins on it. "Now this is an interesting turn of events," the girl said, raising an eyebrow.
"What is it?"
"This is the Five of Pentacles, a card that symbolizes hardship. Normally, it is associated with problems of the financial sort, but it can also be interpreted as having emotional or spiritual hardships." The girl looked up from the card. "Either way, it's not a card to be taken lightly. It would seem that your hidden knowledge has caused some strife for you in the past and will continue to do so moving forward."
"Hmm." Reika cupped her chin with her hand, understanding that the implications of the card reached far beyond the activities of the student council. As a Pretty Cure, she would undoubtedly have to endure many hardships to come, with each new challenge being more difficult than the last. She remembered being trapped in the Ball of Neglect not too long ago and how easily she fell under the influence of the Bad End. If it weren't for Miyuki, she, Akane, Yayoi, and Nao would have stayed in Joker's little pocket world forever. That was definitely an event of great hardship. "I see."
"You're taking this rather well," the girl remarked. "Normally, people would start panicking after I tell them about this card."
"Maybe I am destined for hardship, but nothing says that it will last forever," Reika replied. "A relative of a close friend of mine once said that 'there are days when the weather is not the best, but the sun will for sure rise again. Nothing stays dark forever.'"
The girl smirked. "That relative's either an optimist or has been through enough troubles to know what happens next. Which one is it, I wonder?" She then turned over the top card of another deck. Unlike the previous card, this one was facing away from the girl towards Reika, which allowed Reika to get a better look at the illustration. This card showed a man sitting beneath a tree in contemplation with three cups in front of him and a fourth cup being handed to him from...was that a hand coming from a cloud? Reika couldn't understand the logic of the person who drew the illustrations. "A reversed Four of Cups. It represents someone who requires the reassurance of others in order to take action. The presence of other people will mark the start of a change in your life, but until then you wait in contemplation and do only what is expected of you when you are told to. Perhaps you find some accomplishment in appeasing others, but in truth you feel empty inside."
"E-empty?" Reika said with great surprise. "What does that mean?"
"Hmm...given the context of the previous two cards, I'd say it references your knowledge. Having knowledge and intellect is a good thing, but if you can't bring yourself to share them with others, you won't be able to cultivate them. Alternatively, you have already made your skills known to others, but you have yet to walk a path that you have chosen for yourself, which is why you feel lacking inside."
"Oh…" Reika placed a hand on her chest. Those words had struck deep to her heart. The concept of the path was something that she thought she had understood a long while back, but in this small room with a mural of a beautiful valley and a small fortune teller with eyes that shined with wisdom, the harsh truth was revealed to her: she was still very much naive. If she had been resolute in her conviction and beliefs, she likely wouldn't have fallen so easily to Joker's schemes. True, every time Joker appeared he had consistently taken them by surprise with no moment to mentally prepare themselves, but the incident with the Ball of Neglect had one noticeable difference: Miyuki. She voluntarily entered the Ball of Neglect after the fact and even though she started to fall under its influence, she managed to pull through with nothing but support from Candy and sheer force of will. It was an astounding feat to be sure, but it also provided Reika with a reality check for herself. Was her belief in her own path so shallow that she could be so easily broken?
Meanwhile, the black-haired fortune teller gave a look that resembled that of a concerned mother worrying for her child. "You seem more concerned about that one than you did about the previous one. Would you like me to stop?"
Reika snapped out of her contemplation and shook her head. "No, I'm fine now. Please continue."
The fortune teller nodded and turned over the top card of the last deck. It showed a man holding a stick in both of his hands with six other sticks in front of him. "The Seven of Wands. You will find yourself in a time where you are trying to stand up for yourself, but the odds are stacked against you. There are no people to help you, the world seems like it is working against you, and you may feel pressured to give up. However, don't be afraid; the end is in sight, and if you continue to hold fast in your beliefs, victory might just be in your grasp." The girl looked up to Reika once more. "Perhaps your friend's relative did have some truth after all. There is light at the end of your tunnel."
"If I may ask," Reika interjected. "What is this 'time' that the card is referring to? The other cards focus more on intangible things but this one seems to implicate a concrete event."
The girl's brow furrowed underneath her large hood. "Unfortunately, it's difficult for me to say. That's the tricky thing about hidden knowledge: I can make some predictions based off of the cards, but for all I know I could be thinking about something else entirely." The girl crossed her arms. "I doubt I can explain it, but I can see some images in my head. However, they're all rather vague and they lack any real clarity for me to draw accurate details from. Fortune telling can help predict what might happen, but it's not omniscient."
"But is that not the purpose of fortune telling? To know about the future and prepare for it?"
"It is, but you must also understand that there is the customer to consider. Nothing in this world is perfect, and I can tell you that even my readings tend to be incorrect at times. If the images are portraying what I think they're portraying, then the assumptions I leave you with can end up influencing you to take the path of most resistance. If that were to occur, then I would have failed at my task of helping you with your future. There's no magic there; just basic human psychology." The girl drew back her hood, revealing her whole head to Reika. Her long black hair unraveled and Reika could see that she had wavy patterns painted across her forehead and cheeks. Her eyes were also brought into the light, and Reika noticed that they were weary with age, like those of her grandfather after a long day, which conflicted with the rest of her youthful face. "However, what I can say is this: there will come a time when you will have to learn how to fend for yourself. You may have triumphed over hardships in the past thanks to support from the people around you, but they won't always be there to watch your back. You have to learn how to translate your hidden knowledge to a language that can be understood by everyone. Once you do that, I'm sure that you will be able to grow as a person."
"Alright." Reika took the advice in calm understanding. "So is that it, then? Is that the end of my reading?"
"Normally yes, but…" The girl stopped to think for a moment. "Truth be told, there is one more thing I can do for you."
"Oh?" Reika looked puzzled.
The black-haired girl pointed to the upturned cards on the table. "The High Priestess card that was drawn at the start represents who you are at the beginning of your journey, and the Minor Arcana represents the events that make up your journey. By drawing the next card from the Major Arcana deck…" the girl paused, putting her hand on the smaller deck with the Major Arcana. "I can predict something that can occur at the end of your journey. I normally wouldn't do something like this, but I must admit that I'm curious to see what the future has in store for you. Of course, I can also spare you the details if you so desire. So, what will it be?"
Reika waited for a moment to think. Truth be told, she was a little afraid. What if the future she had in store for her was a bad one? What if she was fated to live in a bad ending like in Joker's Ball of Neglect? What would happen to her family and friends? All these questions and more circled through her head until she realized one thing: it was only one of the many branches of fate that could occur. Fate may be a fixed line, but that isn't to say that people can't resist it. Surpassing the odds and rewriting the end of a story? That was something the Smile Pretty Cure did all the time. Miyuki and Candy were able to stand up against the influence of the bad ending and write their own stories in their own way. Who's to say that Reika can't start doing the same?
"There's no need for that," Reika finally said, her resolve written on her face. "Please show me."
The fortune teller took a moment to look at the girl in front of her. A moment earlier, she had looked so lost in herself, but now she was resolute. She was like ice. On the surface, it was beautiful, but it was also very fragile. Hardly anyone would think about taking it seriously, but it was still a force of nature. Just as placid waters could suddenly rise up into a tsunami, light snow could easily become a blizzard. "A beauty of ice," she mused. "Heh. How interesting."
Reika tilted her head. "Um, what?"
"Nothing. Now, let's see where the whims of fate may lead you." She flipped over the next card of the Major Arcana deck. Immediately, her eyes widened. "Well, this is unexpected."
"What is it?"
The girl showed Reika the card. It was an image of two people coming together with an angel hovering above them. "It's the Lovers."
"Lovers?" Reika was puzzled. "Does this mean I'm going to meet someone I love?"
"That's one interpretation. However, it can also mean that you will be confronted with a choice sometime in the future. Based off of the cards that were drawn previously, I'm more inclined to say that it's the latter." The girl rearranged the cards into a diamond shape so that the High Priestess card was at the top, the three Minor Arcana cards were lined up in a row beneath that, and the Lovers card was at the bottom. "Do you remember how I said that I could see vague images of your future?" Reika nodded. "Well, it irritates me to say it, but they haven't gotten any clearer. However, with the addition of the Lovers card, I believe I know the reason why."
"And that reason is?"
"The Lovers card signifies the making of a choice. However, that choice hasn't been made yet. This is indeed a reading about your future, but as for how far into the future it is…" The girl pointed at Reika. "That is all up to you."
"M-me?"
The girl nodded. "You may possess great intellect, but you are still lacking in certain areas, as I'm sure you've become aware. One of those areas is the act of making a choice based off of your heart, as cliched as that sounds."
"My...heart?"
"I'm sure a smart girl such as yourself knows that having to do the right thing in the right situation often comes at the cost of compromising your own wants and needs. Selflessness is by no means a negative quality, but even that has its dark sides, especially if it's not taken in moderation. Have you ever stopped to consider what you would want if you were given the choice?"
"Th-that's…" Reika, to her surprise, found that she couldn't come up with an answer.
"That indecision is why you're experiencing hardship now. It's why you need the presence of other to help motivate you. You've spent so much time walking a path structured by the expectations of others that if they aren't there, you wouldn't know what to do. And…" The girl paused for dramatic effect. "It's why your future is filled with trials that will see if you can function without them. Ultimately, it all comes down to a choice made by you and you alone. You, child, have to learn to decide how to take control of your own life."
"My own...life…"
There was a knocking sound coming from the door behind them. The girl nodded and stared into Reika's eyes. "I'm afraid I don't have much time left, so I'll leave you with this: I may have said that you have to learn how to stand without your friends' support, but that isn't to say that you can't rely on them anymore. Be with them and let them nurture you so that you can find the path that you wish to take. You may be lacking in vital areas, but I can see that you show promise, and I am certain that by the end of your journey, you will be able to make your own choices based off of your own knowledge and volition."
Reika closed her eyes and let the words sink in to her being. "I shall keep that in mind. Thank you for taking the time to read my fortune."
"The pleasure is all mine." The girl put out her hand. Reika shook it. "By the way, before you leave," the girl added. "Can I ask for your name?
Reika gave a smile. "Reika Aoki. And if I may ask, what is yours?"
"Mine?" The girl gave a slight chuckle. "I have had many names in the past, but for now you may call me Theatis."
"The-atis?" Reika worded. "That's an unusual name."
"Oh, believe me, there are worse names out there. Now, run along and return to your normal life."
Reika gave the girl a respectful bow and exited the room. Once she stepped outside and closed the door behind her, she bid the rest of her friends farewell and left to return to the information desk. It was only when she was halfway down the hallway that she realized she forgot to ask one important question:
How DID the fortune-teller block out the sound?
Author's note: This is the third of the Weekly Prompts I wrote for Pretty Cure Amino and my personal favorite of the bunch. The themes were Cure Beauty, a valley, and a deck of cards (I wasn't the one who came up with these). I suppose I may have cheated with the setting this time around, but it's still technically a valley at the end of it, right? I also did a lot of research on tarot reading for this, but seeing as I've never had my fortune read with cards before, I'm not sure if I accurately portrayed a reading. I probably didn't.
Oh, and the fortune teller in the story? Yeah, it was my attempt at one-upping my last prompt by shamelessly plopping in a character from a different form of media entirely. Anyone who's played Fire Emblem Fates can probably recognize who it is, only this time she's going under the alias "Theatis", which is Greek for "bystander".
But I've spoken enough, for this story isn't quite finished yet! Here's an additional scene that occurs after the fashion show is done and over with.
"I'd say that fashion show was a success!" Akane launched her fist into the air.
"I'm so ultra-happy that everyone was able to come together!" Miyuki added.
"Everyone was all sparkling and shining!" Candy said. "Toyashima and the others played really well, too!"
"Hey!" The girls turned to see President Irie running towards them. Miyuki hastily put Candy in her bag. "Glad I could catch you girls. First off, that was a great fashion show. Everyone really gave it their all!"
"Thank you very much!" all the girls said.
"Secondly, mind if I talk to Reika for a moment? It's for student council stuff. I promise it'll be quick."
"No worries! Take your time." Miyuki and the others picked up their bags. "See you later, Reika!"
"Okay! See you later!" Reika waved good-bye as her friends left. "So, what is it that you wanted to talk to me about?
Irie's smile vanished. "Well, first off, that thing about the student council? Well, that was kind of a lie."
Reika looked at the brown-haired boy with a confused expression. President Irie was known to do many things, but lying was not one of them.
"Or I guess, maybe not? Kind of? I mean, it has to do with the election, so…"
"The election?"
"Yeah. You see, I'm not going to be running for president this election."
Reika covered her mouth with her hand and gasped. "Really? Why not?"
Irie rubbed his hand on the back of his head. "There's...been a lot going on lately. Mostly personal stuff. I'll still help the student council from time to time, but I won't be as available."
"My goodness, this is unexpected." Reika wasn't joking. She and the rest of the student council had been so sure that Irie would run for another term that neither of them had thought about running for the position. Reika in particular had made the upcoming elections the furthest thing from her mind due to her duties both as her class's representative and as a Pretty Cure.
"I plan to announce my withdrawal during our next session, but I wanted you to know first, seeing as you're the vice president and all, which brings me to my next question." Irie looked at Reika with a solemn expression on his face. "Reika, what do you think about running for Student Council President?