Thanks for the reviews my peeps! :) Okay, allow me to explain a few things for this chapter... I'll admit that this is a weird chapter but I wanted to make it a little intriguing and dark at the same time. There's going to be a new OC introduced but she's not going to be a very important figure. She's kind of stereotypical to a certain extent but I've always thought her type of character was so cool. She will appear a few times in this story and that's it. She may/may not be a Mary Sue: if so, oh well because she's not very significant. This chapter is also heavily OC-centric even more so than my other chapters but I promise it won't be without a good reason for having no canon characters in it. Chapter 22 will be much more interesting and exciting: I promise! So, enjoy and please review! P.S. Have a very merry Christmas! :D I might have another chapter up before 2011 ends.
Chapter 21 Madame Marishka's Divination
(February 4th, Detroit High School - 2:30pm)
"Check her out." Benji lightly elbowed Darien. "I'm talking about the new girl, Tris."
"What?" Darien rolled his eyes, disinterested in making eye contact with her at the moment. "She already gets enough of me in biology class. If I look at her and if she sees me looking back at her, she'll pummel me."
"Bro, don't tell me you're afraid of a girl," Paul said.
"Try sitting next to her in biology every day." Nervously, Darien glanced over at the girl in her orange hoody. She was walking down the sidewalk away from the high school. Thankfully, she seemed oblivious to the fact he was studying her. "She can be a scary lady. She cuts open bugs we dissect like nobody's business. She said she's so good at it because her dad's a woodcutter and she helps out with his sculptures sometimes."
"She doesn't talk to anybody," the fourth member of the group, Teddy, said. "She's not a Goth, nerd, prep, stoner or jock. That chick's a hardcore loner. She's mean as a snake, man."
"She's smart." Darien felt it appropriate to stick up for her in some way. "So what if she's a loner? Tristan's got a tough shell but that's cool with me. At least she's not hanging out with those plastic skanks Natalie and Beverly."
"Hey, did you guys hear about what happened to Beverly's sister big sister, Denise?" Benji changed the subject. He never could stay on topic but the ADD he had was an excuse for such an impediment. "Like two months ago, a few days before Christmas, she was hitting on this guy at the mall. He punched her square in her nose, breaking it!"
"No, you're lying," Teddy brushed him off. "How do you know?"
"Because Denise's friend, Harley, was with her when she got punched! She had to go to the hospital! Dude, I'd pay to watch the dude punch her in the face again!"
"You're messed up," Paul shook his head.
Despite what he said earlier about not wanting to observe Tristan, Darien found himself watching her walk along down the sidewalk. Thankfully, her back was turned to him. She was carrying her book bag and her hands were shoved into her front pockets.
Since he first met her a few weeks earlier when the second half of their junior year commenced, he found himself drawn to the withdrawn and overtly defensive girl. Darien pitied her to a certain extent and he found himself becoming a little partial to her. That pity came from the observation that Tristan had not made any friends although it was obvious it was a conscious choice she made. True, she could be crude and unfriendly but he could see she wasn't like this thoroughly.
Since they had been paired up as lab partners, Darien began to see her as a friend. He had often invited her to hang out with him and his friends but every single time, she had declined. He disliked seeing her being alone but he believed it wasn't wise to push his luck and ruin their fledgling respect for each other.
As a result of interacting with her five of the seven days of the week, he became more and more interested in her. There were times when he asked her about her life but she merely disregarded his questions, telling the boy she didn't think it was right to tell a stranger too much. She repelled him but engaged him: Darien wanted to know more about this lone wolf.
He also didn't even dream of telling his friends that he believed he started to see her as something a bit more of a friend. When he looked at her face, he loved the way her tan skin contrasted with her blue eyes. Her blonde hair only complimented the beauty he saw in her. Darien thought her to be attractive but he decided to hold off on any and all possible romantic gestures due to the fact he believed he had fairly accurate judgment regarding her reaction. For now, he figured he'd just be the "acquaintance" she referred to him as.
(apartment - 8:00pm)
'I accept'.
Cynthia held the note in her hand, reading the two word reply over and over again for the past ten minutes. She wracked her brain over who could've possibly replied to the letter that was meant to be directed to Blitzwing during the days when she hated and feared him. The handwriting wasn't familiar.
"Who's sick enough to reply and put it in my mailbox without showing their face?" she mumbled to herself.
Amanda tried to soothe her anxiety by saying that this was the craft of a jokester with no evil intentions. But she had disregarded her sister's theory, believing there was someone viler than a prankster who had done this. However, she had no clue who had done this and it was slowly beginning to torture her as long as she was starved of an answer.
Blitzwing had contacted her last night practically telling her the same thing he told her when he woke her up earlier that morning. She still refused to tell him about the note, fearing he'd go on some overprotective splurge which would threaten to uproot their secret. Again, he urged her to watch herself and to trust no strangers, especially if they were male.
'I accept'.
"Damn you. I want to know who replied to this so I know what I'm up against."
"Put that stupid thing down!" Amanda commanded, barging into Cyndi's room.
Cyndi looked over her shoulder. Carelessly, she tossed the piece of paper off to the side, deciding to not exacerbate the situation.
"Fine, it's on the floor," she said glumly.
"We're going to do something different tonight," Mandy announced, sitting next to her. "I think you'll like it."
"I'm not even going to bother with guessing, just tell me what it is. I'll sigh and probably complain but still do it nonetheless."
"I found an ad in the newspaper when I was working today."
"You don't ever read the newspaper."
"It was a slow day at work and I was bored out of my mind. So, I found an ad for a fortune teller."
Cynthia scoffed, seeing exactly where this was going.
"Are you serious?" she raised an eyebrow. "You intend on dragging me to some palm reader? Do you honestly believe that stuff? It's a scam!"
"But it's fun and different!" Mandy smiled. "I want my fortune told by a fortune teller! I want to see a crystal ball, beaded doorways, scented candles and all those works! Come on, don't be a party pooper!"
"It's hard to not be a party pooper when someone is probably poised to kill you in your sleep."
"You'll be fine, you have a giant metal man on your side. No one else has that privilege. I called the fortune teller today on my break and I set up an appointment with her. We have to be there in a half an hour."
"How much money are we going to be conned out of?"
"It's thirty dollars for one reading per person. Cough it up and let's roll!"
(a half an hour later)
"Hello?"
Tristan Cooley opened up the front door upon hearing someone knock on it. She immediately came into contact with two young women who were standing side by side. One appeared to be in her early twenties and the other appeared to be about eighteen or nineteen.
"Can I help you two ladies?" she asked, a little curious.
"You don't sound like Madame Marishka," the young blonde said. "I talked with her on the phone earlier today. Do I even have the right house or did my sister and I screw up royally with the directions?"
Tristan blinked a few times, realizing they were customers of her mother's. She felt so stupid for a moment.
"Oh, forgive me," she said. "I should've realized this earlier. My mother never told me she had two ladies coming tonight to have their fortunes told." The girl moved out of the way and extended her arm out, motioning for them to enter her house. "Please, come in."
Cynthia and Amanda entered the Cooley residence, not realizing the fortune teller's establishment of business was her house. Tristan closed the door behind them, closing the gateway between the warm interior and the February cold. The Preston sisters unzipped their jackets. Cynthia removed her scarf and Mandy stuffed her gloves into her pocket.
"There's a coat hanger here that you may place your jackets on," Tristan said, gesturing to the rack bolted to the wall. "I'll go tell my mom you've arrived."
The teen walked down the hall and made a right, entering a room. Cyndi placed her jacket on one of the hangers situated on the rack. Amanda was busy looking around the place, on the lookout for Gypsy paraphernalia.
"I was expecting some shady shop tucked in a street corner," Cynthia whispered to Amanda. "I didn't expect the business to be based in a suburb, let alone someone's house."
"I don't smell jasmine incense," Mandy said in a disappointed voice. "I think you're right: I've been conned!"
"Shut up! Don't be rude like that! Let's make the most of it now. You got us into this mess. Our sixty dollars will be wasted because of your stupidity. Learn that lesson in investment well."
They saw Tristan poke her out into the hall a few seconds later. There was a small, polite smile on her tan face.
"She'll see you now," she announced. "I take it that one of you is Amanda Preston?"
"Yup, that's me," Amanda raised her hand. "I called Madame Marishka to arrange the reading. I brought my sister with me."
"Very well. Enjoy and good luck with your fortunes."
The rest of Tristan's body emerged from the doorway and she walked further up the hall where there was a staircase. She scaled the staircase with the intentions to retire to her room for the rest of the evening.
"I guess this is our cue," Mandy shrugged. "Come on, let's see what this is all about."
Cynthia followed Mandy's lead as the younger sibling walked down to where Tristan was standing earlier. She had to admit that although she didn't believe in palm readings, tarot cards and the like, going to have her fortune divined was a different thing to do rather than studying or watching TV. She also figured she and Amanda could have a laugh about the whole experience later on in life regarding which prophecies didn't come about. Maybe she could even tell Blitzwing about it later too just to see what his reactions (or better yet reactions) would be.
There were no beads that hung from the doorway that led into the living room. When they looked into the room where Tristan said her mother was, they saw nothing extraordinary like shrunken heads or potion bottles that contained glowing elixirs. There was a television. Across the room, there was a dresser whose surface was occupied with picture frames. On the wall above the dresser, there was a large wooden crucifix with a wreath of dried up roses resting upon Christ's head.
In the middle of the room, there was a round coffee table with a purple, velvety cloth covering the top. Sitting at the table in a red armchair, there sat a woman who appeared to be in her mid-forties. Across the table was a bench that looked like it could hold the weight of two occupants.
"Good evening, ladies," the woman greeted in her thick Romanian accent. "It's a pleasure to have you here in my humble abode."
"Madame Marishka," Amanda concluded. "It's a pleasure for you to read us our fortunes tonight."
"Ah, you must be the other soul your sister mentioned on the phone earlier."
"Yes," Cynthia spoke up, "I'm Cyndi. It's nice to meet you as well."
"Don't be strangers, please sit."
The two walked over to the table and took their seats on the bench. As they got closer, they got a good look at the fortune teller.
She was wearing a blue and red babushka that covered her thick dark brown curly hair. Her skin was fair in comparison to her daughter's sun kissed hue. Her eyes were a ruddy brown with specks of green in them. On her left ring finger she wore a plain golden wedding band. Marishka's right wrist bore a beaded leather bracelet. Around her neck, she wore a dull silver cross and there was another necklace that bore an amulet which had a tiny engraving of Saint Andrew. Because the siblings couldn't see her outfit fully, they only got to see a bit of her clothing in particularly her shirt which was a white blouse.
"I have a method to my readings, ladies," Marishka said as the girls seated themselves. "Some people like to have their fortunes divined with tarot cards and palm readings which I can do if you prefer. However, I am also gifted with foresight. It was a talent I had always possessed since I was little girl. I can see your future just by touching your hand and feeling your aura."
Cynthia wanted to laugh but she fought it back. She couldn't believe she was wasting thirty dollars for this nonsense. Yet she was also curious as to see what this foreigner would cook up for her fortune.
"The glimpses I get of the future are brief and not always can be trusted," she further explained. "The future is constantly in motion and it can be altered once you have been given a taste of it through my readings. The choice is yours."
"I don't like tarot cards," Mandy said. "If I end up getting the Death card, I might as well shoot myself." She looked to Cyndi. "Do you just want her to use her abilities to see the future and read our auras?"
"Yeah, that's fine, whatever works with me," Cyndi grinned.
"Smashing," Marishka said happily. "Who wants to go first?"
"Is that alright if I go first?" Mandy asked. "I've been dying to have mine done since this afternoon!"
"Your wish is granted, Amanda."
Cyndi placed her hand over her mouth, stifling a spray of laughter. She glanced over at Amanda playfully.
Mandy placed her hand on the table, allowing Marishka to commence the readings. The seer gently grasped the blonde's hand, holding it in hers. She closed her eyes to heighten her hidden sense.
The silence in the room was calm and not terribly awkward or stifling. Instead, there was an air of excitement and wonder in it. As skeptical as she was, even Cynthia was curious as to see what would be revealed in both her reading and her sister's.
About two minutes of quiet had persisted until Marishka laughed in her throat. Her eyes still remained closed. Cyndi and Mandy gave their undivided attention to her.
"I see a baby," she announced. "Young lady, you're going to become a mother sometime in the future."
"WHAT IN THE NAME OF HOLY GOD DID YOU SAY?" Amanda screamed.
Neither Marishka or Cynthia was expecting this explosive exclamation. They both looked at her with astonished expressions.
The youngest female present had her jaw dropped almost to the floor. Her face almost looked white washed with shock and terror. She didn't draw her hand back from Marishka since she was so constricted by the prediction.
"Wait, I'm gonna get pregnant?" she raved. "When?"
"I'm sorry but I cannot pinpoint when exactly…" Marishka explained.
"Let me rephrase that: who the Hell knocked me up?" She gasped out loud. "Wait a minute! I bet I was raped! I don't have a boyfriend! Tell me who raped me so I can kill him when he sets out to steal my purity!"
"I don't sense anything evil like that which had led up to that. Please, calm yourself."
"What color eyes does the baby have? If you can tell me that, I have a pretty damn good idea of who the bastard is!"
"Oh, grow up," Cynthia hissed. "He won't rape you!"
"How in the Hell else am I gonna get pregnant, huh Cyndi? Your baby sister is gonna get raped and this is what you say to me?"
"Did it occur to you that maybe you'll find a man who you'll finally accept and then you get married and have kids with him later? For God's sake, she even said the future is unstable and changing! Take a chill pill!"
"I'm watching him, Cyndi. I'm telling you, he's got that crazy look in his eyes…"
"Whatever." Cyndi felt so embarrassed. She turned to Marishka. "Please forgive my sister. She's a bit of a drama queen."
"No, it's fine," the woman answered. "As long as she doesn't call me a liar, it's alright. I don't ever lie with what I see. It's my policy."
"What's my baby's gender?" Amanda was now morbidly curious. "Do you see the daddy anywhere? What's their hair and eye color?"
"I'm sorry but all I see is you smiling and you holding a baby in your arms. That's all I see, Miss. Do you want to continue?"
"Can I take a break for a few minutes? Cyndi, you go." Amanda drew her hand back, taking a deep breath. She shook her head, disbelieving that she was destined to become a mother. "I'm too young… I want to live free and die free!"
Cynthia extended her hand out. She couldn't believe she actually swallowed nervously due to Marishka's prediction of Amanda's future. More than anything else, she feared pessimistic and grim divinations for herself.
The diviner held her hand just as she had done to Amanda. She gasped.
"Well, I don't need to wait to see what surrounds you because I warmed up with your sister," she said. "As soon as I touched you, I got results."
"What do you see?" Cyndi slightly bit her lower lip. "Is it good? Is it bad?"
"I sense dishonesty. I sense strife. I see tears. I'm not really seeing anything like I've seen with Amanda but I can feel so many emotions. I also sense a great deal of hopelessness and uncertainty." She gripped her hand tighter. "I see a monster's eyes. They burn like the very flames of Hell itself." With a hand, she crossed herself and muttered a brief prayer in her native tongue. "I cannot hide this from you. You will face trials and tribulations. I sense that evil is extending its grip out to you."
"Do you see someone there besides you sensing all these feelings and raw emotions?"
She shook her head. Marishka seemed reluctant to tell Cynthia what more she could feel.
"I see no one," she replied. "I see nothing but darkness."
"Did I die?" Cyndi asked.
"No. But I feel that if you don't be careful, you will." She fell silent for a few moments. "I hear something… I hear a man calling your name. But his voice sounds so odd. It doesn't seem natural. And he doesn't sound very happy at all."
"Is this all?"
"Yes. I just warn you that you must be very aware of your life around you, young lady. If you don't be careful, I believe you might possibly lose your life. I don't know what exactly is going on but that's all I can say." She loosened her hold on Cynthia. "May God protect you."
(forty five minutes later)
The sisters were driving home now, departing from Marishka's home. Since they walked out the front door, neither of them said anything to each other. Their respective minds were focused on their particular fortunes. Despite the fact neither of them really believed in foresight or other magical practices, they sure seemed consumed by what happened earlier on. The silence was stifling and uncomfortable but both of them were obsessed with deciphering their unsettled but potential futures.
Cynthia was driving the car while Amanda was staring hollowly out her window. The blonde glanced over at her sister. She readied her lips, deciding the quiet had a sufficient and long-lived dynasty.
"Well, that just made my freaking life," Amanda remarked dourly. "I'm gonna be a mom. You know, I wasn't planning on having that happen. I like my freedom, thank you very much. Even after she read me again after you went, she still couldn't find out who my baby's daddy was. I think your boyfriend got turned into a man, he raped me and I got pregnant… Sorry."
"Blitzwing is not a rapist!" Cynthia said in a disgusted tone. "Yeah, he can be a pervert sometimes but he's decent enough to not rape someone even for a 'Con. And what are you whining about? My prediction was all about doom and gloom. I'm probably going to be dead before the year ends. I'd rather be pregnant than dead, that's all I can say."
"Yeah, that'd be nice if we could switch fortunes. I'm never going back to that lady again."
"Well, look… Didn't she say the future is always changing? Her predictions may merely be warnings if we don't be careful. You need to be abstinent. I need to have my wits about me. I don't believe in all that stuff but I'll admit she had me frightened a few times."
"I'm just going to tell myself it's not real. But I will start carrying a taser gun in my purse or a can of mace."
"I think I know what she meant with 'monster eyes': Blitzwing. Eyes that burn like Hell fire? Even I admit that his eyes are scary. I am just so relieved she didn't see him. She said she heard a man call for me and he didn't sound too enthused. She also said it wasn't natural which also makes me think it's a Transformer. But who it exactly is, I can only take a wild guess."
"Still, it's better than being pregnant…"
"Enough, okay? You insisted upon getting your fortune told and this is what you get. Personally, I'd rather not have mine told. I wasted thirty dollars for a woman to warn me I'm going to be miserable."
"Maybe it's a sign for you to break up with him."
Although she was driving and supposed to be focusing on the road, Cynthia still looked her sister in the eye and gave her a nasty stare. Amanda stared right back with a puzzled expression.
"Don't give me that look," Mandy said.
"Then don't tell me to break up with him," Cyndi said. "I love him."
"God, you're so weird! You need to get laid or something…"
"Sorry, I can't. Sex isn't everything. I can't believe you're even saying this to me considering the fact you're a virgin. I can't believe you went apeshit over a prophecy that's flimsy at best. That's immature and pathetic."
"When I can't find out who the baby daddy is, you can bet I will freak out and be as livid as I want!" She paused, remembering something from the fortune teller's house. "Did you see the big old crucifix hanging up on her wall with the rose wreath hanging around Jesus' head?"
"Yeah, it was creepy. Now let's just shut up and go home. I plan on sleeping long and hard tonight. Don't be surprised if I end up waking up because of a nightmare."
"If I hear a baby crying in my dreams, I'm done."
(Cooley residence)
Tristan could feel there was something wrong. She didn't know what it was but she knew something was amiss. From the moment she heard Amanda scream in horror at her fortune, her interest was piqued. Although she could easily sneak up and eavesdrop on the session, she preferred not to since she believed the blonde was too much of a drama queen.
The girl walked down the stairwell immediately after she heard the two customers leave. In fact, she didn't walk. Rather, she slid down the banister and landed on her feet.
"Marishka." She didn't call her 'Mom' like she did earlier. "Are you in the living room?"
"Yes, dear, I am," the Romanian woman replied. She sounded a little off. "I'm sitting in my chair."
"Alright, I'm coming in."
She entered the den, catching sight of Marishka instantly. The woman had her elbows digging into the coffee table. Her chin rested in the palm of her hand in a meditative pose. Tristan sat across from her, occupying the seat the sisters were in only minutes earlier.
"You look disturbed," Tristan noted. "I heard the screaming from upstairs. Was it a really bad reading?"
"The younger sister, Amanda, had a fairly happy reading," the diviner said. "I told her she was going to be a mother. She was less than pleased to hear this."
"What about the other one? What was her name?"
"Her name was Cynthia. Now, when I read her…" She paused. "I had nothing good to report to her. Listen to me well, child. When I read her, I saw evil eyes that burned like Hell itself. I saw tears and felt much strife. I don't think she will have a smooth life ahead of her if she does not be careful."
"'Evil eyes'? Like what?"
"They were colored red. There was nothing Human about them. A man was also calling out to her. He spoke English but his voice didn't sound Human either."
Tristan's gaze hardened.
"What do you propose is going on?" she asked Marishka. "I want your honest opinion."
"You know what I think, my dear," the older woman said. "Those mechanical demons from the stars are closing in on her. I don't know if she's aware of this or not."
"Did you see anything else? Are there any clues that stood out? Can you describe the man's voice?"
"All I recall was that he sounded unnatural, mechanical, if you will. But there was so much anger in his voice, I can't really describe it."
Tristan bit her lower lip. She ran her hand through her hair, pondering over what to make of the readings.
"What do you think I should do?" she resumed after thinking for a minute. "I'm not a bodyguard. That's not what I do."
"I don't advise immediate action, child," Marishka said, leaning back into the armchair. "The universe is always in motion and is in constant manipulation by my Lord. Anything is set to change. Perhaps those two girls will heed my warnings and do what they must to secure happier futures for themselves."
"I have a question though… What would Decepticons want with the brown haired girl?"
"I don't know. I didn't see that deeply."
"I will be more wary. I will take your divinations to heart and watch for anything to unfold."
Marishka grasped Tristan's hand. The girl's hand was cold.
"I've become fond of you since you came into my life four years ago, child," she said solemnly. "I still thank God everyday for your presence. If it wasn't for you, I'd be dead outside out that funeral home and then I'd be there in the same parlor with my husband."
Tristan looked down. Her blue eyes glazed over as she remembered the rainy November evening when she was forced to kill the bandits who had been poised to murder the freshly widowed woman. One blow was all it took to mangle and irreparably break their weak bodies. The cold rain had washed away the blood that would've pooled in the street and had eventually become runoff that would be swallowed up by the sewers. The unfortunate woman was shocked by just who or what her rescuer had been but she was eternally grateful for her intervention.
Marishka had offered to shelter her and give her a place to rest and adapt to a new life. At first, Tristan declined her kind request telling her that she the work she did was a lonely, heavy and potentially deadly burden. However, the Romanian's persistence and insistence at last convinced her. Besides, she also saw that a sanctuary would also help her adjust to her current situation and better understand the world around her. So, she had accepted the widow's offer.
Marishka passed her off as her adopted daughter and the two females resolved to move to Detroit at Tristan's insistence. For four years, they had lived quietly in the suburbs surrounding the city. Since the Autobots and Decepticons had emerged before the public eye some time after their settling in their new home, things had become interesting again for the duo.
"I am grateful for your kindness as you are thankful of my intervention, Marishka," the girl said. "Without your generosity, I'd be skulking in deserted factories and living in a cave."
"I've become fond of you," Marishka admitted. "I truly do see you as the child I've never had. I beg you to be smart and wise in your planning. Do not get caught up in your obsession to prove yourself." She sighed. "I worry for you."