Remus wasn't in any way desperate. He was only visiting the fortune teller, the seer, out of curiosity and scorn. Fortune tellers were just the kind of people who dressed up in strange clothing, stared into a cheap crystal ball, and demanded a high sum for predicting something generic.

Seerum, however, was different. When Remus entered the shop, he was expecting a gaudy, tasteless display of drapes and crystal balls, and a person wearing a robe to greet him with a mysterious, slow voice.

Instead, it was the opposite. The place was quite simple; it only had a few gold-colored hangings with a sun symbol etched on it with black ink, and there was only a table with two chairs. Nothing garish, nothing hideous, and Remus was suddenly suspicious. He hadn't wandered into the wrong shop, hadn't he?

A door opened in the back and out stumbled a man, and Remus was baffled by his appearance, his utterly casual, careless clothing, his tousled hair, and he was indignant. Turning around, he shouted into the back room, "Oi, what was that for, tosser?"

"You have a customer, twat," came another male voice, amused. "Stop horsing around and do your job."

The man immaturely stuck his tongue out at whoever was teasing him and then turned around, his eyes falling on Remus, and Remus instantly recognized the interest flaring in his eyes. Slowly, the man's eyes — a startling grey — dragged down his body languidly, taking in every centimeter of him, and Remus felt a hot blush rise to his cheeks. Strangely, he didn't mind this handsome stranger — his seer, it appeared — ogling him.

It was okay, Remus was ogling him too, just more...subtly.

"Hi," he said, his mouth dry, "I'm here for a reading."

"Name?"

"Remus Lupin."

"Ah, Mr. Lupin, I've been expecting you." The handsome stranger motioned to the table. "Have a seat." This was accompanied by a flirtatious smirk, and heat crawled up Remus's neck.

"Now," said the stranger, "there is only one thing I require from you, besides payment. It may seem unorthodox but trust me, if you want an accurate reading, this will be the best way."

Remus narrowed his eyes. "What is it?"

"I need a drop of your blood."

Remus wasn't necessarily afraid of knives, but the sight of them unnerved him. The seer assured him it was a clean knife and pricked his finger. Blood pearled around the nick. The seer met Remus's eyes and touched the blood, his skin warm.

At once, three visions flashed through his mind.

The first one was of him in a bed, wrapped around another body, but he couldn't identify the person.

The second was of him getting married and standing at the altar, facing his spouse-to-be, yet they were still faceless.

And the final one was of him sitting at a table, drinking coffee, his wedding ring gleaming on his finger. Across from him sat his spouse, grey eyes sparkling lovingly and his black hair mussed — wait, he looked familiar — it was the seer.

Remus slowly opened his eyes and caught the seer staring at him; undoubtedly he had seen the same visions, and his grey eyes were wide.

Remus jerked his hand away and stood up, flushed. "I'd — I'd better get going."

"Wait!" the seer cried, just as he was turning to leave. "You haven't paid me yet."

Right. Remus reached for his pocket to take out his wallet, but the seer's quiet words stopped him. "No, I don't want that kind of payment." His hopeful smile seemed to illuminate the room. "If it isn't too much trouble, would you mind...having dinner with me tonight?"

Remus was stunned for only a few seconds, but the answer sprung to mind right away. There was no way he could deny him that, especially if the seer had phrased it as payment. "I wouldn't mind, no," he murmured, smiling shyly.

659 words

Fantasy February Day 9 - All it takes is a drop of your blood and s/he can read your future.