Disclaimer: Fairly standard. I'm borrowing Gravitation characters from Maki Murakami for fanfics and fun. Gravitation is shonen-ai and for that reason, (and a bit of swearing) it gets a PG-13 rating. I appreciate all criticism, so please read, enjoy, and review. To those that review: THANK YOU! Your reviews ensure more chapters. :-D

Bad Luck for Bad Luck?

Part 3: Tarot

Eiri had not been able to convince Shuichi that all divination is fraudulet and that all people who purported to be able to divine the future were shysters and hucksters. He had succeeded in making Shuichi mad. He was feeling pretty perturbed, himself. It had taken almost half an hour to get to the place. Shu's concept of time could be so . . . loose.

"There it is!" Shuichi yelled, pointing to the right.

"Okay. See any parking places?" This area was kind of run-down. He didn't really want to leave the Mercedes alone, here. Worse, he really didn't want to let Shuichi out of his sight in this neighborhood.

"N— wait, there's one! That white car's moving." Eiri frowned. Calling that rolling rust pile 'white' was a stretch, but Eiri flipped the turn signal on and waited for the other vehicle to move. He parallel parked with ease in front of a seedy-looking party store.

"Shu-chan," Eiri coaxed, "this is a really bad idea. Let's not do this." Shuichi was unmoved by his uncommon use of the nick name. The kid was still mad and frowning.

"Then just let me out and you can go home!" Shuichi yelled. He reached for the door handle and Eiri flipped the locks from the master controls. It made Shu hesitate.

"Idiot! Just look around at the neighborhood!"

Shu looked. "I see it," he said unhappily. He pulled the lock up, attempting to get out again.

Eiri sighed. They were already here. He climbed out, frowning. I just hope my car will be safe, Eiri thought. This better not take longer than half an hour! Eiri pressed the door lock on the key fob. With one last look of misgiving, he caught up with Shuichi and they walked down the sidewalk.

The window front wasn't very inspiring. There was a large blue and white crystal ball painted on the glass and above it read, 'Tarot Readings, Divination'. The paint was flaking off in old crumbles. A hanging board of warped wood named the place, 'Mysticism and Magic'. The common plastic sign on the inside of the glass door read, 'OPEN' and below, in smaller letters; 'please come in'. Shuichi eagerly pulled on the door.

"Push," Eiri told him.

"Oh." Shuichi grinned at him apologetically and pushed the door, setting off chimes.

The incense in the little store was thicker than was usual for a temple! Shuichi coughed on it for a moment while Eiri looked around. Soft music played. It sounded like raindrops and harp. There was one section of a wall devoted to tarot cards and various kinds of divination toys— rune marked pebbles, bone chips, Ouija boards, you name it. Eiri had no idea that so many different types of tarot cards even existed! Next to those were candles of every kind; from tea lights, to tapers, to fancy multi-colored carved pillar-style monstrosities. A sign proclaimed that all of them were hand dipped and hand-crafted. The opposite wall had books and Eiri browsed the titles. 'Wiccan Wonders', 'Spells for Success', 'How to Contact the Spirits', etc. Eiri snorted. How hokey.

Shuichi was looking in a case at the back that displayed jewelry with crystals and semi-precious gems. Eiri walked toward Shu, noting the signs that admonished, 'shop lifting is bad karma.' What a bunch of useless trinkets and junk, he thought, looking at the shelves. Whoever thought that putting a magnet on an injury would heal it? The source of the incense was a set of no less than three sticks burning in front of a display with a wide variety of choices. Eiri went to Shu and leaned over him, to see what held his attention.

"Isn't that pretty?" He pointed to a silver wrist cuff with a blue stone set in the middle. Looking closely, he saw that each piece of jewelry had a little tags with printed information attached to them. He read the one Shu had pointed out: 'Alexandrite: Stimulates happiness and pleasant surprises, good fortune and success in speculative matters. Health Aids: Emotional balance.' 1

Eiri couldn't contain himself anymore. "Of all the superstitious bullshit!" He burst out. "Shuichi, this— !"

An older lady poked her head out of a doorway just beyond the counter and Eiri cut his words short. The woman had heard, because she shot Eiri a scathing glance. Shuichi used one finger to poke Eiri in the stomach with a frown of warning. "This way, dear," the lady said. She ushered a young girl back into the front of the shop from the doorway, guiding her past the counter. "Have a nice day, now."

The girl glanced at Eiri and Shu, turned and gushed, "Oh, thank you, grandmother," then left the store, beaming. 2 The chimes rang again and the door fell shut.

The old woman turned her smile on Shuichi. "Sorry to keep you waiting, gentlemen." She wasn't much to look at, Eiri thought. She was past middle-age but not yet elderly. She was short and overweight, without being really fat; just pudgy. She wore a white cotton blouse embroidered with blue symbols and a crinkly, ankle-length skirt of mottled blue colors. Sandals peeked out from beneath her hem. She wore some golden-brown beads at her neck and wrist. "Do you see something you like?" She asked Shuichi. She had a very plain face, Eiri decided; dark eyes and average features surrounded by black hair fading to grey and straying from its bun. She looked . . . peaceful.

"Uh, I'm Shindou Shuichi. I called— "

"Oh, yes. You're my two o'clock, aren't you?" She smiled warmly. "And this is your friend. Won't you come in?" She pointed to the back room she had come from. Eiri thought it odd that she didn't introduce herself, or ask for his name.

Shuichi turned his head, smiling at him as if to say, 'See! She's not so bad.' Eiri wanted to groan. He followed Shu to their appointed place. The back of the shop was a tiny room with three other doors. Directly to the right was one marked 'Storage' and just beyond that was 'Toilet', the third was straight ahead and its sign read 'Exit'. To the left, there was a little table with a vibrant blue table cloth and a worn-looking deck of cards. There were only two chairs. Next to the table was a small refrigerator and cupboard. Above that, was a counter with a hot plate and a teapot. Apparently, it doubled as the employee break room— if this dump had any other employees besides the old woman.

Shuichi sat and Eiri stood behind him like a bodyguard. He lit a cigarette and crossed his arms over his chest.

"Would either of you boys like some tea?" The woman offered.

"No, thank you," Shu said. Eiri let his look speak for him.

The lady nodded and took her seat opposite her gull. She smiled again. "I guess I'll just get straight to it, then," she said with at glance in Eiri's direction. Shu looked up at Eiri with another warning look. Eiri wasn't any good at portraying innocence, so he didn't try. He rolled his eyes at Shuichi. The lady shuffled the cards with practiced hands. She stopped and held them out to Shu. "Please choose the card that represents you, and place it in the center of the table," she instructed. The kid pulled a card that had the kanji for 'Lovers' and a picture of a naked man and woman entwined. Eiri would have guessed Shuichi was more the 'Fool'.

The woman pulled the deck back in front of her and laid the 'Sun' cross-wise over the lovers. It was all golden colored and showed a golden-haired boy running under the gleaming, smiling sun. One brow raised and she swept her eyes over both of them, meaningfully. "You're a fortunate young man, Shindou-san, to have such a strong relationship." Shuichi gave her a small, nervous laugh. She just smiled, placidly. "Is there a question about your future that you seek an answer to?" She asked, laying out another card.

"No. Not really . . . I just . . ." Shuichi fidgeted, twisting in the chair.

"That's fine," she reassured. "This card is beneath you— it represents the tools you use to confront adversity." Below the crossed cards, here was the 'Fool', with a picture of a jester in motley. She made a 'tsk' sound. "Plowing through obstacles without consideration for the consequences can be dangerous," she chided gently. "This is above you," she continued, setting a card above the lovers and the sun. "Your goals, if you like." She laid out a card with a blue and green globe of the Earth. It had the kanji for 'world'. "Lofty goals," she commented. "You must be a very important person, Shindou-san. There are a lot of major arcana already in this reading. I'm sorry to say, I've never heard your name before today, though." Her brow wrinkled a little, as if she thought she should know him. What an act, Eiri thought, depreciatingly.

"I'm a singer," Shuichi volunteered. "You, uh, probably don't listen to much pop music," he said. That was extremely likely, considering the birdsong and harp music that played now.

"Ah." Her face cleared. "You're right; I don't." She laid down a card picturing the back of someone bound and naked, surrounded by swords. It had the number eight at the top, but it was upside-down. "This is your past. Hm. This card is opposition, violence, treachery, crisis, and blindness of circumstance or of self. A turbulent past for such a young man."

"Uh, yeah. I guess so," he replied. Eiri couldn't see Shu's expression, but he laid one hand on the singer's slumping shoulders. There was no need for him to get upset over some old lady's stupid card game.

She laid another card, opposite the swords on the other side of the lovers and the sun, forming a rough 'plus-shaped' pattern. "This is yet to come." She tapped the card with a plain, pudgy finger. It showed a skeleton holding a black flag that read, 'Death'. Shuichi squeaked and grabbed Eiri's hand when the card was placed. The lady looked at Shu with a faint smile. "Don't be alarmed. It doesn't necessarily mean death. . . It is a card representing change. It signifies an end, but often a rebirth, too, just as with life."

She turned back to the deck in her hands, flipping one over to the right of the sword card. "Here is . . . the Emperor?" She looked up at Eiri. "So you are the decision-maker and his anchor." He took his hand back from Shu, self-consciously. The old woman nodded to herself. "That makes sense, too. Creative people always need someone to counter their own . . . exuberance." She grinned at Shuichi, showing aged teeth. Her eyes crinkled up in wrinkles.

'The Chariot' was next. The card depicted a Roman-looking man in profile, aboard a cart pulled by one black and one white horse. The chariot looked like it was being driven toward the Emperor. "You must do a lot of traveling, Shindou-san." He nodded. She tapped the card, "this also tells me that you work hard to reach your goals." Whatever she saw in Shu's face confirmed her guess. Eiri folded his arms across his chest again and leaned against the wall beside Shu. I should have stood here all along, Eiri thought. From here, he could see Shuichi's face, the old woman's cards and her hands— just in case she had switches or tricks under the tablecloth.

A blue and silver 'Star' was laid, upside-down above the chariot. It pictured a naked woman drinking water from a pool with her hands. "This represents your hopes and fears. You are inspirational to others but unsure of your life's purpose." She smiled again. "That's very common for someone so young and energetic." Eiri snorted quietly. She had no idea. Shu glanced over at him. His eyes were shining happily now.

"One more card," the old woman said, encouragingly. She set it on the tablecloth above the star. The picture showed catastrophe. There was a tower of black bricks and it was on fire. Clouds obscured the sky. One person was burning as he fell through the sky and another person was impaled on a pike at the ground. "Oh, my. This is the outcome card, or the future." Shuichi's face clouded. Oh shit, Eiri thought. He glared at the woman. "I don't choose the cards," she said defensively, catching his look. "I only turn them over and tell you what they mean!" Her lips thinned and she set the rest of the deck in front of her.

She turned a very sympathetic look on Shuichi. "Shindou-san, I'm sorry, to give you such unfortunate news, but it looks as if hard times are ahead. This card," she pointed the tower, "represents calamity. It portends of disaster from an outside source; something outside your control," she added, flicking a glance toward Eiri. "There will be bad luck all around you for a while, but there is often a good outcome. Like the death card," she gestured to it, explaining, "these tell of great change in your future." She paused. Narrowing her eyes in speculation, she pinned Eiri with her dark gaze and said, "It will be change in your future, also."

She sighed, offering him an explanation. "The two of you came together. You are both named in this reading." She tapped the lovers' card. "You are both important to each other, as well as important in a greater sense, else there would not be so many major arcana." She took the stack of unused cards and spread them into a fan, face up. "You see, Shindou-san? There are only twenty one major arcana, but a total of ninety-six cards in the deck! The major arcana shown here," she swept one hand over the pattern she'd made for Shu, "are significant." She sat back in her chair, shaking her head and looking worried. "I hate to give bad news, gentlemen."

It sounded like a dismissal. Eiri stood away from the wall. He wanted to get out of here before the lady started scaring Shu with more bad omens or trying to sell him junk like magic powder against bad dreams. "Don't worry about it, old woman," he told her. "Shuichi?"

"Yeah." He stood up, looking like he'd just seen someone kick a puppy.

The old woman stood, too. "If there's anything else I can do for you, let me know. You seem like a nice young man, much like your sister." She smiled, gesturing to the doorway. "Your reading is all paid for. Happy New Year."

"Um. Thanks," he said. He went through the doorway and Eiri caught the old woman murmuring a prayer against evil. How odd, he thought. Shuichi had stopped to look at some metal-and-glass pyramid trinket on a shelf. A cardboard note next to it advertised, 'brings good luck into the home!' Eiri put one hand on Shuichi's back to steer him out of the shop.

"Good day," the old woman called.

Shuichi tried to turn, but Eiri put pressure on him to keep moving. The kid settled for waving and Eiri said, "Good bye." It remained to be seen whether the rest of day would actually be a good one. He was relieved to see that his Mercedes was unmolested. Now they could go home and Eiri would deal with any mental 'fallout' from Shu. At least he didn't cry over it, Eiri consoled himself.

1 From "Gems of Wisdom" by Charlene Witaker.

2 This is just a polite way of addressing an elder— not necessarily a family member. The Japanese would probably use, "Ojii-san" to be respectful. Eiri would likely use the less-than-respectful term, "Ba-baa" meaning old woman, or even hag. We don't really have the same distinction in English.

Author's Note: About the tarot-- The layout I used here is a basic "Celtic Cross" pattern. There are a bunch of different ways to do a layout, but I prefer this one for a general reading. If you disagree with the details, that's up to you. This is how I learned and how I do it. Everyone's interpretation of cards is different, too. Also, I happened to be using the Rider-Waite deck for reference, but the old woman's cards are conceptions of the cards' meanings, more than direct examples from a particular kind of deck. Artistic license on my part. :-D

Okay, I admit it— my flaky side shows through in this chapter. blush