Note: This is a Fortune teller!AU.
Bad Fortunes
"Oooh, look, Lav, there's a fortune teller!" Parvati said excitedly, pulling her girlfriend over to the queue outside of the purple tent.
"Yes, I've always wanted to do one of those!" Lavender squealed. A blond boy who was passing by overheard her and sneered.
"Excited about a fortune teller, are you? What a load of rubbish."
"Bite me," Lavender hissed. Parvati had to hold onto her arm to keep her from launching herself at him.
"Ignore him, Lav." She glanced at her watch, then at the line of five or so people in front of them. "Think we'll have time for a few rides after this?"
"I don't know, I just want to hear my fortune," Lavender said, bouncing on the soles of her feet.
"Yeah, me too," Parvati decided.
"What are you going to ask this Madame Trelawney, anyway?" Lavender wondered as they waited their turn. "I think I'll ask her how I'll die."
Parvati thought about it for a moment. Finally, she replied, "I think I'd like to know what I do when I grow up." In her head, though, she was considering the possibility of asking how long her relationship with Lavender would last.
They chatted about a few other ideas as the line dwindled. Finally, it was their turn, and Lavender pushed aside the opening to the tent with great enthusiasm.
"Greetings, my dears," Madame Trelawney said, peering at them through glasses that magnified her eyes. Her hands hovered over a crystal ball, inside which fuchsia mist seemed to swirl. Parvati eyed it with great interest. Inside that glass orb held the answers to all of her deepest questions...
"Good afternoon," Lavender said. "How does this work? Can we ask you whatever we want?"
"You may, but I might not always have an answer," the fortune teller replied.
Parvati looked at Lavender and shrugged. "Works for me."
"How will I die, then?" Lavender asked. Parvati shook her head. Why her girlfriend wanted to know something so morbid, she had no idea.
Madame Trelawney closed her eyes and waved her hands above the crystal ball. Suddenly, her eyes snapped open again. "I cannot say."
"Oh," Lavender said, clearly disappointed. "Well, do you know if my bunny will live a long time? His name is Binky."
"Hmmm," Madame Trelawney said, peering into the depths of the orb before her, "I think...yes, yes, it seems as though your Binky is destined for a long and happy life, my dear."
Parvati stepped forward as Lavender smiled happily. "I'd like to know what I'll do when I grow up, please."
The woman nodded, but her face soon fell. "I am sorry, my dear, my crystal ball isn't telling me anything concrete in that regard."
"Oh." She thought for a moment. "Then I guess I'd like to know...am I doing the right thing? Am I on the right path?" she asked in a hushed voice.
"No," the fortune teller said, with a sharpness in her voice that surprised Parvati.
"I—I'm not?"
"No," Madame Trelawney repeated, and Parvati shrank back. Lavender squeezed her hand, and she took some comfort from the gesture.
"I don't understand," she said, her voice quavering. "Can you tell me anything else?"
"You will soon be visited by great tragedy," the woman boomed.
Parvati's eyes filled with tears. This was going so horribly wrong. "What do you mean? What kind of tragedy?"
"You will lose someone you love, and you will—"
"Stop it!" Lavender cried. "Can't you see that you're upsetting her? Stop it!"
"I understand that it's a lot to process," Madame Trelawney said haughtily, "but those who seek answers from me must be prepared for the truth."
"The only truth you should be concerned about is how mean you are!" Lavender shouted, tugging Parvati away. Parvati felt as though her feet were leaden, but she was eventually able to stumble out of the tent after her girlfriend, blinking at the brightness of the sunlight outside.
"Parvati? Are you alright?" Lavender demanded as soon as they were several feet from the tent's entrance.
Parvati dabbed at her eyes, stretching her sleeve over her watch to do so. "Yes, I'm fine, Lav." Truthfully, she felt pretty shaken by the fortune teller's words, however.
Lavender nudged her and nodded at the nearby carnival food stand. "Wanna get some cotton candy?"
"Oooh, yes!" Parvati exclaimed, her worries soon forgotten in a haze of pastel blue and pink.
WC: 738
