Author Note: ….recovering from a nasty illness but getting back on track. More is to be explained. Thanks for staying with this story friends!

Chapter 21 – The Why and the How

T7S

Tatiana took a cleansing breath and exhaled slowly before opening her eyes. She was exhausted. The Arcana were still peacefully sleeping and her little hierophant was smacking his lips; most likely on some imagined sweet treat. She patted her cheeks with a delicate handkerchief then pulled her crystal ball towards her. The glass was murky. All of the evening's activities where clouded like her thoughts.

What a complex group these Point Place people were! With little Star she understood the complicity, but this young band of brothers were bound together by the oddest circumstances.

And they were bound by one constant and that would be addressed in the next vision quest.

T7S

Eric had 14 colored hula hoops rotating around his body as the Steve Miller band was playing in the background. Kelso and Fez were wrapped up like pretzels in a game of Twister. Leo, Hyde and Jackie were building a card house.

And everyone was laughing.

Jackie stopped and looked around. Were they still in the dream or back in the basement? It smelled like basement and looked the same. There was the duct-taped yellow love seat and the small black and white television….."Guys? Where are we?"

Steve Miller stopped playing.

Eric stopped swiveling his Elvis hips and the hoops unceremoniously fell to the floor. "I think we're home."

Fez fell on his back and Kelso landed on his chest with an "Ooof!"

The house of cards fell. Leo and Hyde looked up asLeo replied. "I think we're still in Peyote Place man."

Kelso brushed his hair to the side and scrambled over the back of the small sofa, "I think we're at Forman's….can't you smell something cooking?"

Fez closed his eyes. "Brownies…..Mrs. Forman's wonderful chocolate brownies. Mmmmmm….."

Hyde moved to his his familiar chair. "No man, I think it's a set up. That gypsy chick is gonna make the walls disappear or something."

Jackie walked past Steven and patted his cheek. "I like that gypsy chick. I think she's very nice. I like her wardrobe"

Hyde mocked, "You'd think that. Don't you know what she did to me? To us?"

Jackie twirled around nonchalantly and sat on the love seat, a slightly bemused smile curving her lips. "She showed your fears and regrets and while that was painful for you Steven, it was probably a good thing. Get that stuff out in the open and deal with it."

Kelso frowned. "Yeah, well….my fears were awful and I don't want to deal with it. EVER."

Jackie looked at Fez. "What about you?"

Fez grabbed his jaw and felt for loose teeth. "I'm going to start dating a dental hygienist."

Kelso laughed, "I thought you wanted to date the bearded lady chick."

Fez smiled, "Oh, I want to do that too. I just want my teeth to be white and sparkly like Ponch on CHiP's and stay in my mouth."

Eric was just looking at his friends and trying not to think about Red the Spiderman. If a spider had eight legs that meant eight potential boots up someone's ass. That was a scary thought too! "Guys? Is it tomorrow yet? I mean it feels like we've been at this carnival for a freaking long time and I'm starting to get….I'm going to…"

"Don't start getting twitchy Forman" Hyde warned, "Yes, we're still at the carnival on the world's worst ride ever. And no, it's not tomorrow."

Jackie crossed her legs and looked at Eric. "Why are you worried about tomorrow?"

"I'm supposed to watch the sky. There's something about the stars and planets that I need to pay attention to. Oh, and I'm supposed to stay away from the sunshine so whatever that means, I need to find out."

Brows furrowed, Jackie wondered how he could totally convolute the gypsy's instructions… "However, at night when you look in the sky you will see many Stars. They twinkle just as bright and they wink at you and like the constellations, they will always be there. Eric, you need to let the Sun burn brightly and concentrate on the Stars." He was Eric Forman – that was how!

Jackie watched as one by one, each of the guys slowly fell asleep where they sat. Before she could say a word, she was caught on the wings of a dream.

-o-

Tatiana spread peanut butter on the remaining crackers and refilled the tiny china cups with more sensimilla tea. The peanut butter had been doctored with the remaining psilocybe and muscaria mushroom paste. This last trip was going to be the best. Her crystal ball had cleared and reflected the glow of the candles while the Zamfir flute was still playing softly in the background. It was hard to imagine that only 90 minutes had passed since the beginning of the first potion.

Softly she spoke, "Wake up Temperance." Eric sat up with wide eyes. "Who called me?"

Tatiana smiled. "Thank you. Just remain seated while I wake your friends."

Eric yawned and watched at the Arcana named cards were spoken and his buddies slowly awoke. Everyone seemed clear-headed and very alert. Even Leo.

The fortune teller pushed the tiny cups of tea towards the edge of the table and set the crackers on little napkins beside the liquid. "I have one last trip for each of you." She could sense some panic and tension building in her small audience and she added, "This will be a good trip for you. But before I let you sail away, I want to explain the how and why you are probably wondering."

Leo frowned. "We're taking a boat ride? Where to? I think I need a life jacket."

Tatiana smiled. "No, my king. Sailing away is a phrase for leaving."

"Oh." Leo replied feeling much relieved. "Okay, explain the stuff we are wondering about."

Tatiana exhaled softly. "All of us have one person in common. We are all connected through this one extraordinary being."

Kelso raised his hand excited and chirped, "Is it Leo? I mean we all know him and this is his circus."

Chuckling softy, Tatiana replied, "No my Chariot. It is not King Leo. In fact, I shall summon a vision so you can all see who it is." The gypsy gently touched her fingertips to the crystal ball and slowly the face of a woman started to appear.

The room was speechless. It couldn't be. Could it?

-o-

"Where are we?" Tatiana grunted against the pain. Serena shook her head, "I don't know, but the truck driver is taking us into some town. How are your ribs?"

"I think I broke one. Is Jack okay?"

Serena nodded. "The parts of the caravan that rolled over weren't too bad. Is my forehead still bleeding?"

Tatiana moved Serena's hair to the side and she knew that this accident was going to leave a scar. The truck struck a pothole and the gypsy's body bounced painfully as the driver skidded to a stop.

The tailgate was lowered and the canvas coated man held out a hand. "This is a far as I go. You two git yerselves looked at 'n make sure ya don't drive at night without headlights. That'll git ya a ticket fer sure!"

Serena thanked the man and helped Tatiana limp towards the flashing lights. The ache in the fortune teller's ankle was surely not a good sign.

…."What do you mean you can't help us?" Serena beseeched the night desk. "We're hurt and bleeding!"

The nurse touched her pointed chin and averted her eyes until Serena realized that she was no longer wearing her veil and the woman could see the beard. The white uniformed woman grabbed a clipboard and held it against her chest. "I'll be right back." She said hurriedly.

Tatiana and Serena sat in the emergency waiting room for what seemed like hours. Nurses and doctors passed by, but not without a curious glance. Of course they had to come see the freak show waiting to be helped, but none would be of assistance. That was until SHE came.

"Oh my….they left you poor dears waiting all this time?" A friendly feminine voice roused Tatiana from her near unconsciousness. She opened her eyes to see the nicest, friendliest face smiling at her. The bright smile didn't even fade even when those eyes landed on Serena's bearded cheeks. Instead, a hand slid into the deep pockets of her pink uniform and pulled out a cloth mask. "We use these in the operating room, but you can borrow mine sweetie."

Very gently, Nurse Forman placed the surgical mask over Serena's face to conceal the hair. "We just want the doctor to stitch up your forehead honey. Ahahahaha, you look better than some of the staff!"

Kitty looked at Tatiana and clucked her tongue. "First things first, let me get you a wheelchair and we'll take the both of you the emergency room and get you all fixed up."

As she pushed the chair, Kitty chided the desk nurse, "Could you not see that there were still two patients waiting to be helped?" Then in a scathing tone of voice she added, "…and you call yourself a nurse!"

-o-

Tatiana looked at her audience. "Nurse Kitty Forman attended to me that night and I will forever be eternally grateful." The fortune teller dropped her head looked down at the folded hands in her lap and spoke softly. "The Point Place Hospital had no time to help out the weird and eccentric…like us, or freaks, if you will…but Nurse Forman treated my friend and I as if we were kin."

She looked up and spoke to Eric. "While my ankle was being bandaged she told me about her seven children. She laughed in that tinkley voice when she said that five were semi-orphans but she still loved them all the same. Temperance, you are privileged to have such a loving mother."

She looked at Hyde. "You were her second son. She spoke of a great future for you and how high her hopes were that you would grow in to a mature adult. When she wrapped my ribs, she was gentle and said that in quieter moments, she could see the man you would become."

Tatiana's eyes lit on Kelso and he sat up taller under the mystic's smile. "You, my chariot, were her favorite accident. She told me stories about how you glued things to your forehead and frequently visited the hospital. In fact, a few doctors on call remembered stitching you up. Michael Kelso, you are special to her."

Kelso pumped a fist in the air, "Yes!"

The soft grey eyes lit on Fez. "You are a stranger in a strange land and yet Mrs. Forman took you under her wing and you repaid her by marrying her daughter."

Fez gasped. "She told you?"

Tatiana nodded. "It would have been fine had you not given her husband a heart attack...but she still loves you. I recommend you compliment her cooking more often than you do."

Fez only nodded.

The last orphan crossed her legs and sat up. "Mrs. Forman loves me too?"

"Little Star...you are like her daughter. Even though you couldn't live under her roof, she still considered you her child. Bossy and mean tempered sometimes, but still her child."

Tatiana looked at the group. "As I listened to the nurse talk about the love for her family, I could feel a warmth in her heart that I have never experienced and I promised myself that I would do whatever I could to make this woman happy. That is the Why."

The image in the crystal ball swirled and Kitty's face slowly disappeared.

"Temperance's homecoming on New Year's Eve is the How. All of you were finally at the same place at the same time. The carnival was close enough that I could see all of you together and that is when I put circumstances in motion that brought you here."

There was a collective "oh!" as the friends realized what Tatiana was talking about. Jackie spoke up. "So what happens now?"

The gypsy smiled. "New beginnings."

T7S

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