Esoteria

A swirl of incense wafted across the table as she flipped over the card. Bronze and beads jangled on her wrists, clunky and off-key. She paused to let me assess the image, but I stared blankly. It meant nothing to me.

"Huh." This was the only word I could find within my scratchy, sceptical gullet.

She chuckled ominously, and I turned immediately defensive to the cavalier clairvoyant.

“What?” I spat, the suspicion in my voice shaking. “What does it mean? Please.”

She leaned closely into my neck, her breath heavy with herb and heresy. A wisp of laughter slighted an illusion upon her lips rouged in blood and wine.

“Whatever you choose it to mean.”