It was an old shop. Its façade was a worn, kitschy wooden entry with peeling sapphire blue paint with faded yellow stars all over it. Etched onto the wooden panel read, Tempio della Conoscenza, with the words faintly painted a lighter shade of blue. The front door looked heavy with equally worn wood and rusted hinges. Flashy painted onto the window read, Passato Presente Futuro. Its dilapidated exterior and vague signage—if it could be called that—did not readily suggest a welcoming, functioning nor trustworthy business. There was no way to look inside; no reason for anyone to come in. and yet, outside of it stood James. He was intrigued by the chance encounter. The tacky little shop looked ancient and curious like something from his childhood comics. He could smell an earthy aroma and incense escaping from the misaligned windows and door creases. He could feel a gravitational pull towards the place although on its surface looking quite suspicious.
James walked up to the door, the aroma becoming even stronger. He seized the rusty ring handle in his hands; the grime scratching the palm. Gripping the handle, James yanked it open to reveal an extraordinarily dark room. It appeared smaller than expected but just as gaudy. Faded golden wallpaper adorned the room and reflected the small speckles of candlelight. The dusty violet Afghan rug covering most of the scuffed hardwood flooring had nearly tripped James as he made his way inside. The furniture appeared to be antique and surprisingly well-preserved despite the rustic surroundings. In the middle of the room sat a small circular table with an elaborate brocade pattern with matching chairs. In one of the chairs sat a person with long wavy hair and beautiful toned skin. Their features were quite delicate yet sharp. Their style of dress was simple fabrics wrapped around their body but in a way convey displaced androgyneity. They were so beautiful it was almost beastly and grotesque. Captivated by their beauty, James ignored the hair rising on the back of his neck and lump stuck in his throat.
The Person smiled politely and beckoned James inside. The closed the door behind him as James walked carefully to the table. The Person looked at James fondly, their features slowly changing the longer James looked at them. Up close, the Person's hair would change hues so slowly it was almost unnoticable. Their nose would slowly elongate and change shapes. Their mouth thinned then plumpled then thinned again. Once more, the changes were slow and curiously minor shift. It twisted James’s stomach. It was truly grotesque.
“I apologize for my image, I did not expect for us to meet,” said the Person, smiling widely and toothily. Even their voice couldn’t be placed. It rang beautifullyat first and then hurt his ear drums. It was pleasant but unnatural. “Regardless, here we find ourselves. Welcome.” The Person held out their hand for James to shake. He cautiously accepted but was surprised at the lightness of the Person’s touch. Despite knowing his fingers were wrapped against the back of their hand, James could not feel the Person’s touch nor warmth. James quickly let go of the hand—afraid to linger on any further.
“W-who are you?” asked James, his voice shaking. It felt so strange.
“Someone you’ve never met,” replied the Person, placing their hands on the table with the same wide smile. “Please take a seat… Given your confusion, I see Lucille kept our end of the deal.”
“Mother? No… she’s never mentioned someone like you…” James wondered aloud as he took the seat across the Person. The chair was stiff and uncomfortable with tiny dust particles emanating as soon as he made contact with it.
“That’s good… You won’t be swayed…”
“I’m sorry but what is going on?”
“Unfortunately, there’s not much time nor many chances to meet like this. I wonder where we shall start?”
“E-excuse me, uh—” James was dumbfounded on how to address the being before him. He had yet to catch their name or their gender. He didn’t know why it mentioned his mother or where he even was. “How do you know my mother? And where are we? Who are you?”
“That is not very important right now. Why I am, however, is to deliver a Promise.”
“A what?”
“An old deal between your ancestors and myself. Your mother refused the Promise and swore she’d tell you of it before I was able to offer you a deal. By the way, is she well?”
James stared at the Person flabbergasted and simply replied, “No, she’s dead.”
Much to his surprise, the Person’s countenance changed to a somber expression with their golden eyes welling up a tear. Its face morphed and countoured horrendiously as it transformed from a beautiful meloncholy to a grotesque expression. “Was it a nasty death?” It asked with their quiet, displaced voice.
“Yes, it was.”
“I thought it so… This Promise can have unexpected consequences. I had told Lucille to be weary of motorbikes, but Renata loved them so…”
James began to shake… how did this Thing know about this this?
“This Thing did not know of her fate but could surmise from the last time the two of us spoke.”
“Can you hear my—”
“Thoughts? Yes, I can. At least for now. Well, we are limited on time so let us begin with the Promise.” The Person reached into their tunic and pulled a beautiful velveteen satchel and placed it upon the table. “Please reach into the bag and pull out the cards.”
James followed as instructed. The material was smooth against his skin as he felt for the cards. A sudden warmth wrapped around his fingertips as he pulled out the thick deck. The back of the cards was elaborately decorated with golden foil painted on its edges. Guessing by the size and number of cards, James surmised these were Divination tools. “I’m sorry but what is this?” stated James with an annoyed chuckle. “What am I supposed to be doing?”
“You will be looking at your fortunes. You will shuffle the cards in your hand and see what the Promise grants you.”
“But I—” James stuttered, unable to form words to describe his absolute confusion. “I think you must be mistaken. I do not do fortune reading nor know what sort of promise this is. I am a man of God. T-this is heresy!”
Unstirred by James, the Person remained sat with a neutral expression and quietly replied, “I am not mistaken. This is part of the Promise. Please shuffle your cards and pull three that call to you.”
“Why don’t you pull the cards yourself?” James haughtily replied.
“I cannot. These are not my cards but yours. They belonged to those who came before you.”
“What do you mean?”
“These were your mother’s as it was her father's before her and someone else’s before him. Now shuffle the cards and pull three.”
Glancing down to his hands, James began to shuffle the cards. They felt delicate yet familiar in his hand. “How long do I shuffle these for?” asked James, still starring down at his hands. “Until it feels right,” replied the Person. He continued to shuffle the cards, feeling them slip past each other and then slide upon their union. He quickly grew accustomed to the sensation and shuffled even faster keeping the deck faced down. James compelled by the repetitive motion continued on and on till suddenly, five cards leapt from his hands and onto the table face down. James jumped and quickly set the deck down on the table. The Person frowned and muttered, “That’s concerning. It seems there are multiple forces at play.”
“What do you mean?”
“We won’t know until you show your cards. They’re paired except for this last one—your fortunes are detailed it seems.”
James reached to the first two cards which sat on top of one another, one contained a woman and the other a busy figure with coins.
“My Promise, if accepted now is rewarded by the Ten of Pentacles and the Empress. I will promise you a ready heart and a safety for yourself and your lover.”
“There is no lover, I am a Priest.”
“I shall promise you a ready heart and a safety for yourself and your lover. Occupations change but I can offer you happiness.”
It was at this point that James burst out into laughter, this was absolutely absurd. What was happening? Who was this thing? What lover?
“You’ve recently come across your fated person, James,” continued the Person now quite stern and angry behind the eyes. “I asked if you were sure to accept a Promise and you did through a kiss.”
“What acceptance? What are you going on about? This is ridiculous, I did no such thing.”
“You did. You kissed the young gentleman this very night and partook in the Promise.”
“…Do you mean Claude?”he scuffed.
“If that is his name then, yes. Now are you ready to continue forward?”
“…Are some sort of you demon? A devil? Why do you know this? HOW DO YOU KNOW THIS?”
“I am neither angel nor demon but like both. We do not have time for your denominational quæstio so sit back down and listen. I can promise you a wonderful life with your Claude if you accept the terms now. The other two fortunes are other deals. Show the second set.”
James could tell that the Person’s patience was wearing thin. The words were ice-cold with their face growing evermore stern and severe. Their yellow eyes glew brightly, demanding for James to continue. James sat back down to his seat, not even realizing he had stood up and shifted the chair closer. He flipped the other two cards.
“Now this is fascinating,” the Person whispered with their hand pressed to their mouth. “Your fortune may have suspected your reluctance and been preemptively altered… perhaps your Claude is favored.”
“What do you mean?”
“This a better... albeit a difficult fortune. Here are the Lovers and the Queen of Pentacles. I can promise you passion and a long-lasting beautiful life but at a price. This Promise will be offered three times and can be denied until our third meeting. All the while you will face the consequences of your denial.”
“…What are the consequences?”
“I do not know but no permanent harm will befall you or your Claude.”
“What happens after my third denial?”
“Show your last card.”
James reached out and flipped the last faced down tarot. It showed a heart stabbed by three swords. James pulled away his hand quickly and shot a glance to the Person. They stared at the card, unable to look at James. “If you deny the Promise, you will live a long life but... Once denied, I cannot provide you with a Promise and will move on to your kin. If there is no child of your blood, the Promise will end with you.”
“And if that happens?”
“I cannot tell you that yet. Do you accept the terms of our first deal?”
“What does our first deal entail? Say it in detail.”
“You and your Claude will have a wonderful life with ready hearts and safety. That is all I can say. My terms are mentioned once accepted.”
"But what does that MEAN?"
"That You and your Claude will have a wonderful life with ready hearts and safety. That is all I can say. My terms are mentioned once accepted.”
Frustrated James stood from his chair and began to make his way out of the room. He'd had enough of this nonsense. He made his way to the door and pulled on the handle. It would not budge.
"You cannot leave until you give me an answer, Mr. Forester."
James turned towards the beast and without hesitation, he replied, “I do not accept.”
Disturbingly, the Person began to giggle. Their voice prickled James’s ears and stirred his insides. It sounded like a jackal and violins playing concurrently. James instinctively placed his hands to his ears causing the Person’s laugh to quiet down. “I apologize once again; I was not prepared to see you. This Promise was to foster a beautiful friendship between yourself and your Claude. You would remain a priest and live the rest of your days on a cool windy city while Claude would eventually marry and continue his career. The two of you would have loved each other deeply and been entwined as platonic. Now that I have been rejected once, I will offer your a counter promise.”
James was beyond irritated, how that thing laughs at him. “You tricked me,” growled James. “You called Claude my fated person—you said we would be lovers. That my occupation would change and that we--”
“You are lovers but love is many things not just sexual. I guaranteed a ready heart and safety. The two of you were simply fated to meet, what happens after is your decision. Your interpretation of my words are not Promises. Would you accept a counter Promise?”
“Of course, not your trickster!” yelled James.
The Person giggled again with that awful voice. They giggled even louder as they waved their hand over the cards. They disappeared inside the satchel as the Person grabbed for it and placed back inside their tunic. “I shall see you again a second time. You will be unable to speak of this to anyone as the Promise is not yet finished. I will come to you three more times. As my counter Promise was not accepted, you will suffer the consequences. May your God have mercy on your soul.”
“Damn you.”
***************
The familiar sound of the alarm clock rang loudly. James leaped awake; his body drenched in sweat. He looked around only to find himself in the same old room he’d been sleeping in all week. He slammed the shutter of the clock and took a moment to adjust. It had all felt so vivid and real, but James pushed the odd dream to the back of his mind, he did his best to ignore the lingering scent of burnt wood engulfing the room.
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