i know places

Alys Glasse

It was a beautiful Flowerbirth day. Sascha played nearby in the tall grass of Meadowreach, chasing butterflies or some such thing, as Alys set up for a day of tarot readings. She had stayed near the House of Midnight, while being far enough away to stay out of its patrons' way. A quilt in the grass; a small, neatly written sign; and a selection of decks scattered around Alys were the only indicators that she was open for business.

She'd found in recent days that passersby were more interested in what she was doing when she was doing something, and so she sat, cross-legged and straight-backed, her wild curls tied away from her face with a scarf, shuffling the cards and laying them out before her. People often thought of tarot reading as fortune telling, but it didn't have to be as serious as all that. Sometimes, Alys just liked to have fun with her cards. So it was on this day that she pulled a card here or there, tilted her head to one side in consideration, and then shuffled to draw again.

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

It is a beautiful day for telling fortunes, and a beautiful day to change them.

Poppy is as poppies do: red and yellow and white and green, growing wild in a field of flowers with pollinators buzzing about her ears. The grass is supple beneath her bare feet; the sky is brazenly blue above her; the very dirt seems to vibrate with change, jolting through her with every step. The earth is singing, and Persephone listens, ready to follow the song where it leads.

Today that place is a picnic blanket, and the woman who sits atop it.

"Hello, little Seer." Like a bumble bee on a flower petal, Persephone alights at the blanket's edge, her legs crossed comfortably beneath her, elbows upon her knees. "Will you tell me my future?" Her coral smile is quietly beatific; her honey eyes glow in a freckled face. She looks at Alys without hesitation, no acknowledgment of their lost decade in the warmth of that gaze.

There's little fanfare to the thing, and yet something in the air has atmosphere, fundamentally changed. It's as though they've moved into a different realm, shifted ever so slightly from a mundane Caido to one a little more magic. One where Seers and Witches have tea parties in the snow, where little girls are with grandiose dreams are nurtured until they bloom.

persephone

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Alys Glasse

The appearance of a familiar face might have surprised others, but to Alys, it was simply a welcome homecoming. "Hello, Poppy," she said with a smile, shuffling her cards and stowing them in a neat pile before her. It had been years since she'd last seen her cousin, and it seemed that time had been kind to them both. She hoped so, anyway. Poppy looked well, and that was all she could really ask for.

"Which of these decks call to you?" she asked, gesturing to the little piles before her. There were two decks arrayed neatly before the seer: one, bright and airy, with alluring artwork and a welcoming feel; another, dark and moody, that beckoned and enticed with a promise to expose one's deepest emotions. "Or, if neither of these appeals, I have others that might be better suited."

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

"Hmm, let us see." Poppy leans forward over the cards, extending a freckled hand. Slowly her fingers drift between the decks, fluttering from one and back to the other as though feeling for invisible energy currents. There is an expression of focus on her freckled face, one that holds no mockery; the Naturalist takes this decision seriously. It is a matter of fate, after all.

At last she lights on the deck of warm colors, her thumb brushing over the vibrant paint. "Yes, this one. Most certainly." With a confident nod she settles back, pressing her palms into the dirt and peering at Alys from behind a tousled curtain of hair. "You've gotten new decks since last time I saw you." Her head tilts, birdlike, toward the left. "Where have you been, all these years?"

persephone

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Alys Glasse

Alys waited patiently, a soft smile appearing on her face at the way Poppy hovered a hand over each deck, feeling for the energy currents that Alys could all but sense drifting around her hands. It was much the same method that Alys used when reading the cards to determine the right card to pull at any given time, and the similarity made something soften in the seer. Once the deck was selected - the warmer, more vibrant deck - Alys removed the other with a soft caress to let it know that it had not been rejected and began to shuffle the cards.

"I have many decks now," Alys agreed. "I have made some of my own, as well. These came from traders, but their energy is pure." She riffled the deck a few times, then began to overhand shuffle them as she spoke. "In the Hollowed Grounds, until last year," she said. "I finally found the courage to leave. I've been living in Halo ever since." On and on she shuffled. "Are you wanting a reading about anything in particular, or just a general reading?" Then, once she had her answer, she nodded and continued to shuffle, switching between riffling and overhanding as it felt right. "What about you? Where have your travels taken you?"

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

"You always were very talented." Poppy nods in confirmation of her own declaration, quite confident in the accuracy of her compliment. She sits, rapt, as Alys shuffles the deck with nimble fingers, umber gaze attentive as she watches her cousin work. Fondness radiates from her freckled face, softening the ever-studious lines, the normal intensity of Persephone's curiosity quelled by the unexpected comfort of familial bond.

Again Poppy nods her head, though slowly, a furrow dug between her brows. "It took you longer than I realized," the naturalist murmurs in her alto voice, perhaps to Alys, perhaps to herself. Ah, but she's quick to brighten again, the day too lovely for brooding and regrets. "General," she tells her cousin. There will be time for deeper decks and closer secrets at a later date.

As for where the naturalist had been? "Wherever felt right," is the breezy answer, a dreamy smile sunlit on her face. "The Greatwood, for a while. Torchline. The Oerwuld. Halo, but only for a summer - too cold." Her nose wrinkles in distaste. "I came to the Refuge during the war. Hated every minute, but King's End is a marvel. Though I suspect I'll move along soon." Her shoulders rise up nonchalantly. She's never stayed one place for long.

persephone

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Alys Glasse

Alys glowed at the praise, a soft smile finding her lips as she glanced up at her cousin. She'd forgotten how much she'd loved Poppy - a strange thing to forget, perhaps, but a decade will do that to a person. But she'd been one of the few people who had always accepted her for who she was, and that had been rare indeed back then. They'd always been kindred spirits. Indeed, it was Poppy - or the memory of Poppy - that had convinced her to leave, when she'd had enough of her family's disdain.

But it was a beautiful day and time for a reading, and brooding thoughts had no place here.

So Alys shuffled until it felt right - and it was just a feeling, nothing she could explain. Sometimes she shuffled only once or twice, sometimes long enough for her querent to get antsy. There was just something about the energy of the cards that said when to stop. "I'm planning to travel this season," Alys said. "Perhaps we can talk about it, after the reading?" She'd love to hear more about recommended places and locations.

For now, though, there was a reading to perform. Finally finished shuffling, Alys cut the deck and pulled three cards off the top, setting them out in a line before her, face down. "Past, present, and future," she said with a smile, pointing to each placement in turn. Without further ado, she flipped over the past card.

It was the Wheel of Fortune, a card that depicted a giant wheel with a variety of symbols and letters stamped into it, a woman dancing atop it as it spun. "The Wheel of Fortune," said Alys. "Allowing fate to expand your experiences. Understanding that life is a cycle, and that there will be ups and downs, but they won't last forever. Going with the flow."

The present card, when she flipped it over, was the Fool. A woman leaned back on the edge of a cliff, preparing for the free fall. Alys smiled. "The Fool," she said, fingers gently tracing the artwork. "New beginnings. Adventure. Going where the wind takes you. But a word of warning," she added, "Remember to look before you leap."

Finally, the future. "The Four of Wands," Alys said as she revealed the card: two women dancing in celebration. "Celebration, but also stability. Connection with your community." Alys raised her brows. "Putting down roots.

"You've spent time going where the wind takes you, adventuring and gathering life experiences, good and bad. It's made you who you are. But the cards indicate a need for community and stability." Alys tilted her head to one side. "Is it time for a different kind of adventure?"

To the divine, mischievous spark in you

"Sure," Persephone agrees, settling fully onto the blanket. As the river of Alys' reading flows around them Poppy is patient as a stone, letting each word run and dance across her and feeling for its indelible marks. Past, present, and future; each touches gently as the caress of a lover, lingering only moments before they're washed away. She has never been one to look to the future, to plan for permanency or look to the unknown. But with her cousin's magic a song of promise, well...

A thoughtful hum creeps through her lips. "It would be nice to have a garden," Persephone speculates meditatively, scooting her hands back far enough to delve into the grass. "And the earth here is fertile, and clean. Roots could grow deep, but..." She trails off, falling into rumination as the options weigh within her mind.

Ah, but Alys. Honeyed eyes flit back to the present, Poppy smiling as they alight back onto the Seer's face. "Thank you, Cousin. You've given a lot to think about." Her head tilts, allowing her curtain of auburn hair to fall across her back. "What do you think about King's End, as a place to live?"

persephone

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Alys Glasse

So many querents cared only for the future without considering what information the past and the present could impart; it was refreshing to have someone come into a reading with no expectations, content to allow the wisdom of the cards to simply flow.

As Poppy considered her reading, Alys smiled serenely, her fingertips gently caressing the deck of cards still held in her hands. She waited patiently as her cousin considered her words. There was no use rushing a querent after a reading. They all processed things in their own way and in their own time. Alys was simply here to answer any questions they may have.

"I like King's End," Alys said when asked. "I have a dear friend who lives here now, and I've considered moving here myself. But it would be difficult to leave Halo." She paused. "But you're right. The earth here is fertile, the landscape picturesque. It would be a nice place to put down roots."