Halcyon Days

The sun was setting that fateful summer night when the air was hot and the wind brought in the scent of salt with the cool ocean breeze. All around, people wandered the beach and pier, enjoying the last school free day at the carnival over the water. As the sky darkened—decorated with shades of blue and glittering stars—the colorful lights of the rides and booths flickered to life, illuminating the shadows that began to advance from the crevasses in the wood. Voices grew louder as more and more people arrived in anticipation of the firework show that would symbolize the carnival’s closing until next summer.

“C’mon Lexi, just give it back! I won it fair and square!” One young girl cried as she jumped up, desperate to reach the plush bear her brother held high above her head.

He looked down at her with pity as she looked like she was about to cry. He couldn’t stand to see her so sad as to actually shed tears. Refusing to soften his demeanor, he looked down at her and forced himself to roll his eyes.

“Alright, alright already. Just quit your wining, geez.” He sighed.

The tall, blond haired ne’er-do-well looked down at the girl as she reached for the toy in his grip. She was an annoying little girl, and sometimes he couldn’t stand her, but he loved her dearly. To see the happiness spread wide across her face a she clutched that bear in her arms brought a soft smile to his face—he actually almost felt guilty for teasing her.

“Okay, so we ate cotton candy, knocked some dork in the dunk take, played balloon darts, and won an ugly stuffed bear,” he said as he gestured down to the one in her arms. “What else did you want to do?”

The girl hummed as she pondered over what to do next. Looking around the fair she watched what other people were doing. “We didn’t ride the ferris wheel yet.”

“The ferris wheel it is then.” He said as he looked over in the direction of the flashing lights on the peacefully moving, yet daunting ride.

Putting his hand on her shoulder, the led her in the direction they needed to go, passing tents and other booth with beckoning workers desperate for their money.

“Lexi look!” the girl shouted as she stopped suddenly, grabbing his hand and pointing at a purple striped tent. “A fortune teller! Let’s find out if they can see your future!”

Alexi cringed when he heard the words pass through her lips. Let’s find out if they can see your future. He wondered if she had really be so hopeless as to think she had no future. The boy sighed, a piece of his heart breaking as he followed his sister, reaching for the tent flap and ushering her through.

Inside the canvas tent, two figures gracefully took their positions as they prepared for someone to enter, their attention being peaked as soon as Alexi placed his hand on the flap. The woman took a seat at the round table, pulling the neck of her short caplet over her nose and buttoning it to cover her face.

“your cards, Vanguard.” The man said as he placed a deck of tarot cards directly in front of her.

“That Aura, Master…” the girl began.

“And the crystal ball.” The man pressed, attempting to keep her from getting too distracted.

“Thank you, Master.”

The young woman reached a slender hand forward, gracing the surface of the glass ball with the tips of her finger, a soft, white light growing in the middle of the sphere.

“Welcome, my dear.” The man said to Ada as she poked her head through the tent opening, his attention fixated on the young man standing behind her. “take a seat at Madam Vanguard’s table and see what your future holds.” He then gestured to the girl whose face was lit ominously by the dim glow of the ball.

Vanguard sat perfectly still, unmoving as she listened to everything happening around her—the light breaths of the girl entering, her footsteps padding along the ground, and a voice calling from outside.

“Well, well, well, look who it is.” Someone called from outside the tent.

“Ada, hold up.” Alexi said as he gestured for her to come back outside. “What do you freaks want?” he laughed as he let go of the flap and took several steps away from the canvas room.

“Aw, is that any way to greet us?” a young woman with a short blunt cut and bright red hair joked as she came over and squatted before Ada. “Hey Squirt, how’s it going? Your brother isn’t being too mean to you is he?” she laughed as she ruffled the short hair on top of her head.

“welllll…” she dragged on, referencing moments ago when he teased her by stealing the bear she had won.

“So, Duncan, Kat, what are you guys doing here?” Alexi asked.

“We got bored and decided to come to the carnival, didn’t expect to see you though.” Duncan laughed.

“wanna come on the ferris wheel with us?” Ada interrupted excitedly.

“No way you’re getting my ass on that thing.” he protested. “people die on those! Like all the time.”

Kat and Alexi rolled their eyes, knowing full well that Duncan was just ridiculous.

“I’ll go with you.” she said, Ada’s face lighting up at her words.

“we’ll be here when you get back.” Alexi said as he waved off his friend and younger sister.

“you’re not coming?” Ada protested.

“only two seats a car. You go, I’ll be right here.” He explained with a smile.

The girls walked away, a huge smile on the little one’s face as she excitedly led Kat to the ride.

“care to hear your fortune?” Zoltan said smoothly as he peaked out from the shadows where he had been waiting for his moment to slither out. “Madam Vanguard is particularly skilled in fortune telling. She’s been expecting you.”

“Oh hell yea!” Duncan cheered as he followed the man with no hesitation. “this is gonna be dope!”

Alexi shrugged as he went after his friend, following him into the darkness of the tent that seemed much bigger inside than it did outside. Duncan looked around, excitedly urging Alexi to go first.

Picking the chair directly across from the woman who must have been Madam Vanguard, Alexi sad down.

“Your palm.” Vanguard said softly.

Alexi placed his hand on the table, palm up. Slowly she reached for it, sucking in a soft, sharp breath the moment she came into contact with his skin. For a moment she paused, as though waiting for Zoltan to tell her what to do next, but he remained still and silent in the shadows of the drapery. She traced the lines on Alexi’s palm delicately with her middle finger while hardly touching the crystal ball with the palm of her other, causing the light inside to grow significantly brighter. The two boys watched the ball glow, knowing very well that it was a trick, but couldn’t figure out how it was being done.

“Alexi Wolfgang,” she spoke softly, hesitating before saying his last name aloud, unsure if there were relations to another she had once known with the same name. “Chernobog.”

A laughed was heard from behind and both Alexi and Zoltan shot daggers at Duncan. “your middle name is Wolfgang? Dude what the fuck kind of name did your parents give you?”

Alexi rolled his eyes in irritation. He had spent years trying to keep his full name a secret from his friends, knowing full well Duncan would never let the hideous name be forgotten.

Turning back to Madam Vanguard, he was still shocked that she knew his entire name, but in mentioning it, she caught him off card. From that moment on, he devoted to her his absolute attention.

As Vanguard spoke, the ball continued to glow brighter, lighting the tent and casting shadows that danced chaotically around them. Alexi focused hard on the girl in front of him, not letting her so much as blink without his notice. The girl’s voice remained calm and soothing, a hypnotic symphony that had Alexi and Duncan mesmerized while the light from the ball illuminated her face, revealing her deep red eyes that bore right through Alexi’s soul.

“your future holds many unexpected challenges—dangerous ones.” She said as she released his hand, spread the cards, and pulled the one that called to her, turning up the fool’s face. Her brows furrowed. “keep aware of your surroundings and remain cautious. You will visit new lands and encounter new friends, but new tragedies will befall you. Tread lightly in this unknown territory.” She then turned up the face of the grim reaper.

“So, how do I know any of this is real? How do I know you’re not just making this up? I mean, you’re being awfully cryptic.” Alexi sneered, pulling his attention away from her captivating face.

“Alexi, the boy with light hair, and dark eyes, brother to the young girl, Ada, who shares your light hair.” She said quiet but confidently.

A smile made its way across Zoltan’s face as he understood what Vanguard was doing, while Alexi found her trick to be unamusing. What good would stating the obvious do?

“So what? You saw that Ada looked like me and thought we were siblings. Anyone could assume that.”

But then he paused, noticing something odd about her that shot sinister vibes slithering down his spine, the wicked smile on Zoltan’s face making him all the more uneasy. He started to lean in, studying her face as he got closer and closer. Her face was to him, but her attention was fixated on the cards, paying his actions no mind.

“Children of the Late Amelia Chernobog.” She paused and smiled for a moment, “you look just like her.”

Twinges of fear crept up on him at the mention of his mom. Closer and closer he got, as tension grew around him and his curiosity peaked. He had to know.

“Your eyes…” he began, cutting her off completely from her focus, as his eyes grew wide. “Are you blind?”

Immediately he pushed himself away from her, forcing the chair behind him to fall as he stood. The shock he wore on his face said enough for Duncan to understand. Quickly, he grabbed Alexi by the arm and pulled him along to the exit. Without even looking back, Duncan ushered Alexi away and in the direction they would hopefully find Kat and Ada.

“Shit, man.” Alexi stammered out.

“The fuck, Lexi. What was that?”

“That girls blind!” Alexi yelled.

“so what?”

“Duncan, she knew what I looked like! I’ve never seen her before, how would she know what I looked like?”

“Maybe the other guy described you to her. There’s gotta be a reasonable explanation man. You’re just overreacting.”

“Then how did she know anything about my mom?” Alexi spat. “We didn’t move here—half way across the freaking country—until after my mom died!” he paused to catch his breath. “That was fucked up man. Real fucked up. She even knew her goddamn name!”

“What’s going on?” Kat asked as she approached, pushing Ada behind her back when she noticed the odd tension surrounding them.

“Ada!” Alexi ran to the girl and scooped her up, holding her close to him. “We’re going home now.”

Kat look at Duncan with questionable eyes while the two hurried off, past the purple tent and out the gates.

“Well, that was unexpected.” Zoltan said as he looked down at Vanguard, still sitting at the table.

“what a strong aura.” She commented as she pulled one more tarot card and placed it on the table before her.

“incredible indeed.”

“he has no idea what’s coming.” She said almost sympathetically as she removed her hand from the card, revealing the lover’s face.

“No idea at all.” Zoltan agreed as he peered over Vanguard’s shoulder at the cards before her. “He cares a lot for his sister. He won’t let her go easily, will he?”

“No, sir, he will cause us quite a bit of trouble.”