strangetrip | [EP] London Lucida

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[EP] London Lucida - OTA

When the egg meant for Emma had opened to reveal what looked like her entire collection of tarot decks – minus the three she'd chosen to take on her trip to London to visit Sabine, and therefore the only ones she'd had with her at the inn – she'd been tempted to pull them all out at once. But she couldn't use all of them at once, and the anticipation of reconnecting with the various decks was appealing too. So she'd decided to begin each day by pulling one deck from the egg, the one on top or first she touched, as one of her decks for the day. Spread out the enjoyment over the better part of a month, at least. She wasn't sure exactly how many decks she had had. The day she pulled out a Mucha-inspired deck she didn't recognize, and that had a copyright date of 2015, she almost decided not to wait, but really it was more fun knowing there might be surprises still to come.

She couldn't have predicted this surprise. Not without a tarot vision giving her a clue.

Today's deck had still been in its original box with associated book. That was rare. Boxes tended to get crumpled or misplaced, and it was simply easier getting to individual cards when the deck was in a pocket or pouch. And when she'd looked to see what deck it was, it wasn't one she knew. London Lucida, it said on the box, along with artwork that felt familiar but wasn't anything she had seen before. It was the name at the bottom of the box that made her really pause, but she had breakfasts to cook, including her own, so exploring the deck had to wait.

It was afternoon before she took the time. She'd found an empty table in the cafe, had a mug of cafe au lait in reach, and now she sat crosslegged in the booth, the entire deck laid out over the table in order. She wasn't trying to See anything, focusing instead on the cards' art, as she picked up one card at a time, studying it in detail. Some of the paintings were obvious London landmarks: the Eye, the Shard, the Tower Bridge. Others were less obvious locations and people, that could possibly have been from any city with some history, but there was still a very English feel to them.

"I can't..." she trailed off shaking her head, not knowing how to finish the sentence. She couldn't believe it, except it was here, proof. The London Lucida Tarot, by Marie-Ange Colbert.

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Emma believed dragons were real in some worlds. She'd Seen Vax coming out of one when she read for him. But Jag's world, it was more like hers, except without people knowing about mutants, from what she knew.

Her nose wrinkled in a frown. "Sorry. That sucks. So she didn't live up to the stories? Or was she too much like them?" She shook her head. "Not that you have to talk about her or anything. I'm just... trying to imagine a dragon in modern day London."

Jag shrugged one shoulder, eyes still on the cards as he spoke. "She spoke perfect Romani, but she called us gypsies." She hadn't earned that language. She didn't know their culture.

The frown deepened. "Ew." A small voice inside Emma's head pointed out that human cultures and prejudices probably didn't mean much to a dragon. That didn't change her gut reaction, though, or why Jag would have been so annoyed by it.

"Your London sounds like it had a lot of things I only knew of from stories."

"Yeah, it was a bit wild," Jag confirmed. "Vampires and werewolves, angels and demons, bloody Fae." He looked over the cards, as if trying to see any hint of those things in there.

If there were signs, they weren't obvious, but that made a sort of sense. If all those other beings, like mutants, were in hiding, even if Emma knew they existed, she wouldn't want to make it too blatant in a deck that wasn't about them. But maybe, there would be hints, if someone knew what to look for.

"And most people didn't know? It's hard to imagine so many people having to hide what they were like that." True she felt like she probably didn't want anything to do with most of those types, based on what she'd read in stories. But a lot of people were scared of mutants for no reason but prejudice.

It was probably more Jag's bias than Em's actual design that made him wonder if there was a bit of Willy in the Devil card, and he shook his head before looking up at Emma. "Is it? I mean, it's how I've always lived."

"But what if you didn't have to?" Wouldn't that be better? More honest, more free. "You don't have to hide here. People can see you and your fire, how special you are. Wouldn't you want to live like that back in your world, if you could?"

"But I can't, not without a lot of hassle," Jag pointed out. What-ifs were all nice and well, but they weren't real. He smiled, slightly sadly. "Besides, the mystery of how I do what I do with fire's half the draw in my act."

He missed it. He missed busking. He missed the crowds and the kids. He missed wowing an audience.

That... made a lot of sense. It was different for her. People who didn't believe in psychics still wanted their cards read sometimes, 'just for fun'. Those who did believe, well, they believed. Either way, she could tell fortunes, and she knew she saw the truth. Even here, she read for people sometimes. And it was one-on-one; she didn't need an audience the same way Jag did.

"Half the draw, maybe. But I know how you do it, and it's still pretty amazing to me."

Jag smiled a little, and his gaze was drawn back to the Knight of Wands. "Thank you." He took a breath, then let it out slowly. "D'you reckon people might like a show around here?"

"I would," was automatic. But then she gave the question more thought. "I think... if Caroline knew you were a performer, she'd have already worked your show into the entertainment schedule. Because yeah, I think people would like it."

Another idea occurred to her, along with a memory of the dancing fountains in Prague. "Or maybe you and Coby could work up something with fire and music together."

Jag couldn't help the spike of guilt that unpredictably caught his heart at the thought. Because she knew they were close, how could she not. He'd never hidden it, when he had thought he could restrain himself, when he had thought he wouldn't stray, wouldn't take them anywhere beyond friendship, no matter how he felt. She might not be his Emma, but she was Emma all the same. This felt just like those first few months with Emma, when he had still been in love with Val. He hadn't known how to reconcile his feelings with Val and his feelings with Em. This was more of the same, even if Em wasn't quite here.

"Maybe," he agreed, with a brief smile. "Although I'll take anything that won't put on me Caroline's schedule."

He didn't do well with obligations, and he had enough going on with the stables.

She'd said something wrong; she could see it in how he'd reacted, before he put it aside with a hint of a smile. Emma didn't know what it was she'd said, or why it hit the way it had, but if Jag wasn't going to dwell on it, she wouldn't either.

Talking about Caroline was easier. (Unless that was where she'd tripped up?) "So you pick a time that works for you, put on an awesome show for whoever's interested. And if Caroline tries to make it a regular thing, she can talk to me. She's really good at organizing stuff and finding things for people to do, but she's nowhere near as bossy as Dani."

Jag couldn't help but smile a little at the thought of Emma being ready to help him out that way. "So you're volunteering as my Caroline-guard?" It was amusing, but not because he doubted that Emma could do it. She was remarkably stubborn when she'd set her mind to something.

Spots of color rose on Emma's cheeks, and she looked down toward the cards without really looking at them. "Well, yeah. It's what friends do, right?"

"It is," Jag confirmed, and reached over to squeeze her hand with his. Nothing like Emma feeling bad to pull him out of his darker thoughts, at least temporarily.

"Besides, if it means I get to watch people watch your show, I'm all for it." She'd get to watch him perform, but she had a feeling, if she asked, she could do that anyway. Roommate's advantage. But getting to see other people appreciating what he could do with his fire, that was something else.

"Yeah, all right, fuck it, I'll do it," Jag agreed, if only because she'd like it. "At least once. We'll see how people like it."

He'd have to work on a new number, though. This was going to be different from anything he'd done before; he didn't have to hide what he could do, and it wouldn't be within the framework of the circus either. It would be 100% unadulterated Jageskro, and he wasn't sure what that meant yet.

But he sort of wanted it to involve body painting, now.

That got a warm smile. Fire was so much a part of Jag, and performing too. She was sure putting on a show would make him feel good.

"They'll like it. And if I can help with anything, let me know."

"I will," Jag confirmed with a small smile. Her confidence in him felt good, for one thing. It wasn't as if she'd ever seen him perform. "Cheers."

Edited 2018-05-12 19:54 (UTC)

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[EP] London Lucida - OTA

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