omen 01. {clue; oneshot}

The house doesn't creak.

That much alarms her - it's unnatural, for a home to be silent: no settling down for the night, but no ruckus either. She wonders if the spirits stay mute for a reason.

Tonight's as good as any other to find out.

She'd opened her luggage to find a pouch, stuffed neatly between two shirts and a hand-me-down duster: her very own tarot deck - the cards crisp, with a book that seemed to have been scrawled out by hand. Avi Gentle, with their shaking fingers, had written the entire thing, embellishing with a note on the inside cover: for when the path is obscured by the trees.

(There had been no tears that night, none whatsoever. Whatever noise one might have heard, it was definitely not that)

The sunroom's tiles aren't cold - there's no heat, but when she sits down, no chills go up her spine. She can see the shadows of leaves outside, waving, the wind rustling - but still, no noise reaches her. Soundproofed glass, perhaps.

"Alright," she mutters to the empty room. "Let's see how this goes."

Fiora lights a single candle, the wick flickering to light as a warm glow surrounds the room. Attempting the serenity of her Avi's motions, she shuffles the deck, splits it, fans the fortune out in front of her.

A question is asked: Something is wrong here - how do i find the cause within the chaos?

The Magician.

The Seven of Pentacles.

She laughs, dry and barbed.

The Devil.