Her hands moved gracefully, with full stops between each line as she made a decision. A sketch there, and then stop, the pencil would then gently shift its position to a different part of the small page and then begin scratching again. On her face, a smile; a gentle one, but one that also showed how focused she was. She closed her eyes tightly, as if to rest them for a few seconds and then with the pencil tucked in between her index and middle finger, grasped the edge of the bench she was sitting on and leaned on it. There was a small notebook on her other hand, her thumb tucked on the spine between the two pages to keep it open. Her head slowly fell on her shoulder of the arm she was leaning on and her eyes danced on the sketch for a few moments.

It was a sketch of a man, tall and muscular, a big smile and a flat-cap. His hands were tucked in his pockets, and he seemed to be wearing a shirt made out of a semi-thick material. On the other side were small notes written in her rather ugly handwriting. Her index moved on the text as if to feel them like braille, with her gaze still fixated on the notes.

"Who are you, I wonder."

That was the text written there, but Vivianna had also uttered the same words, softly. The small breeze caressed her chin and she leaned back, closing the notebook and placing it in her small bag. She was sitting diagonally across her old tarot stall, however that place was now empty. Its been a couple of days since she had closed it down, perhaps two, or maybe three. She smiled looking there, remembering the variety of people she got to meet. She twirled her pencil between her fingers and fell into thought as she bit the end of it.

The quiet moment was taken away when she heard some footsteps. Raising her head, she saw a familiar figure coming closer. While she was dumbfounded at first, she quickly realized who she was. A fiery ember placed itself on her heart and she raised from her seat, not knowing why. It was... them. Even in her thoughts could she say "her;" or a single name. As her first customer approached, she stools still, her hands clenched in front of her, a curious look in her eyes. It was highly probable that she was just passing by, so worst case, she could act like she was leaving already. She felt awkward, but her gut feeling told her that she was right.

With her being noticed, Vivianna felt her body become stone-like. However, when she saw the expression on Phoebe's face, she relaxed her posture and exhaled. Looks like she was right by standing up. A howling breeze played out as they stood there. Vivianna tried to get a reading on Phoebe's face, however couldn't do much so. She caught a glimpse of a happy expression on her face, but she couldn't be sure. Vivi felt a bit faint.

With Phoebe saying that she wanted someone to talk to, Vivianna smiled. She gently sat back down on the bench and then patted next to her as to invite her. She could tell that Phoebe could use some talking from her tone, but she wondered if it was her, or Persephone who needed to talk. Remembering their past encounter and how the whole appearance has shifted, Vivianna guessed that she was talking to someone human. Thinking about these things had made her realize how much she wanted to ask about her condition and magic. Life was different for all mages, sure; sometimes their magic reflected more than the element they control but a fundamental part of them.

In Phoebe's case, how deeper would that concept go? Vivianna tilted her head to look at her with the same smile. For some reason, she felt very cordial towards her, especially when she said that she needed someone to talk to. Could she talk to Persephone anytime she wanted? That must've been the case. Then would that mean that Phoebe sought human interaction? That made Vivianna's heartache. Human interaction. She shook her head very slightly to release any unhappy thoughts. Red or ink blood, she must do anything she could.

"We can go somewhere if you want, I just like these gray skies and would rather see them," Vivianna said. "What do you want to talk about?"

Vivianna was still looking at Phoebe, trying to catch every single bit of emotion from her to see what was going on. She was one of the most interesting people she'd ever met during her relatively short life. Another breeze blew past them both. Vivianna got up again hearing Phoebe's place suggestion.

"Okay, lake sounds good."

She smiled and nodded at Phoebe and started to walk towards her. When she heard of Phoebe's worries about bothering her, she didn't say anything but walk towards her. She leaned in forward with a child-like, warm smile and looked at her face directly with bright eyes. "Of course not," Vivianna said. "There wasn't anything that I was doing, besides I am quite curious about you and Persephone." Saying this, she stood straight and allowed Phoebe to lead the way.

The woman was quite silent during the walk. However, Vivianna was smiling the whole time. She didn't know what it was that got her to feel so harmonized; so peaceful; was it the fact that someone had decided to confide in her? Was it that she was looked for? Was it that her reading was enjoyed by someone? Was it that even with a goddess with her, Phoebe demonstrated traits of humanity Vivianna liked so much? Her hand itched to take out her pen and notebook to note everything about her.

However, Vivianna was capable of feeling both things at once. She, thinking, quickened her pace to walk next to Phoebe, looking at her. She then looked down and cupped her hands as if holding a small orb within it that she wanted to hide and closed her eyes very briefly. Molding her mana from solar plexus to her hands, she created a glowing butterfly out of lime-colored ink and opened her hands. The small butterfly gently fluttered and landed on Phoebe's temple, standing there like a beautiful hair accessory, gently moving its wings, ever so slowly. "You're pretty," Vivianna said with a very soft tone. She then looked directly in front of her as she continued to walk. "Don't get so down," she said. "You have a goddess with you, who feels like she might be the reason here, but even then, you have a goddess within you," she said with her hands at her back. She wanted to encourage her and hoped that she did a good job of it.

Now with the lake in their vision, she turned to Phoebe. "I will sit and go wherever you want."

Vivianna silently followed her to the point she wanted to seat. When they arrived there, Vivianna gazed at the lake. It looked so pristine with the gray clouds above. She looked at the rippling water, dark green and grayish. It was no doubt a wonderful sight.

A sound took her attention. Phoebe had apparently sat down on some roots. Seeing that, she made her way next to her and sat down. When she turned to look at her, Vivianna smiled. When she turned around to face the lake, so did she. Vivianna was amused as Phoebe looked at her reflection to see the butterfly better. It was a gesture that Vivianna felt like she had to do. Hoping that she liked it, given that she didn't say anything, Vivianna sat quietly and gave Phoebe the space she needed.

Being an oracle, well, if she could be called as one, wasn't just about looking into people's futures. It was listening to their worries and problems, each divination session wasn't just a journey to the future, but to the world inside the questioner as well. Over the times of her sharing this hobby, she had grown accustomed to people telling her about many things. Perhaps her quiet nature, people had found her to be easy to vent to. She played with her fingers during the small moment of silence. There was something else and she knew that very well. Stories. It was their stories that Vivianna was so interested in. She wanted to be friendly to people, sure, however, this primal desire to learn their stories was something she could never quench.

She listened to Phoebe, looking at the lake, and sometimes her. Trying to catch every single word she could and understand them. "Lucifer," she said after Phoebe stopped. The name was familiar, but she couldn't put a name on it. She turned to Phoebe and was about to ask when she saw that she was on the verge of crying. Blood rushed to Vivianna's face. "O-oh my... Phoebe..." she mumbled. Her heart ached. She raised her hand but was unsure of if the woman would appreciate touch at that moment. Not knowing what to do and feeling a bit panicked, she placed her hand on her shoulder. Vivianna felt as if she was somber right now, it wasn't going to help Phoebe at all. She gathered her courage and patted Phoebe's shoulder as gentle as a feather touching a skin.

"I am a collector of stories," Vivianna said after staying silent for a while. "No story I hear escapes me, secrets are safe with me," she said. She wanted to make sure Phoebe knew that it was okay to talk to her. "I assume Lucifer is someone like Persephone, a deity within flesh," she said, also trying to understand the situation herself. She pulled her hand back and placed them on her lap. Her face expressed worry. Nemesis, shes thought. Her reading, the tea one... Were they talking about that? She gulped. Just how serious was this? "Phoebe," Vivianna said, her wording soft, her tone confident and her desire of hearing more strong, "Who... is Lucifer's host?"

Such emotions from a human being made Vivianna slightly despise herself. With a sad face, she watched Phoebe trying to grasp at air to bring out words. Her heart ached for her. It was a humbling experience to be confided in. However, there was another question about the situation, or perhaps a truth that was akin to fridge, suspended horror; one that would shake you to your core when you realized of it's existence:

Phoebe had sought Vivianna out. Vivianna, a tarot stall vendor who, while did have a moment with her, was still relatively a stranger. If Phoebe came to someone like her, someone she had just met, then it showed how alone she felt. Vivianna couldn't be hundred percent sure about this of course. It could be simply that she liked her, or that the reading had made Phoebe think Vivianna understood people better. But the more the witch looked at Phoebe, how she was barely keeping her emotions snide her, the more she felt like her assumption was correct.

Vivianna had to stay quiet for a second to digest this truth she had realized. While a part of it didn't want that to be true, her inner world had already taken it as fact. "Victor, you say," Vivianna said almost whispering. "Sounds like he is... important," she added. That didn't mean that he was a kind person or someone that Phoebe liked, but someone that had quite a bit of an effect on her story. Her story, Phoebe's story, a human's story that wouldn't be determined by someone else. Unlike Vivianna's herself. She started to play with her thumbs.

"Tell me about this Victor," she said. "Did he do something to you? Or was it Lucifer?" Vivianna had more questions, but it was probably best to give Phoebe some space and try to crack her open with some simple questions. If she felt comfortable, she would talk about these things herself. Vivianna felt a different sense of understanding for the girl, the feeling of loneliness, one that she might've been projecting. She wanted to make her happy, but she didn't know whether those were her true feelings, or if she wanted to make herself happy.

Silence.

That was the thing that surrounded them both. Vivianna fumbled around with her fingers. Her eyes were wide, her head was down, her hair had was flowing down her shoulders and cheeks, covering her face. She let the wind pass and heard subtle sobbing noises of the woman next to her. The subtle lump she had felt in her throat was not a full on felt like a spiked ball that had lodged itself there. "I see," she said, almost whispering. A murder. Phoebe had killed someone. Briefly, Vivianna asked herself; How could Phoebe just... say it? Wasn't she afraid of getting caught? However, this idea quickly perished as she, herself, had read a lot about this subject. She finally turned as Phoebe with wet eyes. "How much you must've suffered..." she whispered.

Confessions.

No crime would go without its punishment. Sometimes, the punishment would be the emotional prison the person would be thrown in. "When did all these happen?" she asked Phoebe. There were still a lot of things she didn't know, things that she couldn't fully understand. "How did Victor react when he... you know, heard or saw what happened to the man?"

Listening to her answer, Vivianna would look far away from the lake, the gray clouds that were picking up at the moment and think to herself that a summer rain was coming, her favorite. Maybe it would be fitting for the moment. Some rain could help them cleanse away their negative energies. She thought about Phoebe's sin and then thought about her own one: It was something they shared, however, Vivianna's situation was a bit more different, for she had killed someone who begged for it. That was a long time ago now, at least, that's how Vivianna wanted to think.

"Is it what happened to the man that is making you so sad Phoebe?" Vivianna asked with a warm  tone. Slowly, she was feeling closer to the woman. If only if she could understand the storms that were happening within her and Persephone...

Seeing Phoebe cry was a relief for Vivianna. Not that she wanted her to be sad, but because it felt as if she was finally letting all these emotions she bottled up inside out. She quickly reached for her small beige bag and took out a napkin, gently placing it on Phoebe's lap so she could take it whenever she wanted to.

This woman's story was slowly starting to make sense to the ink witch, her eyes looked at her, deep at her with more understanding, and a budding sense of compassion. She tried to see the goddess that was within her, to understand her role in the reason that Phoebe was crying. However, complexities of a single soul was already a much, and when there were two souls interconnected so much, it became ten thousand piece jigsaw puzzle.

And then, suddenly, a door opened and Vivianna saw what was going on. Persephone was the culprit here, but the suffering was left as a mark not on her, but Phoebe. How horrible, Vivianna thought and with a sharp moment and wide eyes turned her head in front of her, looking at the lake once again. Trying to comprehend what she just heard as she also tried to listen to Phoebe. When she was done, Vivianna let the silence stay only for two seconds. "Persephone... took control?" she asked, slowly. "She killed the man?" she continued. She had misunderstood the whole situation, and this was the much-needed clarity for Vivianna.

Victor, an interesting figure that was. Even with little information about him, Vivianna felt that he was an enigma. Not even upset at someone's death. While she wanted to think about the man, what goddess has done was clouding her mind. Vivianna shook her head and coughed. "What happened between you and Victor after this event? If he hurt you so much... and since he wasn't upset at this... incident, what causes his name to hurt you like this?" the woman asked. Tilting her head, she stood silent for a few seconds. "Phoebe," she said. "This is just an assumption from the things you told me but... Do you sometimes feel that in such a long time, maybe ever, you didn't get to make your own decisions? Its just... Sorry if this is rude, however, from what you are telling me: The goddess, Victor, Lucifer... all of these, it just makes me feel how you have been pushed into situation after situation with no room to breathe."

Vivianna was holding onto the root they were sitting on with both of her hands, with her torso a bit forward than her arms, giving her a child-like posture, slimming down her figure and causing her face to be over her shoulder when turned to Phoebe, which was a pose commonly used in paintings to express the depicted person's innocent nature. However, the reason why Vivianna was  changing her stance so often was that she was tired of sitting, and the questions in her mind that she was tryin g to solve as she listened to Phoebe manifested in the real world with her constant changing sitting position. She swung her legs to stretch them a little. With Phoebe's thanks to Vivianna for lending her ears, the witch smiled. "No problem at all," she said. There was more to say on this subject, however her first goal and desire was to let Phoebe talk. Vivianna was the kind of person that would try to do what she was trusted to do, in this case listening, so listen she would. The fact that Phoebe, relatively a stranger had thought of her in this situation was something that she could be proud of. At least, that's how Vivianna thought.

Now focusing on Victor's story, Vivianna tried to connect a few dots in her mind. This deity-based power was the problem here, adding a whole different layer of complexity to the relationship between two seemingly complex people; a whole new layer of character traits, goals and motivations, how they interact with the desires of their host and what this relationship causes and manifests in their living world. Vivianna shook her shoulders. "He sounds like... kind of an ass," she blurted out. Her comment was about Victor. "Taking the money and leaving like that, not to mention how you said that he was Lucifer's host. Who knows what they were thinking," she added. While she felt bad that her comment was crude, she also hoped that entering a girl-talk mode would help Phoebe relax more. There was a certain barrier, Vivianna felt, at talking refined and elegant. While of course, she preferred it, at times it simply felt better to let go a bit, no matter how hard it was for Vivianna to do so.

"Look, Phoebe," Vivianna said scooting a tiny bit closer to her. "There is no reason to say sorry to me, after all, I am listening to you on my own accord right? Nobody forced me to to it, and I am not gaining anything out of it. I simply was someone in need, and I guess I was in the mood to be helpful. So don't feel guilty, nor be sorry. You see, I am actually new to ...the real life, she thought within herself for a split second ...new to the town myself so I don't have a lot of friends. I'd like that. The friend thing," she said and tried to break a smile. "So the first thing I'd like to say as a friend and an outsider to the whole ordeal, as in how it looks from an outside perspective... Is that Victor used you," she said and paused. Trying to put on a confident face. "Now take my words with a grain of salt for I don't, can't know the whole story like you do. I am just telling you how it feels like to someone outside of the situation," she said. "What do you think?"

Opening her palm to gather some mana at it. Vivianna had an idea. However, things still felt fresh. "Would you want to sit still? If you want, we can walk around the lake. I'm kind of tired of sitting myself. We can even get some pastries to eat while we walk."

Vivianna's hands made a clapping sound as she tried to dust them off while listening to Phoebe with a smiling expression. "All I have done was listening, but I can't say no to that offer," she chuckled. After inspecting her friend's face once more, she turned to look at the lake one more time, then her mind drifted to the sands and rocks beneath the lake's surface. "Listening to other people," she spoke, but it felt more like she was talking to herself: "It reminds me that each life is as vivid as our own, as if we are all pebbled under the lake holding the same weight of the water." She turned to look at Phoebe with a bit of an embarrassed face. "Does that make any sense? Ha-ha..."

"Do you know where we can get them?" She asked Phoebe. "I do know a place but it's more like I just end up there rather than knowing where it is," she explained herself. After walking a bit, she mentally rotated Phoebe's situation in her mind to see it from different perspectives; but she was also cautious. What if she got past her boundaries? What if she said something she shouldn't have? It wasn't very easy for her to remember that this wasn't a character in a book, or a plot situation she was thinking about, her eyes automatically went to look at the other woman's face. She could feel her face muscled bend to form a worried expression. She quickly dispersed of it and inhaled. "A game, you say," she said without thinking. She felt herself run out of creative juice to think about this problem better.

"A person with a deity inside of her, sharing a body, their actions affecting each other, their fates intertwined, their actions have consequences that affect them both," Vivianna said looking up the sky. "Whatever the case, despite everything that had happened, I think it's still quite fascinating, you are," she said. "I... I hope that doesn't sound bad," she quickly apologized. "Saying fascinating and all, I'm scared that it sounds dehumanizing."

She tried and succeeded to occupy her mind with what kind of pastries she wanted to have. It had to be something cheap, but still palatable. Perhaps she could just get whatever Phoebe did. "After the pastries, it might be best I take my leave, Phoebe," Vivianna said. "But... let's meet again," she continued and gave Phoebe a comforting smile. "I don't want you to think you are alone; no one should think that," the with explained.

With a wide array of pastries in front of them, Vivianna briefly forgot the exhange she had with Phoebe. She gulped with aniticipation and simply nodded at the pastry Phoebe had chosen. The desire to pick something cheap had vanished into thin air when the witch made eye contact with the sweets. "A-ah.. sorry, I kinda lost myself for a second there," she said and swiftly wiped her forehead. "I will get the same as her," Vivianna explained to not lose any more time. "Let's sit somewhere to enjoy these, I think they have tables on the street,"

Leaning in from the corner to confirm her idea, she smiled and turned around to call Phoebe closer. "Want to sit here? We can go anywhere you want, of course, this should be your day."

After they placed themselves, or perhaps simply decided to walk, Vivianna took her first bite of the puff. Gods! It was a delicacy. She couldn't even make a comment as her full attention was given to savoring the blueberries. She felt embarrassed when she saw Phoebe's face. This could be very rude, she was opening up her heart. "Ahem," she fakely coughed but had actually managed to compose herself. "It is good that you both can handle things, I guess you mean that you two can compromise, right?" Vivianna asked. She quickly followed it up: "In every relationship, there will be compromises, perhaps just because one individual is a deity doesn't change that fact," she commented.

She briefly thought of how she would handle the situation. It wasn't something easy to imagine. Someone else inside you: It really did feel like a hindrance. She shook her head. "I hope she doesn't get overwhelming," Vivianna said to Phoebe, indicating her impressions of the deity inside.

"A power inside you... strong but relatively dangerous... ah!" Vivianna expressed a bit loudly. "Sorry, wait," she said and quickly stuffed the rest of the puff to her mouth as her hands went in her bag to take something out. Just like with Kurdran, this was also perfect. It was a nice gesture, and if the tarot cards had any powers with them, then maybe it could help Phoebe out. "Some time ago, I met with this man who also opened up to me," Vivianna explained as she dug through her bag to take out her tarot box. "Since his situation was so perfect, I decided to give him a card for inspiration and as a token, for the time we spent together..." she said and opened the box. Inside were two decks. She took the extra one that she was planning on changing.

"Give me a second..." she muttered as she went through the deck and smiled wide when she saw the card she was looking for.


"The strength is the card that is not about physical strength but inner one. I thought that it fit your situation," Vivianna began to explain. She glanced at the card and then held it towards Phoebe for her to pick it up. "It shows someone who, with mastery, can even tame the wildest of lions with their inner strength and kindness, and then learn to use that power for themselves. Whether it is agreeing with the goddess or accepting her, without losing too much of yourself, it can be a great help to you." Vivianna explained. She slowly placed the box back in her bag before wiping her hands with a napkin. She held the napkin within her clenched hand so she could throw it away as she walked back to her staying place. It surely has been a very long day.

"Now if you excuse me, I will take my leave, Phoebe. Good luck, and let's meet again for sure." Viviana slightly and slowly bowed towards her. Had she made a new friend? Was this start of something good? These were the ideas she had in her mind as she twirled her way back to her room. She felt a sensation that was rather unfamilliar, but perhaps that's the story for some time else.