Apprentice

"Enough!!" Noraya was frantically waving her hands in front of her. "Okay, okay, you are good at reading minds now!" She felt embarrassed at what she thought earlier. She did not expect that she would be able to read her little secret in her mind. She looked at her with questioning eyes. "Are you still reading my mind?"

Macrena shook her head, her lips curved upward a little. She didn't want to tease her and offend her. She asked her to read her mind, so she just did.

"How did you do that? I mean, I am not saying that I can't do it…" 'What is she saying? Why is she trying to explain to her?' Noraya was embarrassed a little.

Macrena bit her inner cheek to hide a smile. Noraya's reaction and gestures amused her. She tried to make a straight face, not wanting her to feel more embarrassed. "I don't know how I did it. Maybe I also have the gift like what you were saying."

Noraya looked at Macrena's innocent face. She can't read her face if she was judging or mocking her. She let out a sigh of relief. "Okay, I will take that answer. But I can't still make you my apprentice. I can't let you work for me without paying you. And I do not have money to pay you." And she doesn't need any help in her shop, for now, she can't even secure one appointment a day. How can she pay for an employee?

"You do not need to pay me. I am still learning and not good at it." She calmly spoke to her while biting on a piece of chicken. She doesn't care about money. For now, she will help her in her business, and when it is stable, then she might agree to be a medium so she can talk to Lord Mokabe.

The coolness in Macrena's voice was making Noraya want to believe her. Although she still have some reservations towards her, she can't see any wrong in giving her a chance. She paid for her stay with her anyway, and she let her deposit her money into her account without any doubt. She seems like a good person too.

"Okay." she agrees. "You can start tomorrow then."

They finished their dinner and prepared for the bed. For the first time since she arrived in the human world, they were going to share a room. She laid her exhausted body in the single bed beside Noraya's bed and closed her eyes.

Noraya was long asleep already, but she can't make herself sleep. For some reason, her mind keeps on going back to her previous dream about her mother entering the portal to the human world. She tried remembering any unusual from her dream.

In her dream, it was her father, and Lord Mokabe reciting a mantra. 'How can her father be allowed to participate in opening a portal?' According to the law of their land concerning the opening of a portal to other worlds, only the members of the council can perform the ceremony, and it must be all the members. She only saw Lord Mokabe. 'If my father is not allowed to perform the ceremony, then who is the one reciting the incantation with Lord Mokabe?'

'What was their purpose in sending her mother away?' 'How did her mother come back if she went through the portal?'

She has too many questions. She knew that it happened only in her dreams, but her instinct was telling her that there was something more. Something that was hidden from her. She must find out what happened. She must talk to Lord Mokabe as soon as possible to find out the answers to her questions.

She looked at the woman sleeping next to her. She needs to get this woman to trust her entirely if she wanted to use her as a medium. The problem is, she is too cautious in every decision she makes. She did not want to make her like her with magic, either. She wanted the genuine trust that she gained for herself rather than forcing her.

She did not know how long her mind wander before she finally fell to sleep. The sun was already up when she opened her eyes. She immediately checked the woman next to her bed. She sighed when she saw Noraya still sound asleep in her bed.

She quietly got up from her bed and walked to the bathroom. Noraya was still sleeping when she walked out of the shower. She must be exhausted from their work yesterday.

She walked directly to the kitchen and open the fridge and see if she can make out something from there.

Noraya woke up with the sun hitting her face through the curtains. She glanced at the bed next to her. The blanket was already neatly folded. She checked at the time and immediately got up. It was already ten pasts ten in the morning. She hurriedly walked to the bathroom and took a quick shower. After taking a shower, she jogged to the living looking for her roommate, whom she hasn't seen yet.

Arriving at the living room, Noraya was greeted with a delicious smell, which made her stomach rumbled with a loud sound. Her feet instinctively followed the hunger-inducing scent to the kitchen.

"You're cooking?" Noraya saw Macrena setting the table. The food on the table looks and smells palatable. It made her stomach made a sound again.

"I tried to cook the left-over vegetables in the fridge before it goes bad." She glanced at the Noraya, who just came to the kitchen. "I already set the table, come, let's eat."

Noraya looked at the food in the table. It's diced potato, carrots, bell peppers, some meat and sausages pan-fried in butter and topped with some herbs. There was some bread and sunny side up eggs too. She looked at Macrena, pouring orange juice on two glasses. 'Hmnn, not bad at all.' She smiled and sat down on the table.

"I am not sure if it turned out good. I hope you like it." Macrena sat down in front of Noraya on the table while handing her glass of orange juice.

"It looks good. Let's try it." Noraya smacked her lips and started to dig on the food on her plate.

She looked at her waiting for her reaction on the food.

Noraya nodded. Her mouth is still full of food. "Uhm, it's good. You did not tell me you're good at cooking."

Till then, she let out a smile of relief. "I'm glad you liked it." She took a bite of her food as well.

"So today, you will start your apprenticeship."

She just nodded in response to what she said. She was looking forward to see how she works.

They continued eating silently with a light mood. Noraya volunteered to do the dishes while she went and changed and get readied to go out.

It was already noon time when they reached Noraya's psychic shop.

"What time do you usually open?" She asked Noraya when they opened the shop.

"It depends, if I have an early appointment, I open on that time but for regular days, I open at one in the afternoon. I can't get up early." Noraya flipped the open neon sign on and went to the back office.

Noraya gave her a tour of the shop. The small room between the receiving area and the back office is the consultation room. It's where her crystal ball, her tarot cards, and all sorts of liquid and candles that are used in her work are stored.

"How long have you been working as a psychic?" She curiously asked.

"I grew up to this. My mother was a psychic herself. We ran the business together until she passed away." Then Noraya looked at her with a glowing eye. "Do you want me to read your fortune?"

She creased her brows at her question. Can she do it on her? She can read a human's mind, yes but a human, reading a gods'? She let out a secret smile. 'This is interesting.' She thought.

"Okay!" she excitedly nodded.

Noraya smiled slightly, and her expression became serious, then began drawing three deep breaths. She began shuffling the cards thoroughly and expertly spread the cards face down. "Pick three cards from the deck." Her tone was calm.

Macrena picked three cards from the deck and put it in the middle of the table. She was curious if this will work out. She was amused how Noraya became serious the moment she held the cards in her hand. She noticed that she was no longer the grumpy woman she first met. She followed her instructions without saying a word. She wanted to see how will Noraya read her fortune or if her reading about her was accurate.

Noraya flip the card on the left, which she drew first. "Hmnn…the three of swords in an upright position." She looked at her with a serious look. "Hurt, rejection, discouragement, and betrayal. Someone hurt and betrayed you." She said to her with certainty.

She nodded her head in agreement with what Noraya said. She smiled at her, seeing that she was reading her accurately. 'Not bad!'

Then, Noraya proceeded and flipped the middle card. The tower tarot in an upright position. "Change, a major change is happening to you because of what happened in the past."

'She is right again.' Macrena thought. She just quietly listened to what she said and silently nodding in response.

"Well, in your situation right now, you are experiencing a major change." Noraya continued, then flipped the last card. This time the card was upside down. "The six of cups?" she creased her eyebrows.

"What does it mean?" she curiously asked, seeing her reaction.

"Moving on? It means you will leave home and must move on with your current situation." She looked at her. "Going back home might not an option for you in the future."

"You mean, I will get stuck here? That I won't be able to go home?" that's the worst news she wanted to hear. She promised in the name of her father that she would go back home. She can't let her uncle Matius rule the kingdom with his greed and selfishness!

"That's what I read." Noraya was certain. "But this is just a reading. Depending on how you live your life today, and the next days, your future might change." She assured Macrena seeing her shock reaction. Her eyes are wide and full of disbelief; at one moment, she even saw anger in those beautiful eyes.

She narrowed her eyes and looked at Noraya. "Of course, the future will change, and I will make sure that I will be able to go back home." She said full of determination in her eyes.

Noraya felt a cold wind blew behind her when she saw her eyes sparkle with determination and anger. For some reason, she felt fear towards her. She felt that despite her being kind and pleasant to talk to, there was a side of her that is destructive once provoked. She shook those negative feelings, and awkwardly smiled at her. "Of course, these are just guide for the people on how to live their lives in the future. Your destiny still rests on you. If you are determined to go home, somehow, a way will appear, and you will be able to go home." She said as a consolation.

"Of course, I will be able to find a way." She nodded after hearing her. She calmed herself and smiled at her. "You are pretty accurate on your reading. I am impressed."

"Hehe, thanks. I am of the best in the area when it comes to tarot reading, you know!"

"That's good to know. Maybe you can teach me as well!" The mood in the room has already lightened up.

"You are already good at reading minds, let me be the master of this field now. Don't be greedy." She smiled back.

"Can you do psychic healing too? You said you could be a medium for the dead too?" she's interested to know if she had already experienced to be used as a medium.

Noraya avoided her look. "I'll tell you honestly since you can read my mind, there is no use for me to hide." She sighed. "I never tried becoming a medium, and for the healing, I do not know if I am effective with it."

"What do you mean?" she creased her brows. So, she never experienced to be possessed yet?

"In this modern age now, nobody believes about talking to the dead now. I have never had a client that asked for that certain service." Noraya sighed. She is not even sure if she can do it herself. "For healing, it's more like pieces of advice that I give to clients as I ask them to burn incense or to buy an amulet. Not the divine healing thing that I must lay my hands and viola, they're healed!"

"Hmnn…" she said in response, nodding her head. So, what she is doing is just to earn money and not really to practice divination.

"What if somebody asked you to be a medium to talk to someone in another world?" she probed the question hoping she will hear the answer she wanted to hear.