The bells chimed as I pushed open the heavy, dark curtains hanging in the doorframe and crossed the threshold into the small room that was the fortune teller's shop. I was immediately confronted with the musky, rich scent of sandalwood and noticed a small censer casting tendrils of smoke dancing through the room.
Perhaps it was just my nerves, or even my imagination, but something happened when I stepped into the room. I felt a surge of energy in my crotch, unexpected but pleasant. Not strong enough to resemble a fuse being lit, more like a firecracker unwrapped. I still wasn't entirely sure why I found myself here on this night but I took this feeling inside of me as a good sign.
No natural light made its way into the room. The street facing windows were covered with more heavy drapery and the narrow hallway I entered the building through swallowed up what little light managed to get inside. Instead, the shop was illuminated by a series of candles and brass lamps that projected a warm, earthy glow about the room.
It was a sharp contrast to the neon and chrome of the city outside. It felt like I had crossed into another world when I stepped inside.
My boots, slightly damp from the rainfall, squeaked as I walked across the hardwood floor and looked around.
"Please, leave your boots by the door and make yourself comfortable inside. And lock the door behind you so we are not disturbed." Her voice was deeper than I expected it to be but at the same time it felt welcoming to me. I did as I was told and reached behind me to see a door hidden amongst the curtains, which was open when I approached. I pushed it shut, turned the brass of the lock, and faced the woman.
She reclined on a low tufted couch of a dark green velvet with several lacey pillows tossed across the cushions. It was no more than several inches off of the ground. In front of the woman a small wooden table was adorned with the tools of her trade; a deck of tarot cards, a scattering of crystals, and a set of misshapen dice that looked to be carved from bone.
The fortune teller, that's what the sign outside had said, had a wild mane of jet black hair that emphasized her dark features, all of it accented by full ruby red lips that were impossible to look away from amidst the earthy tones all around her. A pair of oversized gold hoop earrings jutted out from her hair and matched the gold pendant that she wore around her neck. Her fingers and wrists were adorned with jewelry as well.
"I'm Mark," I said. "I was hoping that I could get a reading tonight." I sat on a bench near the door and slid my boots off, placing them under the bench.
"I'm Nadja. Welcome to my shop." She made no effort to hide that she was sizing me up. Her large, dark eyes slowly worked their way over my entire body and I, once again, felt that spark. Moments ago it was a flash of heat but now it lingered in my balls. I resisted the urge to touch myself and make a connection, even briefly, and instead straightened up my body as if given an unheard command to be at attention.
Nadja's body was mainly hidden from view, wrapped beneath the thick fabrics of the patterned dress that wore. The dark colors of her clothes lent a shadowy aura to her body. Despite this I could see that she was possessed of significant curves on a sturdy frame. She sat cross legged on the couch and this position allowed her thick thighs to dominate the view of her. The gold pendant stuck out from her body, resting atop a generous set of breasts. But she showed very little flesh. Not much more than her hands and neck.
I sat in a wooden chair across from her with the small table between the two of us.
"You've come here because you want a different...solution than you would find anywhere else. There are things that you want to know about yourself and you feel that Madame Nadja can help. Is that true?" she asked with a sly smile.
"Yes, that's...true," I answered.
"Come over to me before we start. As the catalyst for what we are trying to accomplish I find that physical contact between the two of us is essential for stirring the...energies that we need this evening." She patted the cushion next to her on the long couch and I rose from the small chair and sat next to her.
Without saying a word she reached over and took my hand and brought it close to her, placing it in her lap. The fabric of Nadja's dress was soft and my hand sunk into it and rested on the flesh below. So close to her that I could smell the spice of her perfume, an exotic scent so unlike the floral aromas I was used to among the women in my life. I felt the heat that was radiating off of her body.
"Now, you must understand what it is that we are doing here tonight," Nadja said and began to run her colored nails along my arm while gripping my wrist with her other hand. "I am merely a conduit for something far larger than either of us. But together, you and I, are inviting this essence into this experience and we are obliged to heed what it tells us. No matter what the omens portend. Do you understand that?"
Unsurprisingly, I felt an urgent stirring in my crotch as the warmth from the fortune teller ignited something inside of me for the third time since I entered the shop.
"Yes, I do. It's what I want actually." I responded.
She smiled and continued to drag her nails along my flesh. Her eyes were closed and those beautiful lips were pressed together in a smile. Her chest rose as she took in a deep breath and I watched the gentle expansion of her breasts. Exhale and they lowered, brushing against my arm.
"Well, Mark, I'm glad that you understand. You have a very strong energy coming off of you tonight and I know it will attract some powerful forces. It's good that you understand that they possess what you seek. But also that they are in control. There may be times when you don't like what you hear tonight, but the answers that you want are there for you."
I thought of that gentle buzz in my cock that tugged at me when she spoke of control. Was there actually something else in this room that had an interest in me? A force that I had taken somehow attracted with my presence? I wasn't sure what to think.
I nodded that I understood what she was presenting to me. "Well, I'm here with an open mind tonight. I've never done anything like this before."
"Excellent. Mark, what is it that brings you here tonight? What leads a handsome young man to come out on a rainy night to meet with Nadja? What is it that you are struggling with?" Her voice had taken on a different tone as she began to lure the truth out of me. It was enticing and persuasive. It made me want to share with her what was on my mind.
But I wasn't entirely sure myself. Or if I was, I wasn't ready to admit it just yet. Internally I had a vague idea of what was wrong but not enough to truly articulate it.
"I feel unfulfilled. I want to know how I can get more out of life," I said.
Nadja smirked at this, probably something that she had heard said a thousand times. Such a mundane answer for someone with her skills. She chuckled a bit in response to me.
"I can't help you if you're not honest with me. Look around this room, Mark. It is only you and I here tonight. The door is locked. There is no light coming in from anywhere. We could be anywhere, and yet you still don't want to admit the truth. If you are not honest I can only help you so much. And I want you to be satisfied." As she spoke she grabbed my hand and traced the lines of my palm. Her hand ran along mine and found the base of my middle finger, gripping the digit and tugging slightly, twisting my skin as she gently jerked it back and forth.
"Sexually," I blurted, the words erupting from me unexpectedly. It felt good to speak it out loud. "I want more pleasure and I don't know how to get it. So I came to you. I felt drawn to this place, when I walked past something called out to me." All of it was true. There were parts left unsaid, which I somehow felt that she knew, but it was enough for now. The two of us were making a connection and the space between our flesh faded away as she continued to run her fingers along my arm and tug at my finger. It was a rhythmic, almost droning type of repetition, eroding at the walls that I had built up.
She smiled and spoke, "Excellent. This I can definitely help you with. It's the cards that you need," she gestured to the stack of Tarot cards on the table adjacent to us, "they will help us understand all of it. Where you are coming from, where you are stuck, and to show a clear path to move on."
Nadja shifted on the couch and the cushions moved a bit. I sank deeper into the fabric.
"For you to get the answer, and the relief, that you are looking for I will lay out five cards on the table. I am here with you on your journey as a guide and as a conduit but the cards are for you. And it's possible," Nadja paused and looked at me deeply, her dark eyes undressing me, "that the cards may ask more of you then you are prepared for. They may reveal some truths that you wished to keep to yourself. Do you still wish to proceed?"
She dropped my hand into her lap and broke the flesh to flesh connection. If I wanted to reestablish it and go further it was now up to me.
Nadja wore an enchanting grin on her face as she waited for my answer. Unable to meet her penetrating gaze my eyes went lower and I took in her body more fully than I was able to before. Despite the heavy fabric of her dress I could see her nipples pressed against the material, straining as her chest rose and fell with each breath. I imagined how thick they must be to be visible through the dress and suddenly I knew the path I wanted to walk this evening.
"Yes," I replied, "I want to go further. I want to know what the cards have in store for me."
The woman gestured to the tarot cards on the table. I knew a little of what they were. Four suits and a group of what was known as the Major Arcana, 72 cards in all. When revealed in sequence they could be used to answer questions, predict the future, and to reflect on the past. Cards were typically displayed upright, but occasionally they were revealed reverse, which twisted their meaning and often indicated a problem or a struggle.
