A Beautiful and Terrible Truth

Chapter 21

"The shop is just around the corner!" Astoria annouced as we followed her across the street.

We had been following her all through the city of Paris all morning with Fred carrying Kam on his back because her leg was still sore. I know I was relieved when I heard that we were so close to our destination. Astoria just had so much energy. I didn't think it was possible for someone to be so excited about a place. It was like that spark that had long been gone was finally burning in her again.

"It's about time," Fred grunted. "Kam's not  as light as she looks."

I heard a smack, which I assumed was Kam's hand against the back of Fred's head. "I am not fat!" she quealed.

"Jees, Kam. I wasn't calling you fat."

"Yes, you were. You didn't directly say it, but you meant it," there was a slight pause in her words. "You've always thought I was fat, haven't you?"

"Kam!" Fred yelled and was about to say more, but Astoria gave an excited shriek.

"Stop your fighting," she turned and smiled at us. "We're here!"

We all looked up to see a small, rundown building that didn't look like much of anything. If at most, it was a closed shop. The windows were dark. The paint was chipped. It just looked like no one could've used it as a shop in the present. There was just no way. That's when there was a yank on my hand. It was Astoria guiding me up to the store and down the cellar steps. A sign on the door at the bottom said that it was a shop. A psychic by the name of Mystic was the resident, but it was probably for show of the muggles.

"A psychic?" Kam asked, limping over to the door. "We have to see a psychic? What is she going to like tell us whether we win or not?"

Astoria giggled. "No, Kam. She won't tell us anything of the sort."

"Besides," I said, placing my hand on the door knob, "I highly doubt that the person we have to see is even the psychic."

"You would be wrong," Astoria said as I pushed the door open.

A faint bell ringing sounded through out the place as I pushed the door all the way open. Astoria pushed right passed me, her shoes slightly squeaking on the old wooden floor. The rest of us followed her slowly down the hallway until she stopped at a doorway.

"We're closed today," came a young woman's voice.

Astoria shook her head. "That's not what the sign says."

"Well, we're not open to your kind," there was a slight pause. "Do you have her with you?"

"Who?" Astoria asked, kind of confused.

There was a noise from movement inside the room. "Courtney Flint."

"I'm right here," I announced, pushing Astoria aside.

The woman didn't look much older than us with long flowing brown hair and darker skin. She was extremely beautiful even though she was standing there in just sweats and a tshirt. Her mouth turned up into a smirk as she looked me up and down. She then pointed down at the circular table that was behind her as she pulled out a tiny bag from her pocket. 

"So, you're going to give us a reading?" Kam asked as we all took a seat. "That's cool." 

The girl just ignored Kam as she sat across from me. "You came because Dumbledore told you to, am I correct?" 

I slowly nodded. "How do you-" 

"How do I know, right?" she smirked and pulled out a deck of cards from her bag. "I am psychic, that's why he came to me in the first place. That and I had a vision, a vision that included you, Courtney Flint." 

I sat up more in my chair. "That included me?" 

"Would you like to have your reading now?" She asked but didn't wait for an answer. "I will need the rest of you to leave," she paused when she looked at Fred. "You might want a reading after her." 

After we were alone, she stayed silent as she layed the cards out infront of her. I wanted to peek at them so badly but I patiently waited. I didn't need to mess this up if this was apart of Dumbledore's plan. In that moment, I couldn't think what part of that situation would be apart of his plan. It just didn't make sense. Not at all. 

"Did Dumbledore tell you why he sent you here?" she finally spoke. 

"All he told me was that I needed to stop a cycle." 

She nodded. "There has been a horrible cycle that has been going on for years. Do you happen to have that time turner he gave you?" 

"How do you know he gave me one?" I asked, slowly pulling it out of my coat pocket. 

"I am phsycic, and he told me his plan," she smiled, "and all I have to do is help." 

"Well, what kind of cycle do I need to stop?" I just needed to get to the bottom of the mission, case, journey, whatever you wanted to call it. As I gripped the time turner in my hand, I had a feeling that part of my mission was to go back in time. But why? 

She smirked and lifted up a single card that had a heart on it and two people. "A love cycle." 

A/N: I'm sooooo sorry for the lack of updates. As of now, I am a full time student, a full time McDonald's employee, amd I have to juggle family, friends, and my boyfriend. It's really hard to find a breath to write, and when I do, I'm so exhausted that I just want to sleep. So, I hope you all understand and hopefully I can finish this by the watty award cut off date. I love you all. Thanks for sticking with me! 

tight hugs! xxx, 

Courtney