Marie slipped onto her stool. She had, now that she'd entered the lamp light, a lined and weathered face, indeterminate tan to brown shaded and silver gray hair that was pulled back in a tight bun with a pair of flying monkey chopsticks holding it in place. “They're all sorts of things.” She said. “I pick things up when I walk around, you know? Its like they're looking for homes, so I bring them here.”
Kerry seated herself on one of the stools. “I pick up rocks when I walk.” She admitted. “They remind me of places and times, is that the same kind of thing?”
Dar kept her head ducked to one side as she examined the book case that lined the entire short length of the side of the shop. The books were varied and old, all hardback, some with barely legible titles in a number of different languages. There was a scent of dust and aging paper that wafted out from them, lit by a candle sconce flickering gently nearby.
“Oh, something like that.” Marie agreed. “Charles, there's some coffee in the back if you want some.”
Charles smiled, and availed himself of the offer, disappearing behind the thick bead curtain that separated the front of the shop from the area behind.
“So what's your name?” Marie asked.
“Kerry.” Kerry responded, hooking her feet around the stool's supports and resting her arm on one knee. “Charles said you were a fortune teller.”
“Oh, something like.” Marie said, with a brief grin. “Do you want your fortune told, Kerry? You looking for riches or gold, or a sugar daddy?”
Behind her, Dar chuckled, while examining a round crystal.
“None of the above, actually.” Kerry said. “Ive got everything in the world I need.”
The old woman studied her. “Yes, you know you seem like that.” Marie said, after a pause. “You are someone who has their hearts desire. But it was not always so.”
Kerry felt a faint shiver. “No, that's true.” She said, slowly. “Took me a while to find what I was looking for.”
“Took me about thirty seconds.” Dar commented from her idle browsing. “Came around the corner, stopped in the doorway, done deal.”
“Dar.” Her partner gave her an affectionate look. “C'mere and pay attention to my fortune.”
Dar put down the rock she had been examining and walked the few steps over, seating herself on the second stool and regarding Marie benignly.
“Marie, this is Dar.” Kerry said. “Dar isn't really into palm reading and that sort of thing. She's humoring me.”
Marie studied the taller woman, glancing briefly into Dar's pale, intense eyes. “No, I don't figure that.” She said, with a smile. “You're someone who makes their own future, and needs no telling from me.” She wagged a finger at her. “Not often someone brings a crusader into Marie's store, thats for sure.”
“I'm no crusader. “ Dar chuckled.
“Of course you are.” Kerry disagreed. “We were just talking about that, Dar. A creepy ghost shows up on our balcony and what happens? Do you scream?”
Dar cleared her throat.
Marie watched them with interest. “So you've seen one of our honored guests, have you? Where is that, you said on the balcony?”
“Of our hotel. The Sonesta.” Kerry agreed. “I woke up last night to find my modest friend here facing off against some ghoul outside scaring him off.” She put a hand on Dar's leg, seeing the blush even through her tan. “I freak out about them, Dar just wants to kick their asses.”
“That true?” Marie studied Dar “You know, the departed ain't something you really want to mess with.”
Dar cleared her throat again. “I don't want to mess with them. Assuming they exist. But they also don't scare me, and I'm not going to let them scare her.”
“See, I told you, Marie.” Charles had reappeared in the doorway, with a steaming cup. “That's an old soul you got there.” He came over and took the last stool at the table. “Most times, the departed don't take much interest in the living, you know? They got other things to do. Some of them replay their ends, over and over, some of them don't realize they're gone, so they keep trying to get done whatever they had to do when they died.”
“That's kind of hard for me to wrap my head around.” Kerry admitted. “I had a pretty conservative upbringing.”
“You brought up in the church, that what you mean?” Marie smiled. “My daddy was a preacher, here in N'awlins. Didn't stop him from consorting with the spirits. He used to hire out for exorcisms. Made some good money at it.”
Kerry blinked at her. “Exorcisms?”
“Sure.” The old woman said. “You got people who come here, and buy them a house, you see? Old houses, and they like that, cause they're pretty. But they find out there's creaks and bangs, and stuff moving round, and hearing voices, so they call up the local priest, and he takes care of all that.”
“Really?” Dar asked.
“Honey, I seen things. I done grew up in this town, and things I seen, you can believe or not believe but I don't doubt.” Marie said, firmly. “You said yourself, you saw something last night. You know what it was?”
Dar considered the question seriously. “No, I don't know. But it looked like a tall male figure, wearing an old style hat, and a trench coat.” She said. “Couldn't see a face, just the outline.” She paused. “I thought it was someone trying to break in our room at first.”
“Ah huh.” Marie frowned. “You sure it wasn't?”
“If it was, he jumped off the balcony after I went to the window.” Dar replied. “There was a big crack of thunder and lightning, blinded me a little, then he was gone.”
Marie and Charles exchanged looks. “They got some ghosts up at that Sonesta, but the ones I heard, ain't' like that one.” Charles said, slowly. “They got the library ghost, and the butler one, walks up and down those big stairs they do have, and then the cook what done hung himself in the kitchen. They don't like to be in that kitchen after hours.”
Marie nodded. “That tall one, that sounds new.” She said.
“Is it possible it was just imagination?” Kerry asked. “We took that night ghost tour earlier in the night.”
“Could be.” Marie said. “You all see anything on the tour? Some of that, you know, ain't all together on the up and up.” Her eyes twinkled a little. “We got a living to make, after all.”
Charles chuckled. “That rooftop woman, and then do have a projection they do in the garden.”
“That's fake?” Kerry's eyes widened. “Really?”
Dar patted her leg, and grinned. “There ya go, babe. I figured there was a logical answer.”
Kerry felt, suddenly, like she'd been cheated. “Wow. That's a bummer.” She said. “So I guess they were probably blowing cold air down your neck from that alley.” She looked chagrined. “But I don't get it.. you said before that ghosts were real, and that New Orleans was full of them. Why would they need to fake it?”
“Well now..” Charles put his cup down.
“Because ghosts don't perform on schedule.” Dar said. “And those tours depend on people seeing them.”
Marie lifted her hands and put them back down. “All those stories have a grain of truth, see.” She said. “But like your crusader friend here says, you can't depend on them. Those tour companies, they need consistent visions so that people get on the Internet.. you know the Internet?”
Both Dar and Kerry chuckled. “We're familiar with it.” Dar said. “But I get it. People see those things, and take pictures and that kind of thing, and the word spreads.” She added. “Good marketing.”
“Yes.” Marie said. “But this thing you saw? That's new to me. You?” She looked at Charles.
“Never heard of that one.” He agreed. “So what you say, Marie? You going to tell these ladies their fortunes?”