Chapter 111

Marinette's P.O.V:

"I'll pick you up at the old antique shop after school then?" Damian asked as he was getting into his car shortly after breakfast.

"Yep." I smiled brightly at him. "Don't forget about me."

"I would never." He reached out of the window to give me a brief kiss. "See you soon, Angel."

"Bye, Damian. Love you."

"Love you too."

"Well then." Alfred spoke up from behind me shortly after Damian was gone. "When shall we be leaving so you can meet up with your class?"

"Chloe just said that the class will be getting on the bus in about five minutes so whenever you think is best."

"We should be leaving now then." Alfred gestured for me to follow. "Let us be off."---------"Wow. Showing up in style, huh?" Alya said as I exited the limo.

"I would have ridden here with Jason but then he might have been inclined to stay with me." I joked. "This is a girl's day after all." I turned around to wave at Alfred as he left. "Where are the boys anyways?" I asked when I turned back to my friends.

"They went to the arcade across the street." Alix pointed towards the arcade. "My guess is that they will be there until lunch time.

"And they will be joining us for lunch too." Rose spoke up. "That's our meeting point so Madame Mendeleiev can do a head count. She's not letting us run free completely."

"That makes sense." I nodded. "So, what do you gals want to do first?"

"I want to go in there." Juleka pointed to a shop whose windows were filled to the brim with crystals and herbs and cauldrons of all shapes and sizes.

"Oh, cool!" Alix smiled at the shop window. "Are we going to practice witchcraft?"

"That's just ridiculous." Chloe shook her head but followed the girls inside anyways.

"Welcome, ladies." A woman at the counter spoke up. She had long platinum blonde hair that went just past her waist and piercing grey/blue eyes that seemed to look directly into your soul. Other than that, her clothes were very nondescript. Black jeans, black boots and a black t-shirt. "What can I help you with today?"

"We are just looking around." I smiled brightly at the woman.

The woman's eyes went wide when she looked at me but only for a fraction of a second. I wasn't sure if I had just imagined it or not.

"I'm doing a free fortune reading with the purchase of any crystal if you are interested." She pointed to the back of the room where there was a wall of crystals of all shapes, colors and sizes. "I have a pamphlet here of what each crystal is and what it does if you are interested." She picks up a pamphlet off the stack on the counter.

"Awesome." Juleka smiled as she takes the pamphlet from the woman.

"If you have any questions don't be afraid to ask." Her eyes dance around the room to every face before they land back onto mine. "I'm Violet by they way but you can just call me Vee."

"Thanks." Alya says as she begins to look around the shop.

"What even is all this stuff?" Chloe ask as she eyes the candles lit all around the room.

"I don't know but the crystals are so pretty!" Rose speaks up. "I wonder what the pink ones mean?"

"That's Rose Quartz." The Vee spoke up, clearly hearing the question. "It promotes unconditional love, forgiveness, infinite peace and compassion."

"Oh, wow. That's totally perfect for you, Rose!" Alya says.

"If you would like, I could help you all find crystals that would help you along on your journey." Vee offers.

"That actually sounds pretty fun." Alix turns to everyone. "What do you think?"

"I guess we can do that." Chloe shrugs.

"Follow me." Vee steps out from behind the counter and over to the wall of crystals. She stares at Alya for a moment before picking up a small and smooth purple and green stone. "This is Fluorite." She hands it to Alya. "It promotes focus, intuition and understanding. It helps bring chaos into order, promoting stability, free thinking and clear unbiased reasoning. Something tells me that this is what you need."

"Yeah." Alya nods blankly at the stone. "That is kind of perfect."

"And Rose Quartz for you." Vee hands the stone to Rose. "There is a reason this one caught your eye." She winks at the tiny blonde.

"Oh, do me next!" Alix says with excitement.

"Hmm." Vee stares at her for a moment. "You are a strange one. It seems like time cannot contain you." She grins. "Here." She reaches behind her to grab a clear crystal that almost looks like a piece of ice. "This is a Leumarian Seeded Crystal. These hold a blessing of unconditional love as the earth enters into a new vibration. They show us how to move beyond boundaries and learn about ourselves from the past, reawakening the spirit and giving us self-belief so that we can reach our full potential."

"Whoa... Cool!" She smiles as she turns the crystal over in her hand.

"Can I go next?" Juleka asks.

"Of course." Vee doesn't even look at the wall of crystals as she grabs a perfectly circular small golden stone. "This is a Golden Calcite. Its uplifting energy brings joy, optimism, light heartedness and self-confidence into your life."

Juleka doesn't say anything but only stares at the honey golden stone.

Vee looks at Chloe next. She grabs a stone off of the wall and places it in her hand.

Chloe looks at it with disgust before speaking up. "This is just a little shiny black pebble."

"That's one way of looking at it." Vee nods. "But that is a black Tourmaline. It's a very supportive stone that protects us from external influences, dispersing stress, tension and negative energy. It will help ground you to the light in your own body and promote wisdom, mastery, individuality, stability, courage and patience. Despite its ordinary look, it's quite extraordinary."

"Oh." Chloe nods. "I guess black is a very flattering color. It can go with anything, really."

"Yes... it is." Vee nods along with her before turning her attention back to me. She stares at me for only a second before walking over to the other end of the wall to pick up a beautiful clear stone with blackish/ grey clouds and specks peppered throughout. "Now this stone reminds me specifically of you but I do not think it would be specifically helpful to you."

"I'm confused. What do you mean?" I ask.

"You are far beyond needing any sort of help from a crystal. You are strong enough without them and do not need it. The aura around you is strong and bright." She hands me the crystal anyways.

"Then why would I want this?"

"It's not for you. It's for your significant other. That is a Tibetan Quartz."

"Why would I need to give this to my significant other?"

"You have found someone that either of you cannot live without. A soulmate perhaps?" Vee smiled when I perk up at the word. "His aura must mirror your own, but in the opposite side of the spectrum. He will certainly become lost again without you. The Tibetan Quartz is among the most powerful stones. Carrying or wearing one of these creates a bubble of light around the body allowing only positive energy to penetrate your aura."

"And we all know how much the 'Ice Prince' could use some positivity." Chloe jokes.

"Ice Prince?" Vee raises her eyebrows in surprise for a moment. "That makes so much more sense now." She nods in approval at me. "Well if you decide to buy those, I would be glad to do your readings in my back room." She points to a doorway with a curtain of beads blocking the view.

"I'm totally buying this." Alix says with excitement.

"Let me ring you up." Vee walks back to the checkout counter.

After everyone buys their crystals, Vee calls them back one by one starting with Rose.

"I'm still not convinced that this all isn't just one big scam." Chloe says once Vee and Rose are out of the room.

"Then why did you buy that 'shiny black pebble' then?" Alix smirks.

"Curiosity?" Chloe shrugs.

"You have to admit that she was spot on with her assessments though." Alya said. "Is that really a coincidence?"

"I guess we'll see." I smile.---------I watched as everyone else was called back. Rose had exited with a smile on her face whereas others like Chloe exited with no emotion whatsoever. I had no idea what Vee had told the others and they didn't seem inclined to share. Eventually though, I was finally called back.

The back room was lit solely by a variety of candles all around the room. I was expecting a crystal ball or tarot cards but Vee just sat at a small circular table with only two chairs pushed up to it.

"Have a seat." Vee pointed to the chair across from her.

I wasted no time taking the seat. I looked back up at Vee only to see her staring intently at me in return.

"I've never seen anyone quite like you before."

"What do you mean? Is that a good thing?" I asked.

"It's like you bend the will of the world around you. You don't bend it in a malicious way... You make things better. You create and fix things. And I think you do it subconsciously sometimes."

"I see." I nod.

"I believe you are inherently lucky and Gotham will continue to benefit from your presence. It's ironic." Vee snorted. "You were in such a dark place before coming to Gotham but in coming to one of the darkest places in the world, you are shining brighter than you ever have before and now Gotham too is beginning to brighten right along with you. Your fate is now forever intwined with Gotham and its people."

"How can you know all of this?" I question.

"I was in central city when it happened to me." Vee smiled. "I'm not really sure what it means but now I seem to know more about the people around me than I do about myself. I was never spiritual before that night but here I am. Now I know more and see more than I should. I still don't understand it but it's benefited me in some ways. I'd imagine actual witches wouldn't like me very much."

"You are a meta-human?" I looked at her in surprise.

"That's my best guess. That's the only thing that could have triggered the change." Vee shrugged. "Do you have any questions you would like to know about yourself?"

"I guess not. Is there something I should know about myself before I leave?"

"You have uncanny instincts. Never second guess yourself." Vee smiles before standing up. "Thank you for stopping by." She led me back out into the main room where all her friends are. "Have a good day everyone." Vee waved as we left the shop.