The glass coffee table between the couch and fireplace in the living room served as the showcase for Jack's impending doom. The mix of Christmas and Yule decorations brought little comfort with each flip of a card. The Devil grimaced at him from the center, surrounded by other familiar faces and what looked suspiciously like glitter made of stars and moons.

He pulled his eyes away to take in how comfortable Candace looked, sprawled across the floor between a couple of sparkly throw pillows. The fireplace glowed behind her, giving her hair an ethereal quality.

He wanted to curl up in a loveseat beside a fireplace and listen to someone reading a book. He looked back at the tarot spread and rolled his eyes when the King of Pentacles made an appearance. Even though he had seen her shuffle the cards, he wouldn't be surprised if Candace found a way to throw the smug looking bastard of a card into the mix.

Candace flipped the final card in the spread and let out a fast puff of air before looking up. "You're not going to like what I have to say."

"When do I ever like what these stupid cards say?" Jack grumbled.

"He doesn't mean it, he's just stressed," she said to the stack of cards still in her hand. She adjusted her position between her pillows, straightening her posture and taking on her official tarot voice. "The future holds many—"

"Can we just get this over with? Why's the devil after me?" He looked away from Candace's frown.

"The Devil is not after you."

"Fine. Bad luck or whatever. Sam already warned me about it."

Candace shook her head and shot a frustrated pout in the direction of the kitchen. "Change." She narrowed her eyes and raised her voice. "Jack needs to be prepared for change!"

"The weird vase on the fireplace!" Sam shouted back.

Candace looked up at the fireplace mantle in confusion. "The change urn? No, that's not… Whatever," she mumbled before turning her attention back to Jack. "Simply put, change is in the air for you."

"That doesn't make me feel better. I've had enough change. But I see that Kieran card is hanging out over there, so… Yeah." He looked away as he trailed off, attempting to hide his embarrassment by pulling TC onto his lap.

"Being associated with him will bring change. He could help you break free from your past," she replied, tapping one card then the next. She paused and tilted her head, running her eyes over the spread. "Or… No. This makes sense. Anyway, are you talking to him again?"

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"Yeah. We're gonna try being friends. Which is a total mistake, but, hey, let's make it together!" Jack said, using TC's arms to emphasize. The tightness in his chest loosened as TC's head bumped against his chin. "Y'know? Bonding over being stupid."

"So we're not mad at him anymore?" Candace asked, tone light and overly nonchalant.

"No, I'm not mad-mad at him," he glumly admitted. "Yes, you can go shopping without guilt."

"Great!" She clapped her hands together before pointing back to the spread. "Now, what you should be wary of is the reversed Six of Wands. Pride and—"

"Prejudice?"

"Punishment, actually." She grinned as Jack looked away, grimacing.

"I haven't done anything! Who wants to punish me?" A flash of Augie mentioning his particular way of finding sexual partners popped into his head. He could recall Kieran teasing about something similar, and the whole thing put him on edge. A change to his life would be to cut out vampires entirely.

"Not like that. It's more abstract. Upright, it represents success, so reversed it represents…" Candace smiled as she waited for Jack’s response and tilted her head forward to prompt him.

"Being full of yourself? So if I end up being successful in something, then I shouldn't take it for granted and gloat about it," he said, watching Candace’s smile slip into amusement. He thought it was a good interpretation. It was broad and good advice for everyone. "Otherwise, karma will come and kick my ass?"

Candace sighed as she shook her head. "You're missing the point, but you're getting there. For the most part. Unless…" She glanced back down at the spread, her brow furrowing. "Sorry. All the pieces are here, and they make sense, but I wanna say something else."

"I need to take a long walk off a short pier. Got it." It would certainly be easier than anything else the cards had in store for him.

"No. Just be mindful of your decisions and think ahead."

"And we all know how good I am with that."

"I think you're doing well," Candace said encouragingly as she leaned forward and patted Jack’s hand. "You're a little mopey, but, overall, you seem a little more…there. Present. You still zone out sometimes, but you catch yourself. I really think this whole journaling thing is helping!"

Jack was caught off guard by the observation. He didn’t think he’d been that bad. "How much did I zone out before?"

"Enough for it to be noticeable. Look, we all deal with trauma in different ways, and I'm so happy that you found a better outlet rather than just pretending the problem isn't there and potentially exacerbating it," she replied as she gathered up her cards.

"So confronting this shit is healthier. I still feel like a crappy borderline shut-in."

Candace glanced up and shrugged.

If anyone would be open to the fact that his memory issues were supernatural-based, it would be Candace. Her smile was open and inviting, and the temptation to spill everything was clawing at Jack’s throat to get to the tip of his tongue.

If he confessed about Kieran, then he would need to mention Benoit. It wasn't his place to out one of the few people who had shown him nothing but kindness. He dropped his eyes to the table and leaned back as he stared at the Six of Wands before it was collected.

Taking the mask back to Kieran was going to bite him on the ass, but it had to be done. There was no way he could keep it without it meaning anything significant.

image [https://i.imgur.com/eZY0YUq.png]