THE MOMENT
Francine was normal as far as anyone else knew. It was her alter ego, Lucinda the Seer, that everyone lined up to see when she was working. Thanks in part to her gift itself, she successfully crafted a persona that no one would have ever associated with the mousey, quiet woman. Even emerging from 'Lucinda's Drawing Room', no one ever considered her more than another patron hopeful to learn her fate. And, she'd built the business with an intrinsic air of mystery so that she could walk out even if people suspected Lucinda was the only one in the room.
There was only one entrance that also served as the only exit, and there were carefully marked lines woven between a maze of curtains so that no one knew who was ahead or behind them. Any visitor to Lucinda the Seer could only stand in line and wait their turn without any other external indicators. When Lucinda closed for the day, people were turned away with no sense of how close or far away they were. It'd taken years for her patrons to fall in line; but, she always knew they would. By now, everyone accepted the system with the understanding that a woman who could see the future was allowed her quirks.
It was as simple as waiting a few minutes after her last guest, then putting a closed sign on the door and walking out, without the wardrobe encumbrance that was 'Lucinda'.
However, it wasn't solely to keep her identity hidden. The way she structured the line so that she couldn't see anyone unless they were before her was a necessary part of using her gift. Francine was clairvoyant from a young age, and over the years of use, it seemed like her ability landed in a 'stuck on' position. She considered herself fortunate that she didn't actually 'SEE' anyone's future in the way she marketed it.
Francine could foresee the patterns of a person just by looking at them. There were no visuals, but it was more of a knowing. In the same way someone might see a cat playing with a balloon and knowing the most likely outcome, Francine extrapolated someone's future at a glance. She never sold it as anything more than possibility, and that was what made her business so successful. People didn't come to her just to know their future, they came to her to learn how to pick a better one.
She set up shop in a centralized location and she preferred to go out only late at night, and after a day's work. It was more likely that she'd see people she'd seen already, and the rush of sudden 'knowings' was more manageable that way. After closing, she walked out as Francine and headed to the market. Driving was a chore that wasn't worth it to her, and it was one more reason that she chose a centralized home downtown. She walked the two blocks to the grocery store happy to see only a few futures on the way. But, as she reached the store, someone crossed the path ahead of her, and Francine froze.
She was a teenage girl with orange-highlighted white hair just casually skating by on rollerblades; but, Francine's mind went blank. She was used to knowing an uncomfortable amount of things about strangers that she never asked for and tried not to think about. But, she knew how to manage all that information, and she'd gotten better at ignoring things that didn't affect her. And, out of the dozens of futures she saw each day, it was nice to know that almost none of them affected her.
This was different. It wasn't that she didn't know the girl's future, it was like there was a complete lack of future altogether. The empty knowledge was so consuming, she felt like she'd forgotten her own name for a moment. It was like a black hole of time somehow that her clairvoyance couldn't seem to get a handle on. As if she was trying to actively think of 'nothing'. It was too powerful to ignore and she didn't hesitate to change course. Francine had to pick up speed to try and catch up to the girl on skates, and she even called out to her.
"Hello, excuse me!" It was late and there weren't many people around. The girl seemed to know she was being called and spun into a stop as she turned to face Francine rushing up to her.
"Hi, can I help you?" the girl asked.
"Hello," Francine smiled at her as she took a moment to let her breathing settle. She hadn't exerted herself for very long, but it was an exertion nonetheless. While her lungs caught up she took a glance around the block to make sure no one was in earshot at least. "I'm Lucinda the Seer...," she said. It was a big gamble to reveal her secret self after years of careful building; but, she needed to get the teen to understand as soon as possible. And, she hoped the years she spent building 'Lucinda' would work in her favor instead of giving away her identity. Lucinda had a worthy reputation, but the girl smiled.
"Hi Lucinda, I'm Quinn. What's up?" she asked.
"You don't know who I am?" Lucinda asked in Lucinda's voice.
"I'm just passing through," Quinn shrugged. "I'm not from here."
"Oh," Francine was surprised and mildly disappointed. That would only make her revelation harder; but, she had to know more about Quinn. "Well, I guess that's not important, but I can see the future...," she said. And, again, she was surprised. She was already trying to determine how she could prove it if she couldn't see Quinn's future, but the girl smiled.
"Neat. So... what can I help with?" she asked.
"You don't believe me?" It was a question because Francine honestly couldn't tell.
"I'm sorry," Quinn shook her head. "It's not often I get to have a night to myself and do nothing. Does it matter if I believe you? What do you need?" she asked. Her tone was dry and she made it clear she was ready to leave if Francine didn't need help.
"It kind of does...," Francine nodded. "... I can see the future, but I can't see yours and I want to know why."
"Oh, Well, I believe you now," Quinn smirked. "Why were you looking at my future?" she asked. She accepted Francine's explanation and even engaged her with another question. She was willing to take a turn answering.
"I can't help it.. it's a gift... and a curse," Francine sighed.
"Oh, bummer," Quinn nodded with a sincere tone. "But, I guess that also answers your question," she said.
"Huh?" Francine asked. "How?"
"Well, you're not the only clairvoyant/psychic/fortune teller in existence, right? Some people can control it better than others, but there are plenty that still get nosy even with that control."
"You're... like me?" Francine asked. But, Quinn shook her head.
"No, I'm just saying there are plenty of people like you," she said.
"I don't understand...," She was still feeling the effects of Quinn's unseen future and her mind was kind of clouded.
"Well, I mean, people are people...," Quinn shrugged. "I'm not comfortable with strangers trying to pry into my future, so, I just keep my timestream on 'Private'."