Werelord Thal: A Renaissance Werewolf Tale by Tracy Falbe

robes flowed around her body and she held a
staff of crystals. Above her, berry-laden rowan boughs hung down
from a sunburst-filled blue sky. She wore a crown of blue
flowers.
    Emerald said, “This is the High Priestess.
You must have secret knowledge. Seeing the Priestess right after
the death card means you’ve gone through great change and will in
time understand more about it.”
    She spoke with confidence, and Thal wanted to
be comforted by her apparent authority.
    Emerald added, “The Priestess tells you that
women will influence your life.”
    “Like my mother?” Thal said.
    “Mothers influence all lives,” Emerald
said.
    “Yes, but is she alive?” he asked.
    The question flustered Emerald. Spreading her
hands, she said, “This is not something the cards can tell, but if
you ask that question you must have reason to think she might not
be alive.”
    “She could be old,” Thal muttered. His heart
ached. He wanted to see his mother.
    Emerald waited patiently while he stared into
space. His eyes gleamed in the darkness and she wondered what
secrets he beheld.
    Softly she advised, “The Priestess is ruled
by the moon. When next it is full will be the best time for you to
gain your secret knowledge.”
    Thal nodded and drew another card. He turned
over a man in heavy armor upon a prancing white horse with a
flowing mane. Instead of a lance he bore a large chalice.
    “Oh that’s a promising thing to see after the
Priestess,” Emerald said. “The Knight of Cups brings you exciting
changes, maybe even romantic love,” she hinted with a bawdy
tone.
    “And that’s a good thing?” Thal asked. He
understood that he was feeling physical attraction to women but
romance was presumably more desirable.
    The Gypsy lady grinned and said, “In the
beginning it’s always good, but the Knight also bears a warning
that you could be easily led astray. I know that when a girl gets a
man’s heart, she can be very demanding and selfish just for her own
fun. Beware of that if you want to be happy.”
    Thal appreciated how the older woman was
helping him think about these confusing things.
    Emerald turned over a new card. “The Tower,”
she whispered. “I’ve never seen so many powerful signs over one
man. You’ve experienced great loss or will soon know ruin. You must
be careful, my friend Thal,” she said with much sincerity.
    “Should I be afraid?” he wondered. His future
was a blank canvas and he had no paints to color it.
    “Have courage and be ready for change,”
Emerald said.
    Having much to think about, he said, “Enough
of this.”
    “One more card,” Emerald said.
    Without his permission, she flipped a card. A
naked man and woman were embraced in a garden with birds singing
around their heads. “The Lovers,” she said and smiled.
    “So I will find a lover,” he said.
    “Oh, a young man like you will have no
trouble finding a lover,” Emerald said. “But this card means more
than just the pleasure of flesh. The Lovers tell you to be guided
by your feelings when you make important choices.”
    “I feel that I should think on what you have
told me,” he said.
    She tapped the top of the deck. “Want to see
another card?” she coaxed.
    “No.”
    “But we might discover your next steps in
life,” she said.
    He yawned. The day had been long and
stimulating. The moon had set and the darkness felt safe and
restful.
    “I’ve had enough for now,” he insisted.
    “Very well,” she said, disappointed.
    “I think you want to learn more about me than
I do,” Thal scolded.
    “You’re a very interesting man to read,” she
admitted. “The tarot cards seem to fit you more closely than other
people.”
    Thal fingered the edge of the Priestess card
that was still in front of him. “Do these cards tell the future for
other people?” he asked.
    “More or less,” Emerald said dodgingly.
    “And do they pay you to tell them what they
mean?” he said.
    She nodded.
    “What do you want of me?” he