Chapter 2 : Dementors and Patronuses

Breaking up is like having your soul sucked by dementors. The experience will continue to suck the life out of you until you find a thought happy enough to conjure a patronus that is strong enough to protect you. Not all love stories are as grim as mine. I find it nicer when the problem doesn't lie on the people who are actually in love but the circumstances and people around them. Take Jiao Hua and Joseph for example. They are perfectly compatible with each other- Well that is, if you don't take into consideration Jiao's conservative Chinese family and Joseph's rebel background, everything would have been perfect.

Jiao Hua is a gay Chinese man who is in a secret relationship with big man Joseph. I have been considering Jiao as a woman for a long time now because that is what he wishes. Therefore, from the very start, I have always referred to him as "her."

Jiao tried to open up to his parents about Joseph by referring to him as "Joanna." His parents were quite happy with it until the time they actually asked about his age. Joseph was 28 years old and Jiao was 19 during that time. A nine year age gap was hell bad according to popular Chinese belief. They said that it will bring their relationship bad luck. Without even trying to know "Joanna," they disapproved of the relationship and asked Jiao never to see "her" again.

Of course they didn't let that ruin what they had. They dated in secret. They are occasionally caught by Jiao's evil butler- whom I'm assuming to be a part of the Chinese mafia because of his many connections.

One more thing about Joseph was- he was actually married before to a woman. Because he is a buff rebel and a former juvenile delinquent, and Jiao's butler automatically dismisses him- even if he thought that they were only friends. The butler, "manang," Was convinced that Joseph was a bad influence to Jiao- partly because Jiao told him that Joseph was the one who introduced him to Joanna. His parents also hate Joseph. They also made Jiao swear never to meet him again. Its kinda weird for me since I know that they are trying to ban the same people out of their son's life. Well at least their story is not tragic and boring. I'll give them that.

Chapter 1 : Divination Night

Fortune nooks night. Justinia, the potions master took the liberty of making me my nomen potion for the night. A nomen potion is a drink that will make you emotionally numb. I need it to keep myself stable- as a blast of my emotions could put a lot of people in jeopardy.

Here in the fortune nooks, the oracles are given a title that depends on their specialization in magic. We have the Brahmas, the Vishnus and the Shivas. The Brahmas are people who can create new types of creatures at will. They have the power to amalgamate any living creature or plant and make them their soldiers. Vishnus have the power to see the past, present and future and Shivas, the most dangerous kind of all, has the power to destroy anything at will and drown the whole universe into oblivion. Probably you know now why I have to drink a nomen potion. I am a Shiva- one of the only three existing on earth.

AHAE is an organization that protects the fortune nooks. It is secretly disguised as an otaku hub so that the weapons that they always carry will be taken for as mere costumes. The protectors are called the pujaris.

The head Brahma in the organization is Mara. She is a from a family line of divination masters. Jiao Hua is a Vishnu.  In the world today, there are three existing oracles per kind. Mara found me and Jiao Hua and we helped her in founding this organization.

--

Mara is a Brahma that specializes in creating Chaemeras. She creates new animals by summoning them and combining them to form a creature that can be used for combat. As I was watching her play with her new creature friends, Joseph, the pujaris suddenly jumped in front of me to greet me hello. He was looking for Jiao Hua.

Ahoy! He said with a grin. Have you seen me lady?

I gave him a surprised look. " You two are a couple already? Wow that was fast."

"Well, not yet." He said. I was just wondering if I could invite her to dinner.

"Oh. Well her her parents already picked her up. You should have popped up earlier. "

"Oh, I see." He said in a disappointed tone. "Well, off I go! See you!"

Jiao Hei peeped behind the stack of wooden boxes. "Is he gone?" She whispered. I nodded silently. Its not like she didn't like him, its just that, she needed to practice her skills as a Shiva. The most she can do now is three readings in a week and if she tries after that, she passes out for a day or two. It is not really healthy.

"Do me a reading." I said.

"I only do present readings." She said. "Don't ask me anything about the future."

"Fine."

She looked into my eyes and tried to see. "That boy." She said. "You are still vastly affected by his treason."

"I know. How can I make it disappear? "

She took out her cards and did me a tarot reading. Her cards said that I need to regain my sense of wonder and open myself to new possibilities that is beyond what I already see and know.

I didn't understand. I walked away and went into my room. I slept with pangs of confusion in my chest.

Introduction

I don't need a boy in a shining armor. I want a man who can fight side by side with me, as a warrior fighting with another warrior in this battle to conquer all the trials and tribulations that this life has to offer. I need a man who can stand alone, but chooses to fight alongside me because he wants to. I wouldn't mind seeing a lot of battle scars and I wouldn't mind seeing only a few. What matters most to me is how he smiles and stands up every time he falls down to fight again. I would probably find that very attractive- though a pinch of vulnerability wouldn't hurt either.  A man whose principles I can understand. A man of courage, humility and honor who takes responsibility for his actions like the honorable man he is.  

Time for school.

I turned on the lights and got up to get ready. They say that I am a man in a woman's body. I don't really care what they think. I wore my shorts, I wore my boots, I wore my tank top and braided my hair like a crown.  I grabbed my backpack and hurried off outside.

Ding! Ding! Ding!

The school bell just rang and I barely made it in time. The professor in our sea 30 subject was preparing a film showing for our class. Shuffling my cards in boredom, I turned to Dan to ask him for a piece of paper. I doodled our lecture so that I could remember it better. After class, I ate with Dan and Louis in the nearby Cafeteria called Casa's.

I went to our group's hut to spend the the afternoon. There I met with Sherry and Paulito. We went to the mall to get some groceries for our Anime Organization's fundraising event.

Paulito you fag! Sherry yelled.

Paulito likes her very much and I like how these two seem to deny their emotions every time we are together. Paulito likes to hold my hand every time Sherry is there and Sherry tries to hide her jealousy every time. Such cute. Much denial.

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I have been cheated on by my ex-boyfriend a month ago. We have been together for three years.  Since then, I closed myself off to a lot of guys like a woman chained to a tower she built herself in. My name is Anemone. I am a college student and I belong to an organization called Association of Hobbyists and Anime Enthusiasts ( AHAE). I am one of the co-founders of a group within the organization called Fortune Nooks and I am a certified divination master.

Now. Lets get on with my story shall we?