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"Lighter look, that stall over there!"
The man in question squeezed his eyes almost dramatically, and Belle tried her hardest to not laugh. After a brief silence, he finally spoke, "A fortune teller?"
"Yup! Must be from the Throne Quarter, I heard they have an event to introduce their unique culture," She was full of excitement, her teal eyes sparkled in the fading sunlight. Although Belle hadn't even asked Lighter to go there with her yet, that was enough of a sign for him, "Let’s check it out then, I'm a bit curious too." Their hands intertwined, naturally, as the two walked to the stall.
She only grew more enthusiastic standing in front of it. "Aw, a dog is managing this! Just like Howl at Sixth Street," exclaimed Belle while looking for its approval of petting. Lighter studied the wooden sign hanging next to them. "'Shake the turtle-like tool for a while, then open its shell. Read the meaning of your divination result below.'"
By the time he finished reading, Belle was already holding the turtle in her hands. "I wonder what my result will be," her voice dropped before she could help it, "it won't be a bad one, right?" She knew this was just another game of luck and probabilities, much like what she had played at Box Galaxy. But needless to say, everybody wants their fortune to be good, and she was no exception.
"Don't worry, whatever the result will be, it's no match for you. You're the best manager in New Eridu after all," Lighter's firm voice rang out beside Belle, and she could feel her anxiety ease off in an instant. She took a deep breath, smiling brightly as usual, "Of course, here I go!"
After a while of being vigorously shaken, the turtle was finally put down on the table. Belle took off its shell in a hurry, "Two lightnings, one... sun?" She scanned the paper next to it. "That means neutral." It was neither bad nor good. She should just take it with a grain of salt, yet a sense of unease still bubbled up in her.
Belle didn't spot the black glove extended to her right away. "Manager, come on, give me your hand," Lighter looked and sounded serious, as if he was going into combat with what was bothering her. Just seeing him like this lifted her mood up already, and she grinned while putting her right hand in his left.
He swiftly flipped it on its back, revealing Belle's palm, before writing on it with his other hand. It all happened in quick succession, and she was too busy noticing the rough feeling of leather, the warmth radiating from his fingertip even though the glove was in the way, to pay attention to what Lighter wrote. When he finished, her hand was brought close to his face and Belle swore her heart could've exploded if she hadn’t been careful.
Lighter leaned towards the hand he was still holding, his sunglasses slipped down a bit with the movement. It seemed like he had no intention of adjusting it as he always did, only letting the bare, muted emerald eyes with burning red pupils gaze at her intensely yet softly. For a split second, Belle really thought he was going to kiss her palm since it was dangerously close to his lips, but nothing happened. Her poor hand was released from the sweet torture at last.
"Alright, a blessing from the Undefeated Champion should work better than any fortune," Lighter's tone was gentle and calm, way too calm for what he had just done. In a silent daze, Belle found herself awed at that ability of his, just as she had done countless times before. "...What did you write anyway?"
He finally put the sunglasses back to their original position, "'Good luck'. It was simple, I know, but what matters is the intention, yeah?" Something told Belle he wasn’t being completely honest, but she decided not to push it. "Thanks, Lighter," she returned his smile, "you didn’t have to do so much because of a fortune-telling game."
"It’s fine, I just wanted to," reassured Lighter as he looked at the parking lot some distance away. "It’s getting late, let me take you back before Wise starts worrying," and Belle happily agreed.
Perhaps she would never get to know what he really wrote, but that's okay. Belle does enjoy a little mystery, after all, and she already received her own special blessing in the form of a man named Lighter.