Фрау Маман

“Everyone rest your hands upon the planchette lightly and clear your mind.”
I nervously place my hands on the creamy plastic and feel the hairs on the back of my neck raise. As we sit like this for many minutes, I notice my skin prickling, and feel a sheen of sweat around my hairline. I look nervously around and see everyone with their eyes closed and I glance at the candle and see the light begin to intensify, and I swear I can hear it flicker.
I am reassured when I realize it’s the ecstasy beginning to work and begin to relax, enjoying the warmth, scents and lights. I was happily obsessing over the sound of my own breathing and It felt like ages before Kayla spoke again, her velvety voice breaking the reveried state of my mind.
“Spirits, welcome,” she begins. “Is anyone here?”
Nothing happens for a minute and then we jump slightly as the planchette begins to glide smoothly around the board. Startled, I look up at everyone’s faces with their darting, frightened eyes. The window of the planchette lands firmly on YES.
Kayla looks at us and nods reassuringly, as she must have forecast a mutiny from Ouija for the night. “What do you want?” she asks the board.
My eyes widen as I feel my hands be led quickly around and the sound of it gliding is inherently eerie and so amplified by that little pink pill. It quickly spells out Erik.
Erik promptly takes his hands off and stares at all of us in turn. “You guys are fucking with me.”
We shake our heads, but no one puts their hands back on the board. Juniper looks specifically perturbed, her eyes darting around. Kayla seems to sense this as well and she quickly boxes it up and stows it back in her purse. “Maybe too spooky while on drugs,” she concedes.
I nod. “I’m feeling it,” I hadn’t even realized it, but I was stroking my own arm, enjoying both the feeling and the motion. Everything was coming over me in waves, and I sighed and laid back on the couch. I looked at the ceiling which felt alive, but it was beautiful and somehow not alarming. The fan was hypnotic, like each leaf of it was pushing quenching, cool air onto my warmed face in prismatic slow motion.
“Me too,” Juniper says. “I feel like there are 50 fingers caressing me.”
“You know they say that the Bloody Mary legend started here in town,” I say absentmindedly, barely recognizing the cadence of my own voice. It sounds magical.
“That thing where you go into a dark bathroom and say her name and she appears.”
“I think that’s one of those legends that everyone thinks came from their hometown,” Erik points out, raising an eyebrow at me.
“I know, but really in this case,” I smile. “Like really really.”
“What happens when she appears?” Juniper asks, eyes wide, highlighting her angelic features.
“Nothing good,” Kayla answers as she absentmindedly strokes my hair. “Your hair is so soft and smells like cinnamon rolls.”
“Thank you!” I cry. “You’re so beautiful.” It all seems so natural as we sit here, giggling compliments to one another.
“Let’s do it,” Juniper suddenly says, her body straightening rapidly.
“I’m trying to,” Erik groans from her other side. “But I’m starting to be afraid that Kayla will get to her first.”
We all laugh, except Juniper. She stares straight ahead, strangely humorlessly. “Let’s do the Bloody Mary thing.”
“I don’t even want to move,” I tell her, quite sincerely. I just want to sit here and touch Erik and enjoy the candlelight.
“I want to do it,” she says firmly, eyes not focusing, but mouth set stubbornly.
“I don’t think it’s a good idea,” Kayla says, staring at Juniper with motherly concern. “Are you having a bad trip?”
Juniper shakes her head. “No, I just want to do it.”
Erik looks over at her, worry furrowing his brow. “Are you ok, Juni? You’re acting strangely. Do you need to go to bed?”
“No!” she roars, making us all jump and look uneasily at one another.
“Fine,” I finally say, not enjoying the concept, but also feeling a bit anxious to have her satisfied so we can move on with our night. I stare at her expectantly as she slowly nods, her eyes looking dark, despite their light blue hue. “Kayla?”
“No,” Kayla says cautiously, watching Juniper keenly. “I don’t think it’s a good idea.”
“You can leave then,” Juniper says plainly as she still stares straight ahead, as if Juniper had signed off for the night, and here was some strange and surly wench in her stead. Her eyes and demeanor are scaring me and feel I may have made a mistake agreeing.
“Hey, you’re freaking out, Juniper,” Kayla tells her firmly, ignoring the rude statement. “You’re having a bad trip but it’ll back off, I promise. Let’s get you some water, turn on the lights and change the subject.”
Juniper ignores her and stands up. “Come on, Kat.” She motions towards me and I stumbled up, not wanting to anger her further. It takes me a minute to register standing on my feet and I start giggling. I looked at Juniper, whose face is still all business.
“Let’s do it in the upstairs bathroom,” Juniper says, striding quickly.
“Your parents will hate me if they find out I mentioned this ‘devil game’ and did it with you,” I say, willing my feet to catch up with her. They feel like they aren’t working and I’m having tunnel vision, but somehow it isn’t unpleasant.
“I’m not telling them,” she says as she ascends the stairs easily. I am shocked at how able she is to tackle them if she is feeling half of what I am.
As we reach the blackened bathroom, she pauses to light a candle which she cups