Major Arcana: Sex, Love, and Tarot

They were a colorful, loud, argumentative clan, and Rosemary realized then how much she loved them all.

Esmeralda dashed right up and squeezed Rosemary's mom in a tight hug. "You must be Peggy Miller! We're just delighted to meet you!"

Mom hadn't gone by her given name, Peggy, for years. Parsley stifled a laugh behind her hand at their mother's look of dismay. Catching Rosemary's eyes, they both grinned wide. Mom had requested to be introduced as Rainbow Willow awhile back; who knows what she went by these days. Her hippie persona had been ripped away by her old-fashioned name, and now Peggy was at a loss. Though he couldn't understand, Rosemary thought she caught a hint of a smile on his dignified face, also.

"Welcome to the family," Mom said, once recovered. "You've met my Rosemary, of course. Her twin brother, Thyme; my oldest, Parsley; and Sage, in from New York. And this is my husband, Esteban."

"Oh? Esteban? Y usted...?" Esmeralda queried, gesturing politely to Lorenzo. He introduced himself, and soon the three were busily conversing in Spanish. Esmeralda was delighted. For a moment, she paused the conversation to turn gleaming eyes on Rosemary. "Isn't it wonderful? Together we find so much in common! A Spanish-speaking family. How amazing!"

"Guess I'll be learning Spanish now," Rosemary muttered to Sage.

"Oh, for sure. We should all be bilingual anyway." Sage fluffed her hair and sat back with a sigh. "When will this graduation start? I'm ready for the after party!" She glanced crosswise at Rosemary, then said abruptly, "You aren't pregnant, are you?"

"What! No!" Rosemary twisted her head around, terrified that one of the mothers might have heard. But Peggy was deep in conversation with Sean O'Conner, and Esmeralda was in the middle of what sounded like an entertaining story. Safe for now, thank God.

"Good. Then you can have a sip of this." With a wicked grin, Sage pulled out a mini flask from her jacket pocket. "I sneaked it in. Go on, take a swig. It's the good stuff."

Rosemary was saved from the awkwardness by Pomp and Circumstance. The crowd in the stands quieted down as the professors marched out in their colorful robes, followed by the hundreds of soon-to-be-graduates, trailing in like a line of black bats in their caps and gowns. The School of Fine Arts was near the back of the procession. Of course, Fabricio was easy to spot.

"There he is!" cried Esmeralda, leaping to her feet. "There goes my baby!"

"Shhh! Get down!" hissed Sean, his cheeks coloring, but she didn't listen. Esmeralda waved her arms and jumped up and down until Fabricio finally looked their way. She couldn't see his smile from the distance, but he raised his hand in greeting. His mom sat then, satisfied.

"See?" she told her husband. "Now he knows where we are!"

Sean just shook his head. Turning to Rosemary, he said, "Lucky for you, Fabricio takes after me in temperament. You won't see him making a fool of himself in public."

"Who's making a fool? Aren't you proud of your son? And anyway," added Esmeralda, to Rosemary this time, "Don't think you're getting such a good deal. He can have that Irish temper, you know. Stubborn. Doesn't like to admit he's wrong."

Rosemary smiled. "I know," she said. Thinking back on it, she realized that although they'd only been together for a couple months, she truly did know Fabricio. Their relationship had been condensed; intense and passionate, yet also enduring through uncertainty, misunderstanding, and even betrayal. Yes, she knew him just as well as anyone could know another person. The man she was about to marry. Rosemary looked down at her hands, smiling at the little diamond ring.

With thousands of students to get through, the ceremony became something of a slog. Thyme and Bruce couldn't keep their hands off each other. Parsley and Lorenzo were clearly arguing over some domestic situation, while Sean and Esmeralda were invested in getting to know Peggy better. Only Esteban gave the graduation his full attention, sitting straight as a pole, eyes firmly on the proceedings. Smiling, Rosemary reached out and gave his arm a grateful squeeze. Without looking at her, Esteban nodded. She didn't need to tell him so, but without his advice and gentle confidence, they would likely not be here now. It's funny, she thought, the people who end up having the biggest impact on our lives. Sometimes it's the last person you would ever expect. But it all works out, somehow. That's the beauty of living.

When Fabricio started forward with his college, ready to head up the ramp, get his handshake, and collect his diploma, everyone stood up. Esmeralda cheered hard, but Sean clapped loudest of them all. His eyes were bright with unspoken pride as he watched Fabricio take his place among the graduates.

It was incredibly moving to watch the man she loved being so celebrated. In her family, a university education was a take-it-or-leave it kind of thing; Sage had graduated (and been blasé about walking, to the point where she skipped the ceremony for law school), and so had Thyme, but neither Rosemary nor Parsley had gone any higher than community college. Yet there, standing in the Husky football stadium with Fabricio's parents alongside, Rosemary remembered what a tremendous accomplishment this was. He was the first in his family to graduate college, and that meant something. She was prouder of him than she had ever been of anyone.

At the end of the ceremony, the graduates threw their collective caps and then processed out, leaving their families to mill and bunch in the grandstands. It was half an hour before they finally escaped from the arena, at which point Fabricio's siblings had arrived. Rosemary saw them right away: a group of laughing, joking look-alikes, all with dark hair, some tinged with red. When the youngest girl caught sight of them, she shrieked, and ran over to grab Rosemary in a hug.

"I can't believe I'm going to have another sister! I'm so excited! Do I get to be a bridesmaid?"

"Uh, sure, why not?" said Rosemary, giggling.

"Sofie, leave my fiancée alone!" said Fabricio. Rolling over, he took Rosemary's hand and pulled her down into a long kiss. Somebody whooped. She thought it was a relative, but when Fabricio finally let her go he turned with an expression of shock on his face.

"Chad?! What are you doing here?" he sputtered.

"Graduation, dude! Thought this year I might as well. Place gets old after seven years, y'know?"

"I...uh...wow. Well congratulations. What's your degree?"

"Premed."

"Holy shit." Fabricio's eyes went huge with shock. "Premed? Really?"

"For sure, man! Someone's gotta prescribe the medical cannabis, yo!"

Everyone cracked up at that. Chad was an irredeemable surfer dude; he sauntered off to join his attractive, blond, tan parents, leaving Fabricio shaking his head.

"I thought I'd never see the day," he said through his chuckles. "Kinda steals my thunder."

"Hey, we don't even know that guy. I flew out from California to see you, bro!"

Fabricio smiled again. "Yeah, I know. Thanks, Juan. It means a lot."

The siblings milled around a bit, until Fabricio caught on and said, "Oh! Wow, I forgot you hadn't met Rosemary yet. Rosemary, here they all are, the whole O'Conner clan: Sophia, Mary, Juan, Henry and Patrick. Ma and Dad you've met." Sheepishly, he glanced up at her through shy eyelashes. "Still wanna marry me, after meeting this crazy crowd?"

Rosemary laughed loud, then swooped down and enveloped him in a hug. Her lips were warm against his cheek as she pulled him close. "More than ever," she said.

*

The restaurant that night was jovial. Everyone from both families came, so it served as a sort of engagement dinner—slash—graduation celebration. People happily chatted about wedding plans, graduate school, and family connections, in English and in Spanish. Rosemary held Fabricio's hand the whole time, even during dinner. His face was lit from within, shining with light and bright with devotion. When he leaned over to kiss her after dessert, his lips tasted like crème caramel. Although she had plenty of champagne, Rosemary knew it wasn't the alcohol making her dizzy. She was drunk on emotion, feeling the love radiating toward her from all around. And in the midst of it all: Fabricio, her anchor, her emperor, her love.

It was the next day, when she was packing up her apartment in preparation for the big move, that the Tarot put it all together for her. While stacking her bookshelf in boxes, Rosemary came across the embroidered bag Parsley had given her. In the whirlwind of preparations for Fabricio's graduation, not to mention their super-short-engagement and upcoming wedding, she'd almost forgotten it. The bag was nearly empty now. Only one card remained inside.

She drew it and came face to face with The World. A heavyset woman, ringed with flowers and stars, wearing a beatific smile, danced alone on the sparkling planet. A wild beast was in each corner, like protective spirits. Rosemary knew them right away: they were her family. Fabricio was the proud lion; Thyme, the playful dolphin; Parsley and Mom combined into the steady, reliable bull; and Sage was the sharp-eyed raven. Together, they encircled her, kept her safe and surrounded by love.

Smiling, Rosemary tucked the card away on top of the Tarot deck, before binding it all with a rubber band. Her fool's journey might be finished, but she knew more adventure waited just around the corner. With or without the cards to guide her, Rosemary was off into the wide and wonderful world.

Epilogue

They were married in a little Catholic church on the seventeenth of July. Fabricio's mother took care of all the wedding plans—including, Rosemary was sure, bribing the priest, because surely there was never such a bunch of heathens in the pews. Not to mention the one walking up the aisle, on her twin brother's arm, nervous and elated and floating on air. Her family remained well behaved, however, throughout the long, traditional ceremony. Esmeralda had tears in her eyes the whole time.

Afterwards, everyone went to the community center for the reception. This part, Peggy had designed, and it was like a New Age décor shop had thrown up all over the place. Incense sticks burned on every table; multicolored drapes fluttered in place of doors; tiny statuettes of Buddhas, Hindu gods and goddesses, mystical animals, and God-knows-what-else served as centerpieces. The tablecloths were dark blue, emblazoned with silvery icons from astrology. And prominently displayed, fanned out on each table, were Tarot cards.

It was, quite simply, hilarious.

Once Fabricio's family recovered from the shock, everyone started having a good time. Alcohol flowed with true Irish Catholic abandon; speeches were made; everyone loved the food. Somehow, Thyme had managed to sweet-talk one of his chef friends into catering, and everything was delicious. Parsley knew a photographer pair who usually specialized in artistic nudes, ideally amidst a dripping moss forest, but they had agreed to do a wedding, for a change. Sage, no doubt, had paid.

Their first dance together was Fabricio's choice: Scarborough Fair, by Simon & Garfunkel. Rosemary sat on his lap, laughing as he spun her around the floor, spinning on his wheels, singing along with the old refrain: "And she shall be a true love of mine..." Her secondhand wedding dress whooshed out behind her. Fabricio's eyes locked on hers, and his hands held her firm and strong. This moment, she realized, is perfect.

They moved to Indiana for six years, the length of Fabricio's PhD program. Though she didn't get into the Bachelor of Fine Arts that first fall, Rosemary managed to get accepted the following winter. Together, they saved enough to get through it all with minimal student loans. After graduation, Rosemary found a job teaching art at a local preschool, primarily for professors' children. Those connections, in turn, led to an opportunity to become a high school art teacher. Rosemary loved it from the very first day.

In the meantime, they started their own family. With the help of a technique Rosemary jokingly called the "medically administered turkey baster," two beautiful children were brought into the world: Jane and Cecilia O'Conner. Twins, of course. Both girls had thick black hair and their father's high cheekbones, but they took Rosemary's slim figure and her cheeky button nose. To no one's surprise, Fabricio was the most devoted father anyone could imagine.

When Fabricio was offered a position as Art History professor at Washington State University, he jumped at the chance. Even though the Wazoo Cougars are UW Huskies' eternal rivals. Good-naturedly, he traded purple and gold for gray and crimson, the Dawgs for the Cougs. Pullman was a good town for long-term living; nice schools for the girls, a dynamic community, and plenty of work for Rosemary. She kept busy teaching art, until later on in life, when Fabricio was comfortably installed with his professor's salary. Then, at last, she was ready to break out on her own.

Rosemary's first project as an independent artist was to design a set of Tarot cards. Inspired by her own journey—which had since been framed in order of appearance, and given a permanent place on their bedroom wall—she created a Tarot collection reflecting the diversity and beauty of people she knew. Every character had a story. For her, they became real. When a publisher offered to produce them, she was pleasantly surprised, but delighted. Her hope, she realized, was for other people to have the transformative experience she'd had.

Though the entire deck was well received, The Emperor in particular garnered rave reviews. He was depicted as a strong, mature man, Mayan heritage evident in his sharp cheekbones and deep tan skin. He held an Gaelic-style staff. Shirtless, his defined chest and arm muscles were on display, and his lap was barely covered by a filmy piece of fabric, like a Greek god. But the most remarkable thing about him was his throne: a shining gold wheelchair.

And so, Many Worlds Tarot was born. It became quite popular, in certain circles.