I write obituaries for the gods

tide Lena didn't care; she had no interest in men, and music was everything to her.

She firmly believes that she can use music to break down prejudices and let the world know that Roma people are not thieves, robbers, or liars.

In the blink of an eye, time has flowed by, and year after year has passed. The Roma people's tents have been transformed into small houses, with courtyards filled with artemisia, lavender, and rosemary.

Xilena's band grew increasingly famous, becoming almost a regular at the local carnival.

The Creoles of the French Quarter always invited her to balls, and charming gentlemen tried time and again to win the heart of this beauty.

Among them, a young man named Clement was always quite enthusiastic. He took Xilena to art exhibitions, took her to the most upscale restaurants, and spared no expense in praising Xilena with any kind of praise.

“You are a gift from God to the world, Xileina.” Clement once knelt before the wedding dress and said this.

Fortunately, her brother rushed in just in time and grabbed Xileina, leaving Clement alone in an awkward situation.

"Are Clements animals too?" Xileina looked up at her brother, not annoyed at all.

“Humans are animals, especially those who are powerful,” the brother said. “They don’t love you. In their eyes, you’re just a colorful toy—a delicious gypsy dish.”

My brother is always so pragmatic; he's in charge of negotiating with the inviters and acts as the head of the band.

When he first arrived in New Orleans, he frequently clashed with local gangs, each time ending up covered in blood.

At first, Xileina loved to count the scars on her brother's back, but as she counted, she gradually lost count.

"Stay away from those white people as much as possible; they are not friends," my mother always warned my brother.

However, tide Lena thought Clement was a good person. He spoke gently, had a graceful demeanor, and was always very generous. He didn't seem to mind his brother giving him attitude.

Whenever it was Xileina's birthday, he would always send her a gift: sometimes it was exquisite jewelry, sometimes it was a beautiful dress.

tide Lena wasn't interested in love, but honestly, what young girl could resist those sparkling pieces of jewelry?

Gradually, the family began to integrate into the local society. Except for the old woman who always locked herself in her bedroom, everyone found their own work in the Lower Ninth District.

As time went by, Xilena gradually forgot that she was an outsider, and she began to regard New Orleans as her hometown.

Performing, drinking tea, attending dances—her life was simple and pure, and the labels that worldly conventions had placed on her seemed less obvious.

The calendar quickly turned to 2005.

One evening in August, tide Leina returned from a performance, took a shower, and went back to her bedroom.

As she passed her mother's room, the scent of mugwort wafted through Xileina's hair, accompanied by her mother's soft whispers:

"tide Lena, come in."

tide Lena hesitated for a moment, but still pushed open the door and walked into her mother's bedroom.

As soon as she entered, the colorful ribbons hanging from the ceiling dazzled her. It had been a long time since she had stepped into her mother's bedroom, and everything here was destined to be left behind for her.

Through the light mist, Xileina saw her mother behind the crystal ball, who was gently stroking it with both hands, as if comforting her child.

Xileina hated the crystal ball, or rather, she hated everything that the crystal ball represented.

Nevertheless, she obediently sat down opposite her mother.

“Mom,” Xileina whispered.

“You are a Rombaro now,” Mother’s voice was ethereal and dreamlike. “In our family, you are a big shot, perhaps second only to your brother who shoulders everything.”

"Are you going to give me another prophecy?" Xileina asked, gazing at the clouds in the crystal ball.

Grandma gently shook her head.

“That’s too hopeless,” Mother said softly. “A hurricane will wash away all traces of us, like the mirage city of Macondo. The city will be destroyed, and our family will cease to exist…”

It's started again... tide Leina's thoughts drifted into the distance.

My mother was always like this; she would try to predict the future in front of the crystal ball again and again, but she never succeeded even once.

Doomsday... disaster... those grand prophecies are always all bark and no bite, but Grandma always says, "It's because someone shielded us from those disasters and changed history."

"The 'ghost of history' you speak of, will he protect us this time?"

“No…” Grandma shook her head. “Four years ago, he returned to history. The crystal ball can no longer see him, which means he has not yet returned…”

“What do you need me to do?” Xileina asked.

“We need to convince those kids that we need to leave New Orleans,” Grandma said softly. “It means giving up our house, our yard, and our tent, but it’s the only way.”

“I don’t think I can convince them,” Xileina shook her head. “They already have families and are settled in this city.”

Xileina didn't want to leave the city because of this. For her, this was the first time she had gained dignity in the city and avoided the fate of becoming a homeless person.

Looking into her daughter's light blue eyes, the mother chuckled softly.

“I know,” she said. “My bicycle is locked in the backyard, and in less than five minutes your brother can ride off with you.”

“Mom, we bought a car,” Xileina said with a hint of helplessness. “If a hurricane comes, we can leave in the car.”

The mother didn't speak, but looked at Xileina and smiled mysteriously.

“You’ve been trying to change, Xileina, but you’ve stopped,” she said softly. “When you stop, you’re like a dried-up spring; your life becomes dull.”

"But your journey is not over yet. You will emerge from the hurricane and allow our family to continue."

After saying that, the old lady pulled out a bunch of tarot cards from somewhere. She quickly cut the cards with her left hand, and in the blink of an eye, the three Major Arcanas were displayed in front of Xileina.

The withered hand slowly reached out and turned over the first card for Xileina:

"The Chariot in its proper place, my daughter, you are brave and fearless. You use yourself as a spear to fight against worldly prejudices and despise our traditions, but in doing so, you break through the walls of the outside world."

The mother murmured softly, her eyes filled with pride.

Slowly, she turned over the second card:

"The Tower in the right position, child, a catastrophe will come, and everything you have will be overturned. Then you will understand that the past has never left, and what you have to fight is still there, indestructible."

The mother glanced lovingly at Xileina, accepting the impatience in her eyes, and then gently turned over the third card:

"The Hanged Man, upright: a great sacrifice. You willingly allow yourself to be bound and suspended atop the world to fight a final battle against your past."

"Mother, I don't plan to die yet." tide Leina said with displeasure.

“We are already standing atop the tower, and the lightning is about to strike,” Grandma murmured, looking up. “Xilena, prepare to say goodbye to the past.”

tide Lena couldn't remember how she left that bedroom. She seemed to have said nothing, yet it also seemed like she had said a lot of hurtful things.

Regardless of what Xileina said, there was one detail she remembered very clearly: her mother looked at her with a smile, without saying a word or making any excuses.

She simply looked at her daughter with loving eyes, her gaze filled with pride and reluctance.

Much later, Xileina realized that she had probably just been too scared back then.

She feared that those vague prophecies would destroy her life—her stable and peaceful life.

She forgot that her original intention was to fight prejudice: she was using prejudice to examine the ancient traditions of the Roma people.

She shouldn't have yelled at her mother.

After that, time seemed to accelerate, flowing by like clouds in a crystal ball.

tide Lena later often looked back at that history: On August 23, an inconspicuous tropical depression formed near the Bahamas, and the next day it transformed into the world-famous "Katrina," a tropical storm.

On the 25th, Katrina made landfall in Florida, and at that time, Xilena still felt that it wouldn't be a huge disaster.

To calm her anxious heart, she went to various parts of the family to persuade them, but the response she received was always, "No, we will not leave."

Everything will be alright... she prayed, and she even had the urge to look at the crystal ball.

On August 28, 2005, Hurricane Katrina intensified rapidly in the Gulf of Mexico, becoming a Category 8 hurricane.

The mayor of New Orleans issued an unprecedented mandatory evacuation order, allowing residents to leave before the hurricane made landfall.

Mother's prophecy has come true.

At that time, 11.2 people in New Orleans did not own cars and were unable to evacuate, and most of these people were concentrated in the Lower Ninth District.

Upon receiving the news, tide Leina rushed home from the performance venue, preparing to drive her family away.

"Boom!"

"Clap!"

Gunshots, the sound of breaking glass, car alarms.

As Xileina rushed into her own courtyard, she was met with the dark muzzle of a gun:

"Don't move, Xileina, I don't want to shoot you."

The man pointing a gun at her was Old Black from the next block, whom Xileina often saw at street corner parties.

Behind him, two accomplices had already pried open tide Lena's garage, and the car was slowly driving onto the street.

In front of the garage, two Gypsy boys were lying across a patch of artemisia.

"Why!" Xileina shouted.

"Aren't you Gypsies skilled in witchcraft and magic?" the old black man laughed. "You can leave the city on flying carpets, so lend us your car!"

“We have no witchcraft or magic,” Xileina shook her head repeatedly. “Please, we have elderly people in our family…”

"Isn't it your old woman who summoned the hurricane?" the black man growled. "She went around telling everyone that the hurricane would clean up New Orleans. It was you Gypsies who summoned the hurricane, you deserve it!"

The car crashed through the fence and drove onto the street, accompanied by cheers from the young men.

Seeing Xileina's tearful eyes, Lao Hei changed his mind and reached out his hand to her:

"Come, I can take you with me, but you must become my wife, as—"

"boom!"

Before he could finish his filthy words, a shotgun shell blasted open his skull.

"tide Lena, hide behind me."

A large hand shielded Xileina behind him, and the brother raised his gun, aiming at the departing car.

"boom!"

"Boom!"

Only after the car disappeared on the horizon did the brother turn to look at Xileina:

"Are you okay?"

"Mom! They've been inside the house!" Xileina covered her mouth. "Mom!"

tide Lena rushed into the house and ran towards her mother's room.

As soon as she entered, she saw her mother lying on the ground, holding a shattered crystal ball and muttering to herself.

"Mother!"

tide Leina bent down, crying as she checked on her mother's condition.

The mother's breath was already very weak. In her delirium, she looked directly into Xileina's pale blue eyes, and kindly reached out to stroke her daughter's cheek.

“Lightning will strike the tower,” Mother whispered. “Silena, my darling, you must love yourself.”

She trembled as she raised her head, gently kissed Xileina's forehead, then tilted her head to the side and fell silent.

......

Prologue: Pink and White (Part 2)

"Boom!"

The torrential rain fell from the inky black sky. The brother and Xileina buried their mother in the yard, and then went out to seek help.

"Get out, you Gypsies!" the owner of the neighborhood bar yelled. "Only blacks are allowed in here!"

"Get off! It was your family's gypsy witch who summoned the storm!" a child shouted from the bus window. "She told us a hurricane was coming and to run! She's the one who brought the hurricane!"

“Excuse me, miss,” Clement bowed to Shireina in the French quarter, “Um… my family’s convoy can only take one more person. Your brother probably can’t leave with us, but we can accommodate you in the car…”

tide Lena walked dejectedly through the streets of the French Quarter in the rain.

She suddenly realized that her mother was right; she had never truly moved on from her past.

Those people may have accepted the Roma people because of their music, but that was just a pastime after a good meal, not an art that dissolved the boundaries of the soul.

When the real disaster struck, she was just a beautiful Gypsy girl whose mother was the witch who brought about the disaster, and she was a plaything to be traded in the apocalypse.

The disaster struck like lightning, hitting the Tower of Babel that connected all races, creating a barrier between all beings once again.

tide Lena suddenly felt very powerless.