#spiritsong

[callingcrows]

New deck for my birthday that's coming up next week... 🎉

[flowersforthemachines]

question for you! 🫶 do you have anything else you want to share about/can you talk about your viago & ghilasara headcanons? I'm so intrigued by their dynamic, especially with ghilasara not being a de riva!

thank you, Cleric, I'm very touched you got interested!!

Tbh Viago saying that "Rook would make a damn fine crow" lives in my mind rent-free. Can't believe I haven't seen much discussion of the non-crow Rook & Viago dynamic before. Like you can have all the Viago weirdness without the subordination angle! Isn't that interesting! But I digress.

The way I see their "partnership" start is when Ghilasara survives an attempt on her life the first time after she breaks up with Lucanis. Realising that just because they aren't together anymore doesn't mean she won't be a target. And this is her life now! One does not leave the crows, and maybe she isn't one, but she accidentally got too damn close!!

So after a short session of screaming and crying about the absolute state of things, she'd realise she has to talk to someone about this, and Viago is the only non-Treviso crow she knows personally. They aren't close, but there's no one else to turn to. Cue a trip to Salle and them forming a mutually beneficial relationship where she reports any assassination attempts to him, he helps her make sense of them (which house sent the assassins and what specifically are they trying to achieve at this particular time) and then uses the information for whatever personal benefits he can extract (I 💙 scheming) without alerting Lucanis and/or Teia while also trying to uphold stability inside the crows. Also, a part of the bargain is Bellara offering her services to Viago in helping mask poisons in food, as per one of Lucanis's Logbooks (she volunteered. I personally find that headcanon funny, Bellara's morals are weirdly loose enough she'd be into masterminding ways to help poison people).

Lots of other thoughts floating in my head but I wanted to keep this relatively concise skdfhjksdf hope this was interesting to read!

[cliriq]

[starlit-meadow]

The Lovers (reversed)

[theheartmold]

does Andrea know Teia? If so what is their opinion of her, and vice versa?

Andrea DOES know Teia! There's a 12 year age difference between Viago and Andrea (no do not ask me for timelines. Just nod and agree with the timeline of vibes, just like the canon authors do) and Teia has been circling the edge of Andrea's life for a while because of it.

Andrea looks up to Teia a lot. She's a woman and an elf in a position of power and prominence among the Crows. Although elves as Talons aren't uncommon (Zevran says in Origins that elves are often recruited for their ~ exotic beauty ~ and I believe House Arainai is made up primarily of elves), she's also the youngest named Talon and a powerhouse in her own right.

Andrea looks up to her a lot for how she carries herself, interacts with others, and handles politics. I've said before and I'll say again that Teia Cantori is outplaying everyone else on the damn board. Very few people seem to have a real grudge against her (hell, Emil Kortez was going to kill the woman last), and she has favor from the First Talon herself. I've said before... were Teia not an elf... I could see her in the running to be Caterina's heir. She's fucking good at handling people.

Also, notably, Teia is the one with similar sympathies to Lucanis. She's the one who views the Crows as the real heart of Antivan rebellion forces that we see in Veilguard; other Houses aren't run like House Cantori. The fledglings are free to roam, feel comfortable grouping and gossiping, and widely there is a sense of "normalcy" among her House.

I would be lying if I said that there was not a long period of Andrea's life where they wished that they had been recruited into House Cantori instead. Not enough for them to willingly defect, but... the desire was definitely there at times growing up and still might show up from time to time.

As for Teia, I tend to write her as fond of Andrea? They're not overly close, but she is kind towards them and respects their closeness as one of Viago's proteges, so they get on well enough!

[opalizedvisionz]

Whispers of the Soul: Unveiling Wisdom with the Love

Intuition ✦ Wisdom ✦ Silence

✧ An invitation to reconnect with inner wisdom, embracing a profound trust in the quiet guidance that arises from within ✧

Ravens are seen as messengers between the physical and spiritual realms, symbolizing the power of hidden knowledge. This card is a reminder that the answers you seek are already within you, waiting to be discovered in moments of stillness and introspection. When you trust your intuition, you unlock the secrets of your soul, which are often buried beneath the surface of everyday distractions.

This card encourages embracing the power of patience and silence as a space to honor and protect your most sacred thoughts and emotions. Just as the raven keeps its secrets safe, you are called to slow down and reflect, to give yourself the time and space to connect with your true self, and to nurture your own truths with care and love. It’s not about rushing to change or fix things, but rather about accepting your truths in their current form, allowing them to guide you toward greater clarity and self-empowerment.

Ultimately, this card speaks to the importance of honoring both the seen and unseen aspects of your life. It asks you to trust that not everything needs to be revealed immediately—some truths unfold when the time is right. The raven's guidance reminds you that, in the darkness, there is light waiting to be discovered, and within the mystery, there is an opportunity for growth and transformation. By embracing both silence and love, you will uncover the deeper layers of your path.

Key themes:

Intuition & Inner Wisdom – The raven symbolizes a deep connection to spiritual knowledge and the wisdom that comes from within. This card encourages trusting your intuition and the guidance of your inner self.

Patience & Silence – Ravens often thrive in quiet solitude, teaching the value of stillness. This theme emphasizes the importance of patience and creating space for reflection and understanding.

Sacred Protection – The raven's role as a keeper of secrets highlights the theme of protecting your most sacred truths. It encourages safeguarding your emotional and spiritual boundaries with love and care.

Transformation & Growth – As a symbol of transition between realms, the raven represents the continuous cycle of transformation. This theme speaks to the power of change and personal evolution that occurs when we embrace our inner truths.

Mystery & Unseen Knowledge – The raven's connection to the mysterious and hidden aspects of life reminds us that not all wisdom is immediately visible. Trusting the unseen forces and allowing things to unfold naturally is a key theme of this card.

[swanbornbyleda]

4 and/or 5 for the artist ask game? <3

[Ask meme] 4. What's your least favorite part of the body to draw, if any?

Oghhhh definitely biceps / the upper arm. I think being framed by two more complex areas (the armpit/shoulder and the elbow/upper forearm) doesn't help, because sometimes it can feel like a stretch of nothing. I've been doing some studies in the background to better understand what's going on there, especially the back of the arm, but it remains a Not Fun area for me.

5. What piece of art are you still proud of to this day? (Show or describe)

I'm still quite happy with this two-headed lamb from an unfinished painting I started back in 2022 - I feel like I really captured the soft, gauzy oil-painted quality I was going for, and the one on the right's nose/mouth looks so good to me. I do want to return to this painting some time and properly finish it, but I remain happy with this lil guy in the interim.

[ashhhh737]

The Death Card

The first card of the week is the death card, an easy choice for me as it’s one of the most misinterpreted cards of the deck. Most people associate the word death with the loss, turmoil and upheaval it brings to our lives. However, often when this card comes up in a reading, it's much more hopeful and positive than these initial perceptions. And no, it does not mean you or someone you know is about to die (most of the time…!).

Imagine the death card as a heads up from the universe - not that things are about to get very awful - but that the things you are going through right now are necessary and will result in change. When it appears you can be sure that you’re on the right track and that a much needed renewal and rebirth is around the corner.

When reversed, the death card is very useful to help you recognise when you might be holding yourself back from a transformation of self. Are you allowing yourself to make the change that needs to happen? Trust the universe and go with the flow - it may be painful, but all growth comes with change!