It is nice to get away from the worry and sadness that seems to become an almost physical presence at the castle these days. The roaring bonfire crackles merrily in the autumn air, sending small sparks dancing up toward the moonlit sky. Andy wanders up to a pile of supplies that have been laid out near the roaring green flames and she allows her pale blue gaze to roam over them. Spying a deck of cards loosely wrapped in a piece of cloth, the girl feels a pull toward them and immediately grabs them.

Trotting back to where she had left her sister, Andy makes sure to prance to last few steps to show her excitement at what she has found. Since Kite cannot go up toward the strange magical fire without the light hurting her eyes, the purple pup had decided to go pick something out for them to play with. Moving to her crystal eyed sibling, Andy deposits the cloth covered cards in front of her and says, “Okay, so these cards look really cool! They have pictures on them!” A grin worms its way on her face as she sits and begins to carefully unwraps the cards.

On the very bottom of the pile there is a rolled piece of parchment and Andy carefully unrolls it before clearing her throat and reading aloud, “May these cards help to answer some questions you may have. When you use them, pay close attention to the words, symbolism, stories that each card tells. Let these Tarot cards be your guide, not your gospel. There is no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ meanings of the Tarot cards and, listed below, are some traditional meanings for each card. However, I encourage you to trust your intuition and go with what meaning feels right to you.”

Pale blue gaze moves up to sister and Andy smiles, saying, “These seem cool! Want me to try giving you reading? Oh look! It says to focus on a question you want an answer to. Hold it in your mind while I shuffle.” Paws move to begin shuffling the thick cards that seem to move easy for her, as if they were crafted for small wolf paws. Cool!


"Andromeda Fatalis"

Kite missed her mother, and she was sick and tired of all the vagueness surrounding the whole thing. She wanted a straight answer, and someone to treat her like she wasn’t a dummy. If their mother had left them, she wanted to know it! Especially since a creeping insecurity wondered if maybe she’d gone because Kite wasn’t good enough.

But it was good to find a distraction, and she tagged along with Andy to the bonfire. Finding them a good place to sit as her sister wandered off to grab something. Her butt was towards the fire, and when Andy returned to her, her sister sat facing her, so she could see the cool fire without it affecting Kite. the crystal eyed girl huffed a breath, and slumped onto her paws. It was great that Andy was hanging out with her, but she couldn’t help but feel her sister would rather be closer to the event than hanging out in the shadows with her sister.

“What kind of pictures?” she asked, as Andy presented the game to her. Her sister read out the rules, and asked her to concentrate on a question. Well! Kite could do that. Am I good enough for my mum?” she thought, squinting hard at Andy as she concentrated on ‘projecting’ the thought. ‘Okay, ready”


"Speech"

Andromeda loves her family and has never thought that anyone of them is less than another. No matter what. The fact that Kite cannot go towards the fire does not make the girl upset in the least, instead, she is eager to bring the festivities to her sister. Since their mother left the pups have each been struggling with it in their own way and some have been pulling into themselves more and more. It feels nice to be out here, with Kite, enjoying the night and playing a game with the cards.

A smile is on her purple lips as Andy splays some of cards out so that Kite can see the pictures. There are wolves in various poses, some by themselves, others with multiple, and some without any wolves at all. Those without wolves as the focal point seem to have swords, wands, cups, or strange symbols on them taking up the focus. Once Kite has had a look at them, Andy shuffles up the cards, telling her sister to hold a question in her mind as she moves her paws over the cards. On one pass, three cards suddenly jump out, their backs glimmering in the green firelight.

Wide, pale blue eyes look to her sister and Andy moves the rest of the cards away from the three that had jumped out. Slowly, carefully, the girl turns over the card furthest to the left, revealing for both her sister and her, the image of small, female wolf sitting in a bed of furs. It is a profile shot, her shoulders hunched and front paws brought up to her face as if she is crying. Behind her on a dark wall, are nine shining swords hanging horizontal. A pang of sadness hits Andromeda and she quickly consults the parchment, reading aloud, “The nine of swords.”

Glancing back to the card, Andy counts to make sure there are nine before nodding to herself and continuing to read, “It depicts a woman sitting up in her bed, head in hands, as if she has been jolted awake from a nightmare. On the dark wall behind her are nine swords which represent the negative thoughts that are weighing heavily on her mind. Keywords: anxiety, worry, depression, nightmares.” A frown tugs at the corners of her mouth as she darts a glance to her sister, understanding that one all too well.

Not waiting to dwell on the negative, Andromeda quickly flips over the next card and puffs a smile sigh of relief at the positive imagery. On the card, two wolves, one male and one female stand next to each other. Above them, a winged wolf lifts a paw as if blessing the couple and a small smile is on his lips. Around the couple, is a beautiful, fertile landscape that includes a tall apple tree with a snake winding up the trunk. The male wolf looks to the female one who, in turn, is looking at the winged wolf above them. Purple brows lift as Andy feels the love in the card and looks to Kite, lifting a brow in silent question if she wants to continue.


"Andromeda Fatalis"

There was something nice about the night. She could hear voices around her, and feel the warmth of the crackling fire behind her. Andy was sticking close to her, keeping her company. She knew she wasn’t perhaps the best company at the moment, and quietly appreciated her sister's efforts.

She watched as Andy started her reading, pulling out a card. Kite pulled closer, and grinned at the sight of the swords. “Cool” she said. Swords had to be a good thing, right? She glanced at the rest of the card. The crying wolf, and wondered what that meant. Definitely not as cool as the swords. When Andy spoke of the swords as representing emotions instead of monster slayers, she sighed. Well. her thoughts had been about their mother. Lately things about mum always seemed glum.

“What does that one meany, Andy?” she prompted as Andy paused before filling her in. There was a winged wolf, a wolf couple. Was it to do with romance? Because ick


"Speech"

The first card gets the reaction that Andy had thought, her sister’s initial thought of it being cool is quickly soured by the rest of the imagery and the written description. However, the next card seems to have more positive images on it and she looks to Kite, silently asking if she wants to continue. Her sister’s words pull a grin to the purple pup’s lips as she smooths out the piece of parchment and clears her throat before reading aloud, “The Lovers. The man and woman stand beneath a winged wolf which represents both physical and emotional healing.”

Eyebrows lift slightly as she darts a glance to her sister before continuing on, “The winged wolf offers his blessing to the man and woman and reminds them of their connection to the world. Keywords: love, harmony, relationships, values alignment, choices.” Shrugging her purple shoulders, Andy looks to Kite saying, “You know, love comes in many forms. Not just between two wolves but like, a mother for her… daughters…” Her voice catches and falters as she reaches the end of her thought and the girl drops her gaze down to the last remaining card in an effort to hide the tears that prickle painfully in the corners of her eyes.

A lavender paw reaches out, turning the last card over to reveal a beautiful female wolf sitting on a thorn that is decorated with lions facing in opposite directions. Her front paws are held upward and, in her left paw, on her crown, and behind the throne are sunflowers. In her right paw is wooden wand with a small sunflower sprouting into life. At the foot of the throne there is a black cat sitting peacefully. Eyebrows lift and she immediately consulates the paper, finding the meaning and reading out, “The Queen of Wands.”

A smile slowly spreads as Andy continues to read, “This wolf is here to remind you that you are upbeat, courageous, and determined. She asks you to be bold in your undertaking and action and not to be afraid of your true power. You have much to offer as a natural-born, intelligent leader who actively inspires others. Keywords: courage, confidence, independence, social butterfly, determination.”

As she finishes, the pup looks to her sister with excitement, purple tail wagging as she says, “That’s you Kite! Man, you are going to be a leader! Wonder if we should Azure his days are numbered.” A laugh bubbles out as Andy moves to put all the card back into their holder and carefully rolls the parchment back up before slipping it in the cloth holder as well.


"Andromeda Fatalis"

Kite squinted at the card, and then back up at Andy. So, suffering for the first card, and healing for the second? Then Andy spoke of their mother and Kite swallowed, looking away quickly. Too quickly for her to realise that Andy was in the same emotional place as her. Wiping her eyes, Kite turned back in time to see Andy pull out the next card.

This one was the most exciting, but Kite had to laugh at the idea of being leader. “Maybe I will unseat Azure one day” He was a pompous ass, and he would deserve it. But would she ever be strong enough for such a feat? She let out a soft sigh, and then looked back at her sister. “Thanks for reading the cards, Andy.”


"Speech"