"The blackbird," Anthy said, "represents beginnings, the between periods of lives, and the start of journeys."
Utena studied the large card, eying the picture of the little bird emblazoned on the waxy surface. "So you can use these things to predict the future?"
Anthy smiled and shuffled the cards.
The hot sun washed out their surroundings; Utena flopped on the brittle grass with a sigh. The laughter of the other students seemed far away, the soft whir of the shuffling cards drowning out everything else.
"So how does this work?" Utena asked, her arms folded over her head, blocking out the blazing light.
"Think of a person, and then pick a card that feels right. What you pick will represent that person."
Utena sat up with a frown. "But that's not telling the future."
"No," said Anthy, "but I thought this would be more interesting. I do not care much for the future."
Utena studied her friend; she shrugged and thought of someone to chose.
"Good afternoon Utena-kun, Anthy."
"Mikki!" Utena reached forward; her hand hovered over the splayed cards held in Anthy's hands before grabbing one and turning it over.
"Owl, reversed," Anthy said. "The owl represents detachment and wisdom, but reversed it warns of withdrawing too much from the real world, of secrecy, and the end of one thing and the beginning of another. The owl is sacred to the hag goddess."
Utena smiled up at Miki, patting the grass. "Have a seat."
Miki clicked his stopwatch, hesitating. He suddenly plopped down; a small puff of dust rose in the air and hovered above them.
"What are you two doing?"
"Fortune telling," Utena said.
"Playing with cards," Anthy said, picking up Chu-Chu and stopping him from poking a frog with a fork.
"Can I try?" Miki asked.
"Think of a person, then pick a card," Utena said.
He looked up in thought, then leaned forward and picked a card.
"It's blank," he said, staring at the card and flipping it over a few times.
"Try someone else," Anthy said, taking back the card.
Pursing his lips, he fiddled with his stopwatch as he thought. Touga passed by, surrounded by his usual gaggle of girls, and Miki took another card.
"The sow, reversed. Warns against judging by appearances, to not rely on looks and physique and instead work to gain understanding and the wisdom of the subtleties of life."
"As a golden jewel on a pig's snout, is a fair woman without sufficiency of understanding." Miki blushed when Utena and Anthy looked at him. "Not that Touga's a woman."
Anthy smiled and Utena laughed.
"He's pretty enough to be one," Utena said. "Oh, I know!"
She reached forward and took another card.
"Otter, reversed. Warns against going against the natural course of events out of fear and stubbornness, use of play to escape adulthood."
"That fits him, I think," Utena said. She stopped Chu-Chu from scribbling swear words in Anthy's exchange diary and tossed the book behind her.
"Anthy, would you like to pick one?" Miki asked.
Anthy shook her head.
"All right then," Miki said, and he picked a card.
"The wren, reversed. This person may be using trickery and cunning to try and fool those around her that she is more worthy, building on the work of others to gain fortune for herself."
"I was a little surprised she received a seal," Miki said, looking at the ring on his hand, the harsh light glinting off the stylized curve of the rose petals.
"Not that she doesn't have the passion for it, I suppose," said Utena. "Me next."
Her reaching hand grabbed two cards by accident.
"The stag, and the ram reversed. The stag represents pride and independence, and possible sacrifices. The ram reversed calls for sacrifice, for letting go and follow her instincts to what truly makes her happy."
"Can you think of anyone else?" Utena asked Miki.
"One more," he said with a smile at her.
He picked his card.
"Fire dragon," Anthy said with a soft gasp. She ignored the looks the two gave her. "Represents transmutation, energy, mastery. Concerned with leadership, kingship. Nwyvre, the Dragon's Fire, the inner flame that burns inside. Not the card for a prince."
Anthy began to quickly pack up the cards.
Miki looked up at the sky. "Looks like rain."
"Wait a minute, Anthy," said Utena. "There's one more card I wanted to pick."
"There is no card for that person," Anthy said.
"How do you know until you try?"
Utena's long fingers plucked the deck from Anthy and she rifled through them. She came to the end of the deck, and went through them again, the look of concentration strenghthening on her face.
"Aha!"
Anthy looked surprised and apprehensive as Utena flipped the card over.
"Air dragon, reversed. What's that mean?"
Anthy's response was automatic and a little stiff. "Air dragon is inspiration, vitality, insight. Reversed, it warns to beware of becoming a servant to a belief system or dogma, to beware of delusion. One needs to focus more on the real world and relationships to correct her errors. The air dragons are considered servants to the sky god, and can represent an invitation to a higher realm of consciousness."
Utena grinned at her and gave her back the card.
"So what happens when the fire dragon and air dragon become friends?" Utena asked.
"Dragons don't become friends," said Anthy, her face bowed over her cards as she shuffled them.
Utena frowned and stilled Anthy's hands. "They can to."
"Perhaps," Miki said, "the air fuels the fire and they engulf the world."
"The apocalypse?" Utena said, her eyebrows defying gravity.
"No," Miki said, standing up with a click of his stopwatch. "A revolution. Ah, see? Rain."
The drops pattered on the ground like cat's paws, agitating the dust. They gathered their things and headed back to the white walls of Ohtori. They shied away from the glitter and confetti someone released in their faces, and when Anthy slipped on the dampening grass, Utena grabbed her elbow to steady her and didn't let go.
References of animals meanings taken from The Druid Animal Oracle by Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm. Characters copyright Shoujo Kakumei Utena.
Utena studied the large card, eying the picture of the little bird emblazoned on the waxy surface. "So you can use these things to predict the future?"
Anthy smiled and shuffled the cards.
The hot sun washed out their surroundings; Utena flopped on the brittle grass with a sigh. The laughter of the other students seemed far away, the soft whir of the shuffling cards drowning out everything else.
"So how does this work?" Utena asked, her arms folded over her head, blocking out the blazing light.
"Think of a person, and then pick a card that feels right. What you pick will represent that person."
Utena sat up with a frown. "But that's not telling the future."
"No," said Anthy, "but I thought this would be more interesting. I do not care much for the future."
Utena studied her friend; she shrugged and thought of someone to chose.
"Good afternoon Utena-kun, Anthy."
"Mikki!" Utena reached forward; her hand hovered over the splayed cards held in Anthy's hands before grabbing one and turning it over.
"Owl, reversed," Anthy said. "The owl represents detachment and wisdom, but reversed it warns of withdrawing too much from the real world, of secrecy, and the end of one thing and the beginning of another. The owl is sacred to the hag goddess."
Utena smiled up at Miki, patting the grass. "Have a seat."
Miki clicked his stopwatch, hesitating. He suddenly plopped down; a small puff of dust rose in the air and hovered above them.
"What are you two doing?"
"Fortune telling," Utena said.
"Playing with cards," Anthy said, picking up Chu-Chu and stopping him from poking a frog with a fork.
"Can I try?" Miki asked.
"Think of a person, then pick a card," Utena said.
He looked up in thought, then leaned forward and picked a card.
"It's blank," he said, staring at the card and flipping it over a few times.
"Try someone else," Anthy said, taking back the card.
Pursing his lips, he fiddled with his stopwatch as he thought. Touga passed by, surrounded by his usual gaggle of girls, and Miki took another card.
"The sow, reversed. Warns against judging by appearances, to not rely on looks and physique and instead work to gain understanding and the wisdom of the subtleties of life."
"As a golden jewel on a pig's snout, is a fair woman without sufficiency of understanding." Miki blushed when Utena and Anthy looked at him. "Not that Touga's a woman."
Anthy smiled and Utena laughed.
"He's pretty enough to be one," Utena said. "Oh, I know!"
She reached forward and took another card.
"Otter, reversed. Warns against going against the natural course of events out of fear and stubbornness, use of play to escape adulthood."
"That fits him, I think," Utena said. She stopped Chu-Chu from scribbling swear words in Anthy's exchange diary and tossed the book behind her.
"Anthy, would you like to pick one?" Miki asked.
Anthy shook her head.
"All right then," Miki said, and he picked a card.
"The wren, reversed. This person may be using trickery and cunning to try and fool those around her that she is more worthy, building on the work of others to gain fortune for herself."
"I was a little surprised she received a seal," Miki said, looking at the ring on his hand, the harsh light glinting off the stylized curve of the rose petals.
"Not that she doesn't have the passion for it, I suppose," said Utena. "Me next."
Her reaching hand grabbed two cards by accident.
"The stag, and the ram reversed. The stag represents pride and independence, and possible sacrifices. The ram reversed calls for sacrifice, for letting go and follow her instincts to what truly makes her happy."
"Can you think of anyone else?" Utena asked Miki.
"One more," he said with a smile at her.
He picked his card.
"Fire dragon," Anthy said with a soft gasp. She ignored the looks the two gave her. "Represents transmutation, energy, mastery. Concerned with leadership, kingship. Nwyvre, the Dragon's Fire, the inner flame that burns inside. Not the card for a prince."
Anthy began to quickly pack up the cards.
Miki looked up at the sky. "Looks like rain."
"Wait a minute, Anthy," said Utena. "There's one more card I wanted to pick."
"There is no card for that person," Anthy said.
"How do you know until you try?"
Utena's long fingers plucked the deck from Anthy and she rifled through them. She came to the end of the deck, and went through them again, the look of concentration strenghthening on her face.
"Aha!"
Anthy looked surprised and apprehensive as Utena flipped the card over.
"Air dragon, reversed. What's that mean?"
Anthy's response was automatic and a little stiff. "Air dragon is inspiration, vitality, insight. Reversed, it warns to beware of becoming a servant to a belief system or dogma, to beware of delusion. One needs to focus more on the real world and relationships to correct her errors. The air dragons are considered servants to the sky god, and can represent an invitation to a higher realm of consciousness."
Utena grinned at her and gave her back the card.
"So what happens when the fire dragon and air dragon become friends?" Utena asked.
"Dragons don't become friends," said Anthy, her face bowed over her cards as she shuffled them.
Utena frowned and stilled Anthy's hands. "They can to."
"Perhaps," Miki said, "the air fuels the fire and they engulf the world."
"The apocalypse?" Utena said, her eyebrows defying gravity.
"No," Miki said, standing up with a click of his stopwatch. "A revolution. Ah, see? Rain."
The drops pattered on the ground like cat's paws, agitating the dust. They gathered their things and headed back to the white walls of Ohtori. They shied away from the glitter and confetti someone released in their faces, and when Anthy slipped on the dampening grass, Utena grabbed her elbow to steady her and didn't let go.
References of animals meanings taken from The Druid Animal Oracle by Philip and Stephanie Carr-Gomm. Characters copyright Shoujo Kakumei Utena.