fandomhigh | Good Omens...And Bad: Prophecy in Theory and Practice, Lab Four

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prophecy

Good Omens...And Bad: Prophecy in Theory and Practice, Lab Four

Friday, September 29, Second Period

Once again the furniture has been rearranged. There are large comfortable pillows and cushions on the floor, and between each set of two is a low table with two decks of cards sitting on it. One deck is an ordinary set of playing cards, the other is a classical tarot deck. There are also two sets of handouts on each table. As usual, a table of tea and coffee, scones, cookies, and tea sandwiches has been provided.

"Today's exercise is on Cartomancy, or the skill of divining through cards. Cartomancy can be done using ordinary playing cards, although many people choose to use the more ornate and specialized tarot cards. You have a choice to use either one today. Once you've gotten comfortable, I want you to follow the guidelines on your handouts and do a simple reading for your lab partner. You can choose any layout you like, although you must use a minimum of three cards. If you're not certain what to choose, consider using the Celtic Cross, which is a very common layout for general readings."

HOMEWORK: One of the handouts is actually a take-home test. Please complete the test and bring with you to lab next Friday.

[OOC: The following links can be used to generate tarot readings.]
Traditional Tarot Reading #1
Traditional Tarot Reading #2
Reading using Playing Cards

Syllabus
Class Roster
Classes Linkdrop
Lab Partner List

[~~Please wait for OCD threads.~~ Class is now in session.]

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Nadia couldn't help but notice that Aziraphale didn't seem too terribly excited by that one.

Which kinda made sense.

"Okay," she set another card down above the others. "This represents your goal for the day. Or the best result. The Page of Cups, reversed. 'Inclination. Deviation. Susceptibility. Temporary distraction. Seduction. A flatterer.'" Nadia blinked. "Your day might suck, actually. Um. That is . . . you need a break from the more serious stuff around you. Something to distract you just for today, so you can have some fun and relax before going on to the more serious stuff."

[ooc: no prob. I'll keep the reading open.]

Find a distraction, but avoid the person who could best provide that distraction? Nope, Aziraphale didn't really like that so much. Unless the person he was supposed to avoid was someone else entirely.

Of course, he also knew enough about divination to see the potential for this one to turn self-fulfilling. He smiled at Nadia. "Well...it's been a rather troublesome week, so I suppose I could use a distraction from what's been on my mind. You're doing very well, Miss Santos."

Nadia could see where this would turn self-fulfilling, too, but she continued anyway. She put a card below the others. "This is the foundation on which the whole thing, in this case, I guess the day, is based. The Nine of Cups. 'Success. Material attainment. Advantage. Well-being. Abundance. Good health. Victory. Difficulties surmounted.' So, um, you conquered something, so now you need to relax to keep your good health and well-being?"

Aziraphale's eyebrows went up, and he gave Nadia a speculative look.

"Yes...I rather think you've found the heart of the matter. As it happens, I suppose I have recently...'conquered something'. And I could very much use a bit of a rest."

This one would bear some watching, he decided, and made a mental note to keep an eye on Nadia as their other lab exercises took place.

Nadia nodded a bit distractedly and put down another card. "This one is something that needs to be released. The Tower, um, reversed." Nadia paused for a moment, just looking at the card. "That's 'Continued oppression. Following old ways. Living in a rut. Inability to effect any worthwhile change. Entrapment in an unhappy situation. Imprisonment.' So old habits or routines you need to get rid of." She smiled slightly and finally looked up from the cards. "Which is something that just about anyone needs, when you think about it."

Chuckling, he nodded. "Yes, unfortunately, you've discovered one of the problems with divination, and why it's so easy for charlatans to fake. Much of what ends up being prophecied can apply to any number of people or situations. Most of the time, it's a vague and imprecise art."

Nadia was certainly producing some good interpretations of the cards she dealt, though, and Aziraphale was pleased.

"Yeah, I can see where it would be pretty easy, especially if you know how to read people." Nadia placed the next card. "Okay, this one is something to be embraced. The King of Swords. 'An active and determined person. Experience. Authority. Control. A professional person. Sometime proficient in his field. Highly analytical person. Superiority. A person having many ideas, thoughts, and designs.' I think you're supposed to find that person, if you haven't already."

Aziraphale was pretty sure he had, and his lips twitched in a smile. "I'm rather certain that one won't be very difficult. Although it is interesting how one's ideas about the earlier cards changes as the reading evolves."

Since it made no sense to avoid and embrace the same person.

"Well, you have to get all the information, right?" Nadia shrugged and pulled out the next card. "This card represents your role, or attitude. The Devil, reversed."

She kept her fingers on the card for a moment, frowning as she looked at it. "Huh."

[ooc: I'm not making that up, it's what came up when I filled out the online tarot reading thing for Phale.]

Blinking, Aziraphale stared at the card, and then he raised his eyes to gaze at Nadia.

"Quite. Well, that's interesting, isn't it? Although I suppose there are number of interpretations one could apply to that card."

It was hard for him to suppress a smile, though. It really did look as though Nadia had a touch of talent, and he was becoming more and more interested to see how she progressed.

[ooc: *laughs* That's very cool. Really, it's been a pretty applicable reading all along, but that is a little freaky.]

Nadia shook her head for a moment to clear it. "Yeah. Of course there are."

Still something . . . strangely appropriate about that.

"It says here it means 'Release from bondage. Divorce. Recognition of one's need by another person. Overcoming handicaps. The beginning of spiritual understanding. The first steps toward enlightenment.' Which is what you're doing here, isn't it? Being a teacher. 'First steps towards enlightenment.'"

Another nod. "Yes...I do think that's part of why I'm here. And I certainly have been doing some thinking about my beliefs lately. Although I'm not certain how much enlightenment I'm likely to accomplish today."

He grinned at Nadia. "One never does know though, does one? I suppose enlightenment doesn't usually come when you're expecting it."

"Doesn't seem like it would be the same if you were expecting enlightenment. I mean, it shouldn't be something where you just kind of nod and go, 'oh, hey, I'm enlightened.'" Nadia pulled the next card. "Okay, this one is your environment and the people you're interacting with. The Seven of Wands, reversed. 'Consternation. Anxiety. Embarrassment. Indecision. Hesitancy causing losses. Perplexity. Doubt.' Which is kind of, um, obvious, right? I mean, you work in a high school."

"Oh yes, I do expect that one is quite plain. A good description of high school, in fact. And probably a good description of the classroom right now. I have to say, Miss Santos, you're doing very well. Have you ever done any reading before?"

Nadia shook her head. "It's not that hard, though. You just look at what the card means, right? And then apply that to what you might know about the person. I mean, I don't know that much about you, but I do know about Fandom,"

"Ah, well...you can certainly do it that way, although applying it to what you already know about the person doesn't guarantee you get a prophetic reading, it simply means you can help your subject find the answer to their questions. Which can be helpful, of course, but it doesn't mean what you're doing is divination."

He looked at the spread of cards on the table.

"However...I'd have to say that you're demonstrating a bit of real talent here as well. Especially as I know you don't know me well enough to fake an accurate reading."

Real talent for prophesy?

"Yeah. I've . . . done that before. Predicting stuff. Not usually on purpose, though." Nadia shrugged. "Two more cards." She placed the next one. "This one is your hopes, fears, or something unexpected. Which is nice and vague. . . . The Knight of Pentacles, reversed. 'Stagnation. Carelessness. Inertia. Lack of determination or direction. Narrow-mindedness. Limits from dogmatic views. Idleness.' I'm thinking that's probably a fear rather than a hope. Maybe another obstacle that might come up."

"Hmm...yes, I rather think that's exactly what it is. And again, a very accurate one. You're really doing very well, my dear."

He smiled. "And usually, a person with prophetic abilities starts out with the passive prophecies. But you can train, you know, and hone the ability so that you can use it actively."

"That's why I'm taking this class, sir. I wanted to be able to control it. Or at least be able to recognize it and control it better." Nadia took a deep breath and drew the last card. "This is the 'ultimate outcome should you continue on this path'. The Eight of Cups. 'Discontinuance of effort. Disappointment. Abandonment of previous plans. Shyness. Modesty. Abandoned success.'" Nadia looked at all the cards for a long moment. "It seems like the whole thing is about . . . opposites. You can either make a change and have things go better, or stay the same and get this." She tapped the last card. "And I'm wondering if maybe this one, the obstacle?" She pointed to the second card. "Might not be a separate person. I mean, it sounds sort of like you. But maybe you need to step away from that for awhile, because that person is really . . .generous. And maybe you need to work for yourself for awhile. Be a little bit selfish."

Eyes widening just a little bit, Aziraphale looked at Nadia for a moment.

"I really hadn't thought of it that way. But it is rather an assumption, to see that as being an actual person. You're right, it could easily be a facet of oneself."

And it did fit together pretty well. In fact, he almost wondered if it weren't maybe a little more far-reaching than just for the one day.

"As is generally the outcome of a good card reading, you've given me some interesting things to think about. You've done very well, my dear, and I really do hope you find the class helpful." Aziraphale winked and added, "Perhaps I'll begin my day of being a little selfish by getting myself some more tea and a biscuit."

Nadia smiled back. "Good. Let me know how that goes for you?"

"I will, Miss Santos," he chuckled. "And very good job on the exercise."

Standing, Aziraphale gave her another smile and headed off to check on the rest of the class. And to get himself a cup of tea and a cookie.

Nadia started playing solitaire again . . . with the tarot cards this time.

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Good Omens...And Bad: Prophecy in Theory and Practice, Lab Four

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