Chapter 4 is represented by The Empress, the third card in the Major Arcana (as previously noted, each chapter number is one off from its corresponding card number). The Empress card in tarot is rich with symbolism and imagery that convey themes of fertility, nurturing, and abundance.
She is typically depicted seated on a throne, signifying stability and power, often adorned with motifs underscoring her dominion over nature (her scepter also symbolizes authority and control over the natural world). Her *crown of twelve stars* represents her connection to the celestial realm and the zodiac, highlighting her universal influence. Astrologically, the Empress is associated with Venus (which is reinforced by the shield at her side with the symbol of Venus), reflecting her association with the goddess of love, beauty, and creativity, reinforcing themes of fertility, attraction, harmony, and nurture.
In Chapter 4, the Empress's Venusian energy appears literally when James and Regulus pause before the Venus de Milo. Regulus corrects James ("Aphrodite. The Romans called her Venus, but she was Aphrodite of the Greeks first"). The crown of twelve stars connects to the chapter's title "Syzygy" and James's astronomical knowledge when he recognizes Regulus's name ("Like the star...Regulus is the brightest star in Leo"). The museum itself—filled with centuries of human creation—embodies the Empress's abundance and creativity. Every gallery they enter offers more beauty, more art, more opportunities for connection through shared appreciation.
Syzygy /ˈsɪzɪdʒi/ noun
The title captures the cosmic alignment happening throughout this chapter. James (representing the sun) and Regulus (literally named for a star) finally come into direct alignment at Café Bonaparte. Other alignments unfold simultaneously. Sirius (Also named after a star) is desperately trying to get ahold of James while he, Remus (representing the moon), and Peter continue to hunt for the thieves.
The chapter builds to a moment of perfect syzygy at the townhouse. All the scattered players—Sirius, Remus, Peter, Lily, Pandora, Dumbledore—suddenly align in one location. The encrypted message even emphasizes this alignment: ("All three of you are expected.") Bodies that have been moving in separate orbits are pulled together by forces larger than themselves.
The Jungian definition of syzygy—the pairing of opposites—also applies. Thief meets thief. Past meets present when Sirius confronts Pandora. Everything slots into place.
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The Empress from the Rider–Waite Smith tarot deck
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“L'Étoile”, Edgar Degas, 1878
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James steals Degas’s Létoile from the auction for Regulus without knowing he’s named after a star but already seeing him as one. When Regulus unwraps the painting at the café, James has unknowingly given a star to a star. The moment gains another layer when James attempts to flirt ("You shine pretty bright").
If the Magritte theft was James's dramatic act of courtship, then the Degas is his ante in their game. Just as he stole the Magritte to get Regulus's attention, he steals the Degas to keep it.
René Magritte painted *Le fils de l'homme* or The Son of Man as a self-portrait. The painting consists of a man in an overcoat and a bowler hat standing in front of a low wall, beyond which are the sea and a cloudy sky.
“Everything we see hides another thing, we always want to see what is hidden by what we see. There is an interest in that which is hidden and which the visible does not show us. This interest can take the form of a quite intense feeling, a sort of conflict, one might say, between the visible that is hidden and the visible that is present.”
The painting appears during James and Regulus’s tour of the "Masks and Mirrors: Identity in Modern and Contemporary Art" exhibition. Both James and Regulus hide their true selves throughout the chapter. Just as the apple obscures the man's face, James’s growing attraction obscures the danger he’s walking into. What he can see (Regulus) hides what he should see (the consequences ahead).
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“The Son of Man”, Reneé Magritte, 1964
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“Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss”, Antonio Canova, 1787–1793
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Canova's Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss serves as the culmination of their museum tour. Regulus tells the myth methodically: Psyche's beauty rivaling Aphrodite's, Eros sent to curse her but falling in love instead, the palace where she could never see his face, her curiosity breaking their trust, the impossible tasks, and finally the death-like sleep broken by true love's kiss.
"When Psyche begged Aphrodite to help her win Eros back, the goddess saw her chance for revenge. She gave Psyche a series of impossible tasks. Each one nearly killed her, but she was always saved by pity or divine intervention. Her last task sent her to the underworld to bring back some of Persephone's beauty in a box. But curiosity betrayed her again. She opened the box and fell into a sleep so deep she seemed dead. When Eros heard of this, he chose love over his mother's anger and revived Psyche with a kiss.”
Psyche faced four specific trials: Sorting an enormous pile of mixed grains (where she was assisted by ants), gathering golden wool from murderous sheep (where she was aided by a reed's advice), collecting water from the River Styx (where she was helped by Zeus's eagle), and finally, retrieving beauty from Persephone in the underworld. Each task was designed to kill her, yet help always arrived.
Like Psyche, James faces his own trials. The museum tour itself is the first, where every myth is a test and a warning. And like Psyche, this is only the beginning. (See: Chapter 5)