Padma
"what can one expect from this relationship?"
1) clover - house - fish - sun - lady - man - cross - coffin - rider
Clover being the situation card, so far the relationship is looking good, it does not have a long history yet, though.
Clover/House: possibly the relationship takes place in two houses, or else it is very stable at the beginning, even a trifle predictable.
House/Fish: Stable emotions, a lot of them, but not yet deep.
Fish/Sun: "A lot" of good times, electricity, attraction.
Sun/Lady: Lady feeling optimistic about it all.
Lady/Man: Getting together, being close (especially if your Lady is directly facing your Man card). If they are back to back, then something goes awry in an otherwise promising scenario.
Man/Cross: Depressed man (unless he is religious!)
Cross/Coffin: end of pain
Coffin/Rider: New beginning, news after a break.
I think actually that you two may carry on happily enough, then there may be a short separation or a quarrel that may lead to not speaking to each other (Cross/Coffin) but that you get together again (Rider) OR more likely, that you may meet someone new after things end with this person. The new person may be the one who is fated, and not the one you are currently seeing.
If you mirror your cards, then you get Rider/Clover, meaning a lucky meeting or lucky short new opportunity to meet someone, Coffin/House you may meet them in an unpleasant location or a very small dark place, Cross/Fish you then plan many dates (Cross can mean plans) or it is one of those "Our eyes locked from across the room" type fated meetings, in a place full of people (schools of fish can be a lot of people at a meeting, with Cross it may mean a church) Man/Sun there will be a jolt of sexual "heat" between you, a successful meeting or affair, and you end up quite happily placed, as all this happens to the Lady who is in the middle.
2) book - ring - scythe - anchor - coffin
Book/Ring, a secret relationship;
Ring/Scythe, a break-up, end of a the relationship
Scythe/Anchor: decision or harsh words means end of stability (Anchor/Coffin)
Looks like someone is keeping secrets in this relationship, and when they (the secrets) are exposed, leading to an argument or repeating arguments (Ring/Scythe) it breaks up the romance, or at least ends the idyllic honeymoon, and shakes the foundations. A testing time.
As for just throwing the cards and letting them tell you stuff, I myself do not proceed in this fashion, as I find questions really help anchor them. It is my tarot who sidesteps and tells me stuff other than what I am asking. So I suppose everyone has their own experience with the cards. It may also be more helpful to allow the cards to tell you what is happening, and not to bend their meaning to fit the situation (at least I have found this to be the case, your mileage may vary).
But everyone has their own way of reading them.
Myself I experimented wildly with them, but in the end, I chose one way of reading (traditional German way) and it seems to work really well for me. So you must find the way that works for you out of the several schools of thought. Once you pick one way and stick to it, your results will be *way* more accurate, and you will truly understand what your cards are trying to tell you, imo. Consistency helps.
1) clover - house - fish - sun - lady - man - cross - coffin - rider
Clover being the situation card, so far the relationship is looking good, it does not have a long history yet, though.
Clover/House: possibly the relationship takes place in two houses, or else it is very stable at the beginning, even a trifle predictable.
House/Fish: Stable emotions, a lot of them, but not yet deep.
Fish/Sun: "A lot" of good times, electricity, attraction.
Sun/Lady: Lady feeling optimistic about it all.
Lady/Man: Getting together, being close (especially if your Lady is directly facing your Man card). If they are back to back, then something goes awry in an otherwise promising scenario.
Man/Cross: Depressed man (unless he is religious!)
Cross/Coffin: end of pain
Coffin/Rider: New beginning, news after a break.
I think actually that you two may carry on happily enough, then there may be a short separation or a quarrel that may lead to not speaking to each other (Cross/Coffin) but that you get together again (Rider) OR more likely, that you may meet someone new after things end with this person. The new person may be the one who is fated, and not the one you are currently seeing.
If you mirror your cards, then you get Rider/Clover, meaning a lucky meeting or lucky short new opportunity to meet someone, Coffin/House you may meet them in an unpleasant location or a very small dark place, Cross/Fish you then plan many dates (Cross can mean plans) or it is one of those "Our eyes locked from across the room" type fated meetings, in a place full of people (schools of fish can be a lot of people at a meeting, with Cross it may mean a church) Man/Sun there will be a jolt of sexual "heat" between you, a successful meeting or affair, and you end up quite happily placed, as all this happens to the Lady who is in the middle.
2) book - ring - scythe - anchor - coffin
Book/Ring, a secret relationship;
Ring/Scythe, a break-up, end of a the relationship
Scythe/Anchor: decision or harsh words means end of stability (Anchor/Coffin)
Looks like someone is keeping secrets in this relationship, and when they (the secrets) are exposed, leading to an argument or repeating arguments (Ring/Scythe) it breaks up the romance, or at least ends the idyllic honeymoon, and shakes the foundations. A testing time.
As for just throwing the cards and letting them tell you stuff, I myself do not proceed in this fashion, as I find questions really help anchor them. It is my tarot who sidesteps and tells me stuff other than what I am asking. So I suppose everyone has their own experience with the cards. It may also be more helpful to allow the cards to tell you what is happening, and not to bend their meaning to fit the situation (at least I have found this to be the case, your mileage may vary).
But everyone has their own way of reading them.
Myself I experimented wildly with them, but in the end, I chose one way of reading (traditional German way) and it seems to work really well for me. So you must find the way that works for you out of the several schools of thought. Once you pick one way and stick to it, your results will be *way* more accurate, and you will truly understand what your cards are trying to tell you, imo. Consistency helps.