Ragna's Song

This is my picture (or more like a rather detailed sketch) for Creative experiment, a group my friend founded: . This round there's a challenge to draw an illustration to a story or a book or whatever text you choose. I had more ideas, but in the end, I chose my favourite scene from Jess E. Owen's great novel about Shard, a young gryfon, called Song of the Summer King. Jess E. Owen is on DA as If you're interested, check out her website: [link] and support her by buying the hardcover or e-book. You won't regret

The illustrated part is (I skipped some sentences or paragraphs in between, because I didn't want to re-write the whole chapter):

...
Slowly through the crowd, wings politely folded and every step graceful, walked Ragna the Widow Queen. She advanced all the way to the king's rocks and mantled, her pale wings shimmering.
"My Lord."...
..."In light of your tremendous news, I ask your leave to sing a tale."

An excited, hustled trill wove through the pride.
They watched with ears perked as Sverin stepped down to the lower rocks and Ragna climbed sedately higher. The dawn light edged her softly, like sun on a dove's feathers.
Moonlight would become her, Shard thought, feeling anxious. Does this song have something to do with her conversation with Sigrun?
"I am Ragna," the old gryfess began. "And I welcome you. We have arrived at a difficult time. This is the song I offer you now. This is a summer song, a song older than the oldest here, older than the trees on Star Isle, as old as the sea and the sky."
"It is a song that Tyr and Tor sang to the world when it was as young as a fledging gryfon. As a gryfess sings to her kit of all the things to come, so they sang the world this song of hope, of love."

Her song lifted from speaking into song and Shard's heart caught with it, questions brushed aside the youthful, lilting melody, sweet as spring wind, hopeful.
She sang of the beginning of the world, that Tyr forged it in fire and watched over it in the day, and Tor cooled it with the sea and watched it in the dark. She sang of the struggles of all their children, of fear, and courage, and hate. When the tale grew darkest, a nameless one appeared to lead all back into the sunlight.

"One will rise higher,
One will see further,
His wing beats will part the storm,
They will call him the summer king
And this will be his song."