Seven of Swords and Seven of Pentacles

A shortcut and a slow harvest, set against each other. The Seven of Pentacles has waited; the Seven of Swords has not. The tradition reads the pair as the temptation to take rather than grow, arriving precisely when the growing has become tedious.

Associated with wanting a result without the patience the situation requires. Read as impatience rather than as betrayal.

The cut corner on a long project. Frequently read at the point where an honest effort is far enough along to be worth compromising.

The figure in the Seven of Swords is looking back over his shoulder as he goes. This pairing treats that glance as the most informative thing in either card.