Hushed Whispers

According to Ancient Greek legend, in time of famine, the parent pelican wounded itself, striking its breast with the beak to feed its young with its blood to prevent starvation. Another version of the legend was that the pelican mother fed her dead young with her blood to revive them from death, but in turn lost her own life. Since then, the pelican has come to symbolize self-sacrifice, especially for the sake of one's children; in my country, it is also used as a mascot for Best Teacher contests, thus also serving as a patron bird of teachers.

Here is, for instance, the stylized crystal statuette of a pelican that serves as the Teacher of the Year trophy:

rg.ru/pril/article/85/71/53/11…

 (I have also been given to understand that the self-sacrificing pelican is a popular Christian symbol; this, however, is a very much secular interpretation, with no insults or cultural appropriation intended).

When my friends and I were going over a His Dark Materials AU for Dragon Age, I suggested that Magister Alexius' Daemon be a pelican, for the reasons listed above. This is an illustrative interpretation of this concept.

As a cure for dark feelz, here's a happier picture of the same character in a similar pose: