I remember reading and/or participating in both the threads you mentioned.
FD, as Wiz said, it would be really something overpowered, but I don't see the problem of changing this totally useless AA to something minimally useful (at least, seeing how much AA points it costs).
I thought sometimes about different possibilities of this AA and came up with some ideas that maybe could fit the recast time given.
1) Ancestral Thoughts: You give a small Mana Hot (20, 30, 50, no matter how few) to your target. This mana comes from your mana pool. This is a Hot so it occupies one buff slot (to make it worse). The casting time could be the same or lower depending on the strength of it.
2) Shared Health: The small group HOT Xavu mentioned.
3) Actually any healing useful thing being not decisive and making the casting not a loose of time in comparison of casting in the same time your relic heal. (i.e. a 500 Hp single HOT would be useless as in the same time we can do a complete 2900 heal). It could be also a small HOT but longer lasting than a HOT. Something in between a regeneration and a HOT in terms of HP/heal par tick and duration. Don't know if this would fit with the recast time though. Other option is that it could take life from you for giving it to others.
3) Companion Rage: A small pet haste short lasting buff. Training more levels = more haste or longer lasting buff. Seeing we have some pet AAs that could be a good thing. Also that could make more shamans using his pet in raids. It could be only a small increase of few dps (actually from my parses dps is about 40) and a reward of summoning them (as they die so easily).
4) Companion Rage: A small pet strength/dexterity short lasting buff. Training more levels = more str/dex or longer lasting buff.
5) A small cripple/incapacitate to the target. Long-lasting.
6) A bigger one but short-lasting.
I'm sure some of them could be overpowered but I just wanted to mention all I have in mind. Of course, numbers could be change to make it less overpowered/more useful.
Ideas and thoughts (positive/negative but not attacking this) are welcomed.
Naragako.