I will do no harm to you,Little Wolf, Serepta vowed, shaking her head at using the nickname from Caine. The vamp had a way of wedging himself into things.
Still, Caine lent his magic to the circle, not interfering with their work, but providing an energy source. Seath had his own power to give, a different sort of magic, but it was there, flavoring spells the coven needed for its work. Her skin buzzed with the extra magic, fully charged to the task at hand.
She focused. She had studied this weaving until she knew it, like a neurosurgeon going into surgery. It would be a long night, the work tedious in places, but she would give this Little Wolf what she could. She would unravel what needed unraveling, and then with the power of the coven, delve deeper into the secrets the weaving wanted to keep from her. One coven would not be enough for this kind of magic, but it was a beginning.
Hours later, it was done. Not completely, of course, but progress had been made.
Some, if not all, of Lycan’s wolf powers should be restored in time. Wolfsbane had kept his healing in check, but there were weaves that spellbound his wolf, too. He might be able to shift soon, and that would accelerate healing. His scenting abilities might return. All in all, he may have some new memories as well, but he should have the full compliment of wolf-abilities restored. Eventually.
Serepta watched Seath as his large hands carefully carried the smaller wolf as they made their exit from the cavern. Seath was a good Alpha. He was strong and fierce, but he cared deeply for his people. He held and looked at Lycan with a particular kind of care. An awe for the Little Wolf and Serepta was glad he was here. Lycan would need him.
Seath tried to manage his breathing, pulling Lycan’s body next to his sent a wave of awareness rippling through him. He shouldn’t like the weight of the Little Wolf so near him. He was betrothed, after all.
Still, Lycan in his arms stirred something deep within himself.
It’s only because you haven’t ever been with an omega,he told himself forcing his focus back to the present.
They made their way out of the stone, and it was almost first light.
“We should take him to the sun porch at the Pack House,” Serepta directed. “He should rest there until we see how he recovers. And let it be under the full moon.”
Seath nodded, careful to not even jostle Lycan, as they used the portal dust to carry them back to the Pack House. “I’ll call Trav.”
He wished it was him, that he could be the one to lay with Lycan and help him ease from what the coven had done with its magic. That he could give the Holding, but it was too soon for that. Lycan needed the omega energy more than his.
The sun porch had pallets, more suited to a wolf than a person, and was used as the name suggested — as a place for wolves to sun themselves, usually for recovery. They could also soak in the light of the moon, if that was needed for healing.
In the silver light of the morning, Seath could see that Trav and Van had made more of a nest than a pallet, and he carefully put Lycan down on the nest. He could feel the pull of the moon, even as the sun was coming to take over. The moon, and its power, was still there, though.
“Should he be awake yet?” He asked, he couldn’t help it. Luke appeared by his side, and Caine gave him a sharp smile.
“Little Wolf is resting. That’s a good thing, Alpha,” Serepta said.
“Let the omegas do their thing,” Luke murmured, as Van and Trav slid in next to Lycan, covering him with blankets and snuggling close.
It made quite the picture, but omegas always did, especially in bonding like this. Omega energy was healing, and they were stronger together. The three in the grey-silver light gave Seath hope that Lycan would be healed.
“Tomorrow,” Serepta said, “you should make time for a Holding with Lycan in the full sun, Alpha.”
Seath took Serepta’s words to heart, making sure he was ready for a Holding with the wolf he couldn’t get out of his head.
Holdings were just that, he reminded himself, a type of ritual that played into the wolf’s tactile nature and desire to be close to another wolf. It accelerated healing and Seath had done plenty during his time as Pack Legate. He had done some before, when he was merely a strong Alpha wolf. It would be different than the Holding the omegas did last night, a picture he still could not fully remove from his mind.
He never had to worry before about a Holding. They weren’t sexual in nature. He could hold an attractive omega skin-to-skin in human or wolf form and it never felt odd or strange to be doing so completely bare. The same was true for another Alpha.
But, Lycan, he could barely think of the Little Wolf without thinking of his lean body, his beautiful face. The desire he had to walk up behind Lycan and nuzzle his face into the soft skin of the omega’s neck, to hear his breath hitch, his heart beat faster . . .
Seath stopped himself. There was of course the matter of his fated mate. The one he should be fixated on. Someday, that fated mate—Prince Donovan—would be considered suitable in age and disposition to begin their life together. Donovan’s uncle made that call, as Donovan’s stand-in parent and as Donovan’s King, and Seath had been patient to wait. Would he want to explain to Donovan how he had a tryst with an omega who came to him in the most desperate sort of need? Of course he did not. What kind of mate would he be then?
Perhaps this was all a sign that he should push Greene more about his betrothal. In wolf years, he was young, but it was now near the time the mating should be completed.
Despite his resolve, Seath was happy when he arrived at midday, ready for a Holding when the sun would be at its highest.
The closer he was, the more his body wanted to hum with contentment. Even in the large room, he could smell Lycan. A sweet smell, like lemons, rosemary and sea salt. That must be Lycan’s scent, or at least part of it. It was heady and caught Seath right in the gut.
Lycan gave him a smile, clearly still exhausted from the events of the night before, oblivious to Seath’s struggle.
“Alpha,” he said, sleepily. His nose wrinkled like he was smelling something, trying to place it.
