The now familiar picture formed in Seath’s mind as the witches worked. The threads of Lycan’s memories burned like bright metallic strands. Unlike the tightly woven plaits that had been woven with darker threads, these strands were knotted tight.
Serepta gave a little gasp and then a hum. “Nine knots each.”
“What does that mean?” Tremon snapped.
“The wolf is spellbound, no doubt there. Magic knotted into his memories, as the witches said. We cannot cut through in a Gregorian fashion, but we have to untangle, instead. This is not the same as Donovan. That was shielding magic of his own mind. Something he placed on himself that grew. This magic has been laid upon the wolf and not by his own hand.”
Caine looked to Seath. “This will not be easy. But, here, and with the Seelie magic we can see what we could not before.”
“Nor without its share of pain, which I am sure he can and is willing to suffer.” Tremon added, almost sounding bored.
The vines tightened further.
“Seath,” Greene warned, and he tried to relax.
Caine dropped to his knee in-front of the Seelie Queen, who had remained silent as she observed the proceedings. Caine’s actions had her coming to action.
“Don’t bow to me, Caine,” the Queen demurred with a smile Seath couldn’t read. “I might start to think you mean it.”
Caine gave her a smile and then straightened to perform an elaborate bow and kissing of her hand. “You can see the unseen, truly.”
“We are here to resolve an issue, are we not?”
The image of the weaves of magic in Lycan’s mind once again came forth to Seath and the others in attendance.
“I ask your opinion of it, that is all, your grace.” Caine said easily, and the Queen twitched a smile. “And perhaps your guiding hand in this important work.”
“Old magic, knotting magic. This is hearth magic, turned dark,” the Queen mused, her eyes unfocused as she seemed to look beyond the picture displayed for her in her mind. She moved close enough to the table to lay a gentle hand on Lycan, and the picture changed, as if someone had moved forward a slide and then zoomed far in.
What they all could see was a large weave with nine knots. And into those nine knots were the strands woven throughout. This was the anchor point.
“I can undo this, but,” Titania’s gaze found Seath and she flicked away the vines, “he will need to recover, after. Can you take care of him?”
“Yes.” Seath nodded.
The Queen then focused back on Lycan. “We should begin. Your time in this realm is almost up.”
The coven drew close, and the Queen seemed to pause. She linked into the power of the witches, and Caine.
“Follow my lead.”
It was still and quiet. No scents for Seath to catch, no sounds in the woods. The entire realm was keyed to its Queen, and its Queen was deep in thought and magic.
“By knot of one, the spell’s undone.” Titania’s voice seemed otherworldly, the words formed as if on a foreign tongue and translated.
The coven followed, repeating the rhyme.
“By knot of two, it endeth true.”
Seath watched with the rest as the tight tension on the strand that anchored the nine knots began to relax. The first knot was slowly unbinding. Then the second.
“By knot of three, thus it no longer be.” Lycan gave a bit of a sigh, a whimper as if he was running a marathon. But the third knot loosened and the earlier knots began to give way, too.
Seath longed to reach for Lycan, to lend him his Alpha strength. But, Lycan was the lone wolf in the woods. The strongest wolf he knew.
Greene leaned into Seath’s side, perhaps fortifying him with his own magic.
Seath walked forward a bit, and no one stopped him. The vines allowed it. He slipped through the ring of people and reached out to Lycan, and heard his mate take in a sharp breath at the touch of Seath’s hand to Lycan’s ankle.
