Page 38 of Langiappe & Lost Legends

"I can see where this is going and we will need a cover," Lucas cut in before Adèle could respond with what I'm sure would have been a delightfully sarcastic comment about biblical plagues."Not magical ones, but physical ones. Bodies to help shield you six while you do your work. We don’t want anyone seeing you do your magic." He was already pulling out his phone with his free hand, the other still firmly around my waist. "My pack can form a perimeter. They can act as a buffer and ensure the mundies don’t see what you’re doing."

In the distance, sirens wailed. Because, of course, they did. Nothing says 'magical crisis in progress' quite like emergency vehicles heading your way. I could already imagine tomorrow's tourist blogs. 'Weird lights in the French Quarter! Must be those famous New Orleans ghost tours!' If they only knew.

"Get them here fast," Phi said as she waved her gadget around. "We don't have much time before this gets worse."

"Define worse," Dani muttered, then immediately held up a hand. "No, wait, don't. I don't actually want to know."

"While we wait," Adèle interjected in what I privately called her 'magical Mary Poppins voice', "let me explain exactly what you're going to do. And this time, you're going to follow my instructions to the letter. Or I'll personally ensure your next month is filled with nothing but bad hair days and stubbed toes."

"That's cold," I said, pressing a hand to my forehead. "You know how much product I have to use already."

"Then perhaps you'll listen this time," she shot back. "Form a circle. You'll need to link your energy. Yes, like you've done before, but this time, you will want to ensure you join fully.”

“So, you’re saying we can’t just hold hands and sing kumbaya," I teased.

I could practically hear her eye roll. “I need you to sync your breathing and your heartbeats. Think less magical girl transformation sequence and more single organism with six bodies."

Lucas's pack members began arriving. They moved with that fluid grace all shifters seemed to have. They positioned themselves around us without needing instruction. Their presence already made me feel better about the plan. "Is it wrong that I'm kind of jealous of how coordinated they are?" I whispered to Lucas as he prepared to join his pack.

He smiled and pressed a quick kiss to my temple. "Focus on not passing out. We'll work on your coordination later."

"Promise?"

His eyes darkened slightly. "Definitely."

"If you two are quite finished with your mating dance," Adèle interrupted dryly, "we have some ancient magic to contain."

Right. Focus. Save the Quarter now, flirt later.Adèle's directions were precise. Almost surgical in their detail. The process she described was like weaving on a cosmic loom. Each of us represented a different thread, with the ley lines serving as our framework. It would have been beautiful if it wasn't so terrifying.

"The power wants to move," she explained as we got into position. "Your job isn't to stop it but to give it a new path. Think of it like redirecting a river. You're not damming it up. You're creating new channels for it to flow through."

"Because that worked so well for the Army Corps of Engineers," I muttered, earning a mental swat from our familiar.

The next hour was a blur of careful magical manipulation and increasingly creative swearing. Sweat soaked through my clothes as we worked to channel the ancient power through paths that could handle it. The shifters around us growled occasionally when particularly strong waves of magic washed over them. Thankfully, they managed to keep from looking like their fur was ruffled. The mundies saw nothing more than agroup of people hanging out and drinking. In other words, they looked like every tourist in the area.

My arms shook with effort. My head pounded. But gradually, beautifully, the chaos began to settle. The multiple versions of Jackson Square collapsed back into a single reality. The magical pressure in my skull eased. Though the taste of old power lingered on my tongue like ghostly chicory coffee.

"It's holding," Phi announced finally. She sounded like she'd been gargling gravel. "The new channels are accepting the flow. It's not perfect, but..."

"But it's contained," Adèle finished for her. Approval colored her mental voice. "The ancient magic is still there, still accessible to those who know how to tap it, but it's no longer spilling out uncontrolled. You've essentially created a new circulatory system for it."

"Great," I said, swaying slightly. "Does this new circulatory system come with aspirin?"

"And the Lost Legends?" Dre asked with a weary sigh. "Please tell me we didn't just make things worse."

"They’re still a problem," Adèle admitted, "but they’re no longer supercharged by the ancient binding magic. You've separated the old power from their current activities. Think of it as removing their magical steroids."

Lucas moved closer, and his energy wrapped around me like a warm blanket. "The Quarter feels calmer," he observed as he looked around at the gradually normalizing scene.

"For now," I said, finally letting my hands drop. My fingers tingled like I'd stuck them in an electrical socket. "But we still need to deal with the Legends themselves. At least now we're back to fighting them at their regular power level instead of them being jacked up on centuries-old magic."

"Small victories," Dani muttered, but there was a hint of relief in her voice. "Though I vote we take a nap before tackling that particular problem."

"Seconded," I said as I leaned heavily against Lucas. Around us, his pack began to relax. Though they remained alert for any signs of trouble. Because that's what good paranoid supernatural creatures did.

"Next time," Adèle projected, "perhaps we start with the research portion of the program instead of jumping straight to the practical exam?"

Six identical groans answered her, but she was right. We'd learned our lesson about messing with old magic without proper preparation. Though knowing us, and knowing this city, this wouldn't be the last time we'd have to improvise our way out of a magical crisis.

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