Page 60 of Claws for Celebration
"And time for more practice," Twyla added with determined cheerfulness. "If you're going to perform magical working powerful enough to tear dimensional barriers, you'll need every advantage we can provide."
As evening settled over Hollow Oak and they continued refining techniques that might save or damn them all, Moira found herself grateful that whatever corruption the entity mightbe spreading through the community, it hadn't touched the core group preparing for the final confrontation.
But looking around the table at friends who'd become family, at the man whose love had become the foundation of her magical stability, she couldn't help but feel that the grimoire's warnings about trust and influence were more than just psychological manipulation.
Something was coming that would test not just their magical abilities but their faith in each other. And with only five days remaining until the Convergence, they were running out of time to prepare for threats they couldn't yet see.
The Shadowheart Codex sat silent on the table, its leather binding dark and still, but Moira could swear she felt malevolent satisfaction radiating from the ancient tome.
As if it knew something they didn't about what awaited them in the forest where her family's greatest sacrifice had been made.
35
LUCIEN
The emergency Council meeting that night felt different from any Lucien had attended during his fifteen years of service. Where previous gatherings had focused on containing local threats or managing supernatural politics, tonight they were planning for an operation that could either save the world or trigger its destruction through dimensional magic gone wrong.
"We need a defensive perimeter that can withstand dimensional instability," he explained to the assembled alphas and Council members who'd answered Varric's urgent summons. "If the banishment ritual creates magical feedback, we don't want it spreading beyond the binding site to affect the entire forest."
Callum studied the hand-drawn map spread across the ancient stone table, his lion's territorial instincts evident in the way he analyzed sight lines and approach routes. "How large an area are we talking about? The guardians can hold a quarter-mile perimeter, but if we need more coverage, I'll have to call in additional shifters from the neighboring territories."
"Better to overestimate than find ourselves understaffed," Elder Varric said grimly. "Miss Marsh's power amplified through the mate bond could create effects we haven't anticipated. I've reached out to the Cherokee Nation's supernatural council and the Appalachian Fae Collective. They're sending representatives."
"And the vampire situation?" Maeve asked from her position near the edge of the clearing. "Viktor's coven is still in the area. They might see the ritual as an opportunity to make another grab for Moira."
"Which is why we need overwhelming force," Lucien replied, his panther pacing restlessly at the thought of his mate facing danger from multiple directions. "Enough supernatural backup that any hostile force would be insane to make a move."
"Speaking of backup," Emmett interjected, "what's the plan if the ritual goes wrong? If Miss Marsh loses control during the dimensional working, what's our contingency?"
The question forced him to confront possibilities he'd been trying not to think about. Moira's power channeled through their mate bond was unprecedented in scope. If something went wrong during the banishment attempt, the magical backlash could consume not just her but everyone connected to the working.
"We don't have a contingency plan," he admitted with brutal honesty. "If the dimensional breach destabilizes, if the entity breaks free instead of being banished, if Moira's power overwhelms our bond's ability to contain it, then we're all probably dead anyway."
"Cheerful," Miriam observed dryly. "But realistic, I suppose. Sometimes the only choice is between certain disaster and probable disaster."
"The Cherokee shamans are bringing ward anchors blessed by mountain spirits," Varric continued. "The Fae Collective iscontributing dimensional stabilizers. Between their resources and our local talent, we should be able to contain most forms of magical catastrophe."
"Most forms," Callum repeated. "What about the forms we can't contain?"
"Then we trust in the mate bond that's already proven capable of stabilizing Miss Marsh's abilities," Varric said with more confidence than Lucien felt. "The historical precedents suggest that properly channeled blood magic can achieve impossible things when supported by supernatural partnership."
As the meeting continued and they refined details of defensive positioning and emergency protocols, Lucien found his attention split between tactical planning and the constant awareness of Moira's emotional state through their bond. She was back at the rebuilt bookstore with Twyla and Elena, continuing magical practice while he coordinated their protection, but he could feel her underlying anxiety about the approaching ritual.
"You're distracted," Callum observed during a brief break in the proceedings. "Understandable, given what's at stake, but you need to focus on the planning phase. Save the emotional processing for later."
"I can feel her fear through the mate bond," Lucien admitted quietly. "Not of the ritual itself, but of what failure would cost everyone who's depending on her success. She's carrying the weight of the entire supernatural world on her shoulders."
"And you're carrying the weight of watching someone you love face impossible odds," Callum replied with the understanding of someone who'd mated early and learned to balance protective instincts with respect for his partner's autonomy. "The trick is remembering that supporting her choices isn't the same as agreeing with them."
"She has to do this herself," Lucien said, as much to convince himself as to state facts. "The blood magic binding responds to Marsh lineage. I can anchor her power, but I can't perform the actual banishment."
"Which terrifies your panther because it means watching your mate face mortal danger without being able to take direct action to protect her."
"Exactly." Lucien ran his hands through his shoulder-length black hair, frustrated by instincts that demanded he lock Moira somewhere safe until the crisis passed. "Every protective instinct I possess is screaming at me to find another solution, but logic says this is our only viable option."
"Then trust in the bond that's already saved her from magical consumption," Callum suggested. "Trust in her strength, and in your ability to anchor her through whatever comes next."
When the meeting finally concluded near midnight, Lucien made his way back to the bookstore to find Moira curled up in the reading chair with the Shadowheart Codex open in her lap. The ancient tome showed no text, just blank pages that somehow felt more ominous than its usual manipulative revelations.
