CHAPTER17
Aodhan, Cathy reflected, had a very different understanding of the word ‘easy.’
“Are you sure about this?” she said, as Aodhan tied a pair of antlers to a sapling with glittering silver chains. “I mean, all I’ve done so far is accidentally make a few roses. This seems a lot more advanced.”
“Nonsense.” Aodhan dug in a pocket, producing a handful of walnut-sized moonstones strung on silk threads. He started hanging them from the sapling’s branches. “This should be child’s play for you. I’m providing the structure of the spell. You just have to channel your power into it.”
“Just,” Cathy muttered, eying the sapling dubiously. “If it’s so easy, why don’t you power the spell?”
“Because I’m not a sorcerer.” Aodhan adjusted a few of the dangling crystals. “Something like this normally takes a whole circle of mages. If I was attempting this on my own, I’d need to perform the spell under the full moon, at an equinox, and even then it would likely lay me out for two weeks. If I could manage it at all. I’ve got the knowledge, but not the strength. That’s where you come in.”
Cathy still had distinct reservations on that point. From Motley’s expression, so did he. The raven shifter had trailed them into the woods like a pale shadow, sometimes on wings, sometimes as a man. At the moment, he was in his human form—well, humanoid form, she supposed, given the pointed ears—with Noodle at his heels, the crow-cat perched on his shoulders, and a disapproving look on his face.
“You don’t think this will work either?” she murmured to him.
“Oh, it will,” Motley said, in tones that made it clear he would rather that wasn’t the case. “It’s wrong, but it will.”
“It’s not wrong,” Aodhan said sharply. He tapped the sapling’s trunk, jerking his chin at its neighbor. “I wouldn’t work any magic on a living thing without consent. These trees are overshadowed and struggling to put down roots. They’re amenable to a change of scene.”
Motley’s frown deepened. “Not what I meant, and you know it.”
Cathy wanted to ask Motley what he had meant, but there was no time. Aodhan stepped back, surveying his handiwork. The young sapling was now decked out like its neighbor, draped in gleaming crystals and dangling silver chains. A pair of bone-white antlers, longer than Cathy’s arm, curved up from each slender trunk like grafted branches. The overall effect was of very goth Christmas trees.
“Right.” Aodhan clapped his hands, apparently satisfied. He beckoned to her. “Now it’s your turn.”
Cathy reluctantly joined him. “And I’m supposed to do what, exactly?”
He flashed her a grin. “Magic.”
“Thank you, that’s so helpful,” she said, exasperated. “How do I do magic?”
“You tell me. You’re the sorcerer.” In the dappled light of the woodland glade, his blue eyes sparkled like sapphires, alight with enthusiasm. “We’ll have to work this out as we go along. Combining sorcery and mage-craft is theoretically possible, according to some texts, but I’ve never read any accounts of it actually being done. We’re opening up an entirely new avenue of practical research here, you realize. The possibilities are quite fascinating.”
Despite her doubts, Cathy found herself smiling back. He was usually so controlled, it was endearing to see him this animated.
“Okay,” she said. “I’ll do my best. But I really don’t know what I’m supposed to be doing.”
“Whatever feels right.” He held out a hand to her. “Your magic comes from within you, Cathy. It’s always been there. Look inside, and release your power.”
Swallowing a flutter of apprehension, she rested her hand on his. Just like before, a shock swept up her arm at the contact. The magical bond around her wrist pulsed with golden light. Energy ran across her skin like a phantom caress. She caught her breath, every nerve abruptly alight.
“Good,” Aodhan murmured, his own bond glowing green. His chest hitched. “Goddesses, that’s—goddesses. Cathy.”
White light outlined their clasped hands. It ran down Aodhan’s body as if he was a lightning rod, spreading out to encircle them both. The air hung still and heavy, yet the saplings’ branches stirred, crystals and chains chiming together.
“That’s it,” Aodhan gasped, as tree trunks rippled and bent. “It’s working. More, Cathy. Don’t hold back. Let yourself go.”
“I…” They were barely touching, yet she could feel his warmth against every inch of her body. She had a sense of building pressure; a growing, urgent need for release that was more than just physical. “I don’t know how.”
“Sorcery is powered by desire.” His fingers moved, just a little, brushing across the sensitive pulse point on her wrist. A bolt of pure heat shot straight to her core. “Focus on what you want, Cathy. Want it so strongly and fiercely that the world itself must bend to your will. Let yourself feel. Let yourself want.”
Oh, she wanted. Desire burned in her like fire. Normally, she would have repressed the feeling, but now she embraced it. She focused on the need pounding through her veins, imagining all that coiled, frustrated energy bursting out, released at last—
Stars wiped out her vision. Aodhan’s choked groan was almost lost under the louder sound of twisting wood. She staggered, losing her balance as the earth heaved under her feet.
When she came back to herself, she was leaning against Aodhan’s broad chest, his arms holding her up. Sweat beaded in the hollow of his throat. Under her cheek, she could feel his heart hammering.
“Well now.” He set her back on her feet, offering her a rather shaken smile. “Fascinating indeed. All right?”