Page 63 of Whisker me Away
"Not without you." She stumbled across the grove, her magic sparking weakly but growing stronger with each step. "Never without you."
The trust in her voice, the absolute faith that he was worth saving despite his fears and inadequacies, hit Kieran like lightning. This woman who could have chosen safety, who could have run from the impossible task fate had dropped in her lap, was instead walking back into danger because she believed in him.
"She's going to get you killed," the Thornweaver snarled, its composure cracking as it realized its psychological warfare was failing. "Her weakness will destroy you both."
"Her strength will save us both," Kieran corrected, his power surging as Freya drew close enough to touch. "Because that's what real partnership means."
When her hands closed over his, everything changed.
The moment their skin connected, their bond flared with recognition and shared purpose that went beyond anything they'd experienced before. But this time was different. This time, instead of just sharing power, they were creating something entirely new.
Kieran's protective fury merged with Freya's healing magic in ways that defied every law of supernatural energy he'd ever learned. His tiger's strength became her anchor, while her botanical power became his focus. His territorial instincts transformed into shields that could turn away psychological attacks, while her nurturing nature became a force that could heal corruption at its source.
"My god," Freya breathed, her eyes wide with wonder as their combined magic painted the grove in shades of gold and green. "I can feel your absolute determination to protect. It's like having unshakeable faith flowing through my veins."
"And I can feel your connection." Kieran's voice carried awe as their powers continued to merge and strengthen. "It's like touching the heart of creation itself."
The Thornweaver's shriek of rage shook the twisted trees as it realized what was happening. The two separate sources of power it had been fighting were becoming one unified force, stronger than the sum of their individual abilities.
"This changes nothing," the ancient evil snarled. "You're still just two children playing with forces beyond your understanding."
"Maybe," Kieran. "But we're two children who love each other enough to face impossible odds. And apparently, that's more dangerous than you thought."
The barrier reformed around them, no longer golden light but something that shifted between colors like aurora, beautiful and terrible and absolutely impenetrable. Where before Kieran had been bleeding himself dry trying to hold back corruption,now their combined strength made the task feel manageable, sustainable.
"You think love makes you invincible?" the Thornweaver hissed. "Let me show you what real power looks like."
The grove around them began to convulse as the ancient evil gathered itself for one final, devastating assault. Trees twisted into new configurations, the ground cracked and heaved like an earthquake, and the very air grew thick with malevolence so profound it felt like drowning in liquid hatred.
But Kieran felt no fear. Beside him, Freya's magic sang with harmonics that matched his tiger's protective fury note for note. Whatever the Thornweaver threw at them next, they'd meet it together, as true partners whose bond had been forged in crisis and tempered by absolute trust.
"Ready?" Freya asked, her eyes blazing with power that made her look like an avenging angel.
"Ready," Kieran confirmed, his amber gaze steady as stone.
34
FREYA
The moment their powers fully merged, everything changed.
What had been a desperate struggle against an ancient evil transformed into something glorious, their combined magic flowing between them like liquid sunlight while the corrupted grove began to sing with harmonies that spoke of life returning to poisoned earth. Freya felt her magic reach deeper into the soil than she'd ever thought possible, guided by Kieran's unwavering strength and her own renewed connection to the growing things that called Hollow Oak home.
"Can you feel that?" she whispered, wonder coloring her voice as their unified power spiraled downward through layers of earth and time. "The original binding. It's still there, waiting for us."
"I feel it." Kieran's voice carried the same awe. "Like finding treasure buried in the dark."
Freya's magic touched the ancient spell with reverent care, marveling at the elegant construction her ancestor had created over a century ago. Celeste's binding was a masterwork of protective magic, woven from love and sacrifice andabsolute determination to protect future generations from the Thornweaver's hunger.
But it was also failing, its golden threads frayed by time and weakened by decades of bearing an impossible burden alone.
"She never meant for it to last forever," Freya realized, her consciousness flowing along the spell's intricate patterns. "The original binding was designed to hold until the next generation could renew it. Celeste knew her descendants would need to add their own strength to the foundation."
"Then let's give her what she was waiting for," Kieran said. "Show me what you need."
Working together, they began weaving their combined power into Celeste's creation like golden threads strengthening ancient fabric. Freya's botanical magic merged with the earth-based spells that formed the binding's foundation, while Kieran's protective energy created new barriers around the Thornweaver's prison that pulsed with tiger strength and territorial certainty.
The difference was immediate and profound. Where the original binding had been elegant but fragile, their reinforced version blazed with power that made the grove ring like a bell. Every stone in the ritual circle flared with renewed light, every carved rune glowed with energy that spoke of permanence rather than temporary containment.
