The White Werewolf || Season One: Ties That Bind

Chapter Sixty-Two

But she was still in Robin's body, and she wouldn't leave it if he was present.

Perhaps he could bargain on that point.

"Leave her body and I'll leave you intact," he promised suddenly. "Jaskier will make his last wish and you can do whatever you'd like with the djinn."

"How kind of you," Yennefer drawled, "to send me to my death while you escape with your companions." She paused, then added, "No. I need a vessel powerful enough to hold the djinn so I can harness its power in ways far more potent than simple wishes."

Geralt's eyes narrowed. He didn't understand.

"The most powerful vessels are mages," Yennefer continued when he didn't reply.

Geralt swallowed as her plan finally dawned on him. "No!" he whispered.

Then his head clouded over and the overpowering scent of lilac and gooseberries filled his nose. His breathing quickened as he tried to struggle, but he couldn't.

Yennefer smiled. "Tough to get in your head," she told him. "First I had to poke a hole in her shield, and even then, you're still naturally immune to magic. In addition, you have a strong will. But you can't contend with me. None of you can."

"Sorry I couldn't be direct," she apologized. "I knew you'd fight it. But I also knew you'd stay close as long as her body was under my sway. And I do love a good, old-fashioned trap."

"A good, old-fashioned... nap," Geralt mumbled.

Then he tumbled, passing out just before he hit the floor.

****

When he woke, he was in prison, along with the elf, Chireadan. He sat up, his loose hair falling around his face, listening as his companion explained what he'd done while under Yennefer's enchantment.

He would have been fine with dying in the cell if he'd known Robin and Jaskier were safe. But if Yennefer had been honest about her plan, and at that point, she'd had no reason not to be, then at least Robin was in very real danger, and he couldn't allow that.

"Why did you help her?" he snarled at the elf. "She said you led us right to her. Are you under her spell?"

"I wish I was, but no," Chireadan confessed. "It's a simple issue of body chemistry."

"You're in love with her?" Geralt asked incredulously.

Chireadan nodded. "And I think perhaps you may understand me, since you're risking everything for the woman she took first."

The door at the end of the hallway opened and a guard approached their cell. Chireadan looked panicked as Geralt hefted himself to his feet.

The guard turned out to have a taste for torture. Chireadan watched helplessly as he tossed Geralt about the room, hitting him over and over.

Finally, the guard shoved Geralt to his knees. "Last words, witcher," he sneered. "Make them good."

"I want you to burst, you son of a whore," Geralt growled.

A magical wind suddenly gusted in his face as the man's head exploded.

Geralt breathed in sharply. The wishes were his, not Jaskier's.

And when Yennefer realized, she was not going to be kind.

****

Jaskier stirred in the bed. He was finally healed. As he sat up slowly, his eyes widened.