The Antlers in the Fern

The antlers came through the fern before Luna heard the hooves.

She had just tucked the Covenant Knot — Celtic Triquetra Cross Necklace beneath her collar. Stainless steel, steel-tone, its flared arms carrying triquetra detail around a circular knotwork centre. The necklace came in three styles and steel-tone or gold-tone finishes. Hers struck her chest as she turned.

The stag was coming straight through the place where she stood.

Beyond its shoulder, Cinder was running.

Not toward her.

Alongside it.

The Wrong Clearing

An hour earlier, this had looked like an excellent place to stop.

A low shelf of stone. Dry ground beneath the timber. Enough room to sit without discovering that the forest had already allocated the space to something with more legs.

Cinder and Ash had moved on.

Luna had remained beside the stone to free a burr from her coat.

One burr.

Then the six others it had apparently invited.

She was considering whether the coat could be persuaded to behave better when the forest changed.

A bird lifted from the lower branches.

Something struck dead wood farther uphill.

Then the fern opened.

There was no time to finish being irritated.

Get Out of the Line

Luna stepped left.

The stag turned the same way.

Not because it wanted her.

Because the opening beyond her was the widest space between the trees.

She had put herself in it.

Cinder’s head turned.

A short, sharp sound cut through the pounding.

Luna dropped behind the stone.

A hoof struck its upper edge.

Earth hit her face.

The antlers passed close enough to drag a hanging branch across the rock above her head.

She felt the branch scrape rather than saw it.

Then Cinder was past.

Then another wolf.

Then the clearing was empty except for the fern still moving and Luna crouched with both hands against the ground.

She breathed.

Discovered she had been waiting to do that.

Breathed again.

Ash on the Ridge

The chase had not gone where Luna expected.

She could hear it below her now, moving across the slope.

She rose only far enough to see over the stone.

Ash stood between two trunks on the higher ridge.

No clumsiness.

No distracted investigation of something she intended to knock over.

Her attention followed the moving shapes below.

Then she was gone.

Luna had seen Ash move quickly before.

Across a shop floor, speed was something with a beginning and an end. Here it was a brief rearrangement of the forest.

A grey shoulder.

A low branch lifting.

Nothing.

Farther downslope, the stag turned again.

Luna stayed behind the stone.

Not Her Place to Call

She could have followed from the air.

There was clear ground enough to change, and room beneath the canopy for her smaller wings.

The thought came automatically.

So did the next one.

And do what?

Call a warning Cinder already understood?

Appear above the stag and change its course?

Fly into a line Ash had chosen before Luna even knew there was a hunt?

She remained human-sized.

Put her back against the stone.

Listened.

Being able to get somewhere quickly was not the same as having something useful to do when she arrived.

That was an irritatingly practical distinction.

She suspected Chelle would enjoy it.

The Turn Below

The slope opened farther down, where fallen timber lay above a narrow run of water.

Through the branches, Luna caught sight of the stag again.

It checked at the broken wood.

Swung its head.

Cinder gave ground.

The antlers swept through the space he had occupied.

Luna’s fingers tightened against the rock.

Ash appeared on the other side.

The stag turned toward her.

She was already beyond its reach.

For a few heartbeats, Luna could see the whole arrangement: the timber, the animal, the wolves taking positions that changed as soon as she understood them.

Then the stag found a gap.

Water flashed beneath its hooves.

It went through.

Cinder followed to the edge.

Stopped.

Ash stopped farther along the bank.

Another wolf continued several strides before turning back.

The stag disappeared into the timber beyond.

No triumphant sound followed.

No furious pursuit.

Only the water and the heavy breathing of creatures who had spent something and were not going to spend the rest merely because they had begun.

What She Had Almost Done

Luna waited.

The wolves gathered without arranging themselves for her benefit.

One moved upstream.

Another followed.

Ash crossed a strip of wet stone and stood near Cinder.

He looked toward the place where the stag had gone.

Then toward the rising ground.

They moved on.

Luna sat down properly.

Her coat had acquired a fresh tear.

The burr remained.

Of course it did.

She worked it free with rather more concentration than it deserved.

What would have happened if she had called Cinder toward her?

Perhaps nothing.

Perhaps he would have ignored her.

Perhaps one instant of divided attention would have put him where the antlers went.

She could not know.

She was glad she did not have to find out.

The Knot She Already Carried

The pendant had slipped out again.

She lifted it from her collar.

Light travelled along the raised steel-tone edges. The dark recesses held the small patterns apart, each line turning into another.

The ancient compact had become easy to speak about beside the Attic’s counter.

Partnership.

Respect.

Two kinds of intelligence moving together.

Here, moving together required her to recognise when she was not moving with them at all.

She had been picking burrs out of a coat.

They had been hunting.

Neither activity had paused the other.

Fenrisheim did not become a gentler place because she wore something it had allowed to leave.

The necklace belonged to a history of relationship.

It was not permission to stand anywhere she liked.

The Way Back to the Stone

Cinder returned along the upper slope.

Luna heard him only when he crossed a patch of loose leaves.

He stopped beside the stone.

Looked at her.

She brushed the last earth from her cheek.

“I moved.”

His attention went to the churned ground.

The hoof mark on the rock.

Then back to her.

“Eventually,” she admitted.

Ash arrived from the other side and passed behind him.

Her shoulder brushed a hanging fern.

Not Cinder.

Luna was certain she had been looking at the fern.

She rose.

Waited for the wolves to choose their direction.

This time, when they left the clearing, she went with them.

One Burr

Chelle found the scratch beside Luna’s jaw while they were closing the Attic.

“Branch?”

“Eventually.”

Chelle lowered the cloth she was holding.

Luna set the Covenant Knot on the counter.

“There was a stag first.”

That earned her Chelle’s full attention.

She told it without improving her position in the clearing.

The step in the wrong direction.

The stone.

Cinder’s turn beneath the antlers.

Ash appearing where she needed to be.

The hunt ending without a catch.

Chelle listened.

Then looked down at Luna’s sleeve.

“What were you doing there?”

“Removing a burr.”

A pause.

Chelle reached toward the back of Luna’s shoulder.

Held up something small and hooked.

Luna stared at it.

“That one wasn’t there before.”

“Naturally.”

Near the door, Cinder settled onto the floor.

Ash chose a place beside him.

Luna put the necklace back on and surrendered her coat.

The Attic keeps reminders of old covenants. The forest still expects you to pay attention.

About This Piece

The Covenant Knot — Celtic Triquetra Cross Necklace is listed as stainless steel, with six options: Style A, Style B, and Style C, each in steel-tone or gold-tone.

The main product photograph shows a flared, equal-armed cross design with triquetra details in the arms and a circular knotwork centre. This chapter features the steel-tone appearance shown there. Check the selected style’s photograph, as the listing includes different designs.

The finish names describe colour, not solid gold or sterling silver. Pendant measurements and chain length are not confirmed here.

In the fictional world of Pedlar’s Attic, the Covenant Knot belongs to Fenrisheim’s ancient compact. This is a later adventure, not another account of its discovery or removal from the Expanse.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Covenant Knot necklace made from?

The listing specifies stainless steel, with steel-tone and gold-tone options.

Which styles are available?

The current options are Style A gold color, Style A steel color, Style B gold color, Style B steel color, Style C gold color, and Style C steel color. Match the selected option to its product photograph.

Is the gold-tone necklace solid gold?

No solid-gold composition is established by the listing. Gold-tone describes the colour of the finish on the listed stainless steel necklace.

Does the necklace protect Luna from the stag?

No. She avoids its path by moving behind stone after Cinder’s warning. The necklace is jewellery, not a guarantee of physical protection.

Does Luna direct the hunt?

No. Cinder, Ash, and the pack act on their own terms. Luna is a guest in Fenrisheim, not their owner or commander.

Is this the necklace’s origin story?

No. The earlier chapters explore its connection to the old compact. This companion follows Luna already wearing it during a later visit.

More from the Attic

What the Pack Kept opens the Covenant Knot’s connection to Fenrisheim’s oldest layers.

The Ones Who Came Correctly follows the thread of the ancient people and their partnership with the wolves.

The Trail Beneath the Snow puts Cinder across another route Luna thinks she understands.

The Light on the Far Bank finds Ash beyond a rising river, with no easy way across.

Fenrisheim — The Wolfsong Expanse holds the wider world of the pack, the compact, and Luna’s earned place as a guest.

Fenrisheim: Appendices — The Hidden History preserves the distinction between the ancient people and the Hall of the Three Oaths.

What will you find? The Covenant Knot — Celtic Triquetra Cross Necklace