Occult planning

Tara staggers a little from your sudden display of affection but recovers quickly as you continue to exult in your realization, "Not without knowing-"

You interrupt, waving your hands excitedly, "There's other things too! Demon's have a whole slew of weaknesses to go with their strengths, I've been thinking of this as a hostile takeover when I should have been considering it an exorcism."

Tara still looks nonplussed, though a faint smile graces her lips at your antics, "Not THAT many weaknesses, you would still need to be in the same room as her to take advantage of most of them."

"Aha! Ye of little faith!" You calm yourself, at least for the moment, "To be fair, Mother had a vested interest in keeping me from learning much of magic. My father's court mage disappeared shortly before I was born-" You pause as yet another realization strikes you, "The timing of which now makes a lot more sense. Anyway: I may not know much of magic but I know a lot more about demons."

You raise your hand and begin counting off your fingers, more and more of your mothers odd behavior suddenly clicking making sense, "Mother avoids pure metals, specifically iron and silver, and she HATES pure salt. She can't stand the scent of vervain or, I assume, it's touch. She has an... affection for certain musky odors that borders on compulsion. Animals always grow restless when she's near, she almost never travels for how anxious she makes the horses. She really doesn't like walking over any kind of circle, which I imagine can be a means to trap her if they're prepared in such a way..."

You pause, looking down at your hands, each finger representing a demonic trait, "I'm starting to think I really should have realized this sooner."

Tara makes an amused sound, taking your hands in hers, "I still think that, while your knowledge is impressive, it's a little early to be celebrating. And to my knowledge your original point, about being able to summon demons, only works if you know their true name."

You quirk an eyebrow, looking at her askance. Her kind and somewhat patronizing demeanor changes to shock, "You can't possibly... you know her name!?"

It's not something that you could really describe, and you weren't about to tell Tara lest Mother hear you, but you had a pretty good feeling for what it might be. A strange string of syllables that were alien yet familiar, they repeated in your head whenever your mother was near. You've long since tuned it out but you still clearly remember the strange chanting. It must be a result of your demon blood, a kind of sixth sense for other demons, or maybe it's specifically because she's a demon and your mother. It, along with your display of inhuman vigor the day before, makes your stomach squirm a bit at what else about you might be associated with hell.

Tara remains wary of directly involving herself in a demonic confrontation but she admits that summoning and trapping your mother was the best course of action for the sake of the kingdom, "I just hope she hasn't dug her nails in too deep. Demon's are chaos incarnate but they can be devilishly cunning. If she has some kind of contingency..."

You knew her trickery all too well, "Mother is cunning but she can't follow plans to save her life." Your heart sinks a bit at your accidental choice of wording but you continue, "She improvises. If we can trap her without giving her time to react, we'll have her."

Between the two of you, you compile a considerable list of demon traps, albeit mostly from folklore and your childhood experiences. You have more success coming up with ways to slay demons, if common myths are worth anything, so the plan evolves into something more akin to a mousetrap. Summon the demon in a particular spot, then spring the trap on her. Neither of you are eager to test it out without consulting a professional, for whatever that meant when it came to demon summoning. Unfortunately, the closest person you might think to ask is the court mage of a neighboring kingdom and Tara is uncomfortable even speaking about the possible sources she might consult, so all you really have to go on is your gut.