A woman stands blindfolded with her upper body bound. Eight swords are stuck in the ground around her like a fence; there is water pooling at her feet and a castle on a hill in the distance. Look closely: the way ahead is open and her legs are free. The card is less about being trapped than about believing you are.
It shows up when you feel unable to move. You want to quit and cannot because of the years you have put in. There is something you need to say and you hold it back in case the relationship breaks. You want to change something and a new 'not right now' keeps appearing. Each reason sounds fair alone; side by side, most are swords that fear planted.
Reversed, it is usually loosening. The thoughts that had you bound let go a little, and you start to see that a good share of what felt blocked was happening in your head. Occasionally it goes the other way: you see the way out and put the blindfold back on because the familiar spot is comfortable.
The check is whether, next to the list of reasons you cannot, you can write one thing you can. If even one appears, the fence has a gap.
The usual misreading is 'circumstances have me trapped'. There may well be real constraints. Even so, what the picture stresses is the blindfold more than the number of swords — it asks you to change how you look before trying to change what is out there.
With the Devil the binding comes from habit or attachment, so the only one who can untie it is you. With the Two of Swords the blindfold is doubled; you covered your eyes to avoid choosing, and putting down just one thing changes a lot.