Chapter 127 A Dip in A Freezing Lake
She turned another page, her finger tracing a line of old script.
“There is one more important rite before the ceremony itself.”
I groaned softly.
“Let me guess. I have to wrestle a wolf spirit in the forest.”
“No.”
“Sacrifice a goat?”
“No.”
“Stand on a cliff and scream my deepest secrets into the wind?”
She lifted her eyes slowly.
“You are very dramatic for someone who survived a council trial.”
“I cope through sarcasm.”
Mara closed the book with a soft thud.
“The Moon Bath.”
I blinked.
“That sounds… less terrifying.”
“It is a purification rite.”
That sounded slightly more terrifying.
“For who?”
“For the Alpha and the Luna.”
I straightened.
“So Darius too.”
“Yes.”
“Well, that makes me feel better.”
She gestured toward the open archway at the far end of the hall where the forest stretched beyond the compound.
“The ritual takes place in the lake.”
“The lake?”
“The one bordering the eastern territory.”
I pictured the massive body of water just beyond the tree line. The pack trained near it sometimes, and the surface always looked unnaturally still in the mornings.
“That lake is freezing.”
“It is supposed to be.”
I stared at her.
“Why?”
“Cold water sharpens the mind and humbles the body.”
“Or gives you hypothermia.”
Mara ignored that.
“The Moon Bath cleanses the Alpha and Luna before they stand as conduits for the pack.”
“Conduits,” I repeated.
“Yes.”
“For the Moon Goddess.”
I crossed my arms.
“And what exactly does this cleansing involve?”
She answered calmly.
“You both enter the lake under moonlight.”
“Okay.”
“You remain submerged for several moments.”
“That’s not too bad.”
“You remain silent.”
“That’s manageable.”
“You do not shift.”
“That part I assumed.”
“And you emerge only after acknowledging the territory and the pack.”
I tilted my head.
“By saying something?”
“No.”
“Then how?”
“By listening.”
That word again.
Listening.
The ceremonies were full of that concept. Listening to land. Listening to ancestors. Listening to the pack. It felt strange for someone like me. Most of my life had been spent fighting to be heard.
“So we go into the lake,” I summarized.
“Yes.”
“Freeze a little.”
“Yes.”
“Then come out spiritually refreshed.”
“Something like that.”
I nodded slowly.
“That’s actually not terrible.”
Mara hesitated.
“There is… one complication.”
Of course, there was.
“What complication?”
She looked directly at me.
“The tradition requires the Alpha and Luna to perform the Moon Bath separately.”
I frowned.
“Why?”
“It symbolizes individual purification before shared leadership.”
“So he goes in first?”
“Usually the Alpha.”
“And then I go in after.”
“Yes.”
“That sounds unnecessarily complicated.”
“It is tradition.”
I pushed away from the pillar and began pacing.
“So the entire pack stands around watching us take turns freezing in the lake?”
“Yes, but the Alpha and Luna must not see each other during the rite.”
I stopped pacing.
“Why?”
“It is meant to represent entering leadership without reliance on the mate bond.”
I stared at her.
“That sounds like the most awkward bath in history.”
Mara raised an eyebrow.
“It has been done this way for centuries.”
“Yeah, well centuries ago wolves also thought thunder was the Moon Goddess yelling.”
She didn’t laugh.
“Lyra.”
“What?”
“You cannot simply change rituals because you dislike them.”
I rubbed my face.
“It’s not that I dislike it.”
“Then what?”
“It feels… wrong.”
She watched me carefully.
“Explain.”
I hesitated for a moment before answering.
“Everything else about the ceremony emphasizes pack unity.”
“Yes.”
“The Shared Flame.”
“Yes.”
“The Moon Walk.”
“Yes.”
“The vows.”
“Yes.”
“So why does the purification separate the Alpha and Luna?”
“Because the Alpha is the head of the pack in this case the Alpha King is the head of all packs in the world.”
I nodded slowly.
“I understand that.”
“But?”
“But Darius and I lead together.”
She didn’t interrupt.
“And if the whole point of the ceremony is reaffirming bonds,” I continued, “then separating us before that moment feels… backward.”
Mara’s expression grew thoughtful.
“You believe the bond itself should be acknowledged during purification.”
“Yes.”
She tapped her fingers lightly against the book.“That would break tradition.”
“Traditions evolve.”
“They rarely do so easily.”
“Then maybe it’s time.”
Silence settled between us. The hall was quiet except for the distant sounds of the pack moving through the compound.
Finally, Mara spoke again. “What exactly are you suggesting?”
“That we go into the lake together.”
Her eyebrows lifted slightly.
“At the same time.”
“Yes.”
“That has never been done.”
“Someone has to be first.”
“It may upset the elders.”
“They already think I’m a disaster waiting to happen.”
“That is not entirely untrue.”
“Thank you for the support.”
Mara exhaled slowly.“This ceremony is not meant to be a spectacle.”
“I know.”
“But the symbolism matters.”
“It still will.”
She studied me carefully.
“How?”
I answered honestly.
“Instead of purifying separately… we acknowledge that leadership is shared.”
Mara considered that for a long moment.
“You believe the pack will understand?”
“I think they’ll understand that I’m not pretending to be something I’m not.”
“And what are you?”
“A Luna who didn’t grow up inside pack traditions.”
I folded my arms again.
“But who still respects them?”
Mara’s gaze softened slightly.
“You do.”
“I really do.”
“And yet you challenge them.”
“Because I want them to mean something real.”
The hall fell quiet again. Finally, Mara nodded once. “There may be a compromise.”
I perked up. “I like compromises.”
“The elders will not allow you to perform the entire purification together.”
“Of course they won’t.”
“But they may allow you to enter the water at the same time.”
My eyes widened.
“Seriously?”
“Yes.”
“How would that work?”
“Traditionally the Alpha enters first.”
“Right.”
“But instead you would approach the water together.”
“That already sounds better.”
“You would step into the lake side by side.”
I smiled.
“Okay.”
“But you would still complete the immersion individually.”
“Meaning?”
“Each of you submerges in silence.”
“So we still do the reflection part.”
“Yes.”
“Just not alone.”
“Correct.”
I considered it.
Honestly, that sounded perfect.
“We go in together,” I said.
“Yes.”
“But we each take the moment separately.”
“Yes.”
“That’s fair.”
Mara nodded.
“I will speak with the elders.”
“You think they’ll agree?”
“They respect the symbolism of the bond.”
“And Darius?”
Mara actually smiled a little. “The Alpha will agree to whatever makes your life easier during this ceremony.”
I laughed.
“That’s probably true.”
She picked up her book again.
“Then it is settled.”
I looked toward the forest beyond the hall.
The lake waited somewhere beyond those trees.
Cold.
Dark.
Quiet.
Under the full moon tomorrow night.
“You know,” I said softly.
“What?”
“I think I’ll actually like this part.”
Mara glanced at me.
“The Moon Bath?”
“Yeah.”
“Why?”
I thought about it for a moment.
Because for once… I wouldn’t be facing something alone.
“Because,” I said finally, “I won’t be the only one freezing.”
Mara shook her head slightly.“You are impossible.”