Gratitude floods the bond, tangled with fear and a relentless determination to master this new existence she never asked for but refuses to let defeat her. I kiss her forehead and let her finish eating, content to simply watch her grow stronger by the hour.
Signe comes twice daily to monitor the conversion's progress. The healer's pale eyes miss nothing as she checks Iris's vitals, tests her reflexes, asks questions designed to gauge how fully the wolf has integrated. When she declares the physical transformation complete, what remains is mental, emotional—the work of learning to live as two beings in one body.
"She's strong," Signe tells me privately while Iris bathes in the adjoining chamber. "Stronger than I expected. Most converts struggle with the wolf's instincts for weeks, but she's already finding ways to work with them instead of against them."
"Helena trained her to adapt. To survive anything."
"Helena trained her to fight." Signe's gaze holds mine with uncomfortable directness. "You trained her to trust. That's the difference. A convert who fights the wolf tears themselves apart.But Iris has learned to stop fighting. She surrendered to you, and that taught her how to surrender to the change."
The observation lands harder than I expect. I think of all the ways I pushed her, all the times I demanded submission she did not want to give. I told myself it was for her own good, that breaking down her resistance would save her life when the bond completed and the conversion began. But hearing Signe name it so plainly makes me wonder if my motives were ever as selfless as I claimed.
"She's ready for the ceremony," Signe continues, either oblivious to my discomfort or choosing to ignore it. "Tomorrow night, under the full moon. The pack needs to see their luna whole and strong."
"And the shift?"
"If the moon calls her, she'll answer." Signe pauses, considering. "The first transformation usually happens within the first lunar cycle after conversion. Given how quickly she's progressed, I wouldn't be surprised if tomorrow is the night."
Tomorrow. My wolf stirs with anticipation at the thought of running beside our mate, of seeing her emerge in her true form for the first time. I have imagined this moment for years, long before she knew I existed, long before the blood pact brought her to my door. The reality is finally within reach.
"Prepare the ceremonial grounds," I tell Signe. "And spread the word. Tomorrow night, Iris takes her place as Luna of the Northern Pack."
By the time the sun begins its descent toward the mountain peaks the following evening, the great hall has filled with wolves.
They come in silence, filing into the space with a solemnity that speaks to the weight of what they are about to witness. Pack elders who have served three generations of alphas. Warriors who bled beside me in the canyon. Craftsmen and hunters and healers, the backbone of a community that has survivedeverything the world has thrown at it. And among them, scattered throughout the crowd, the wolves who doubted my choice of mate. The ones who whispered about weakness and human fragility and an alpha led astray by his cock.
Let them watch. Let them see what Iris has become.
She stands beside me on the raised dais, dressed in ceremonial leathers that mark her as mine. The conversion has changed her in subtle ways that only wolf eyes would notice. She holds herself differently, weight balanced on the balls of her feet, ready to move in any direction. Her gaze sweeps the crowd with predatory awareness, cataloging threats and allies with instincts that did not exist two weeks ago. And beneath the surface, visible only to me through our link, the wolf paces with restless energy, eager for the moonrise that will finally set her free.
"Wolves of the Northern Pack," I announce, my voice carrying to every corner of the hall. "You know why we gather. You witnessed the battle that secured our territory and destroyed the wolf who dared threaten what is ours. Tonight, we complete what that victory began."
The crowd’s attention sharpens. The surprise on several faces tells me they expected Iris to still be recovering, perhaps too weak to stand before them so soon. They underestimated her. They will not make that mistake again.
"Iris Carswell came to us as payment for a blood debt. She came unwilling, defiant, convinced that the wolves who claimed her were enemies to be fought rather than family to be joined." I pause, letting the words settle. "She was wrong. But so was I. I thought I was collecting a debt that was owed. Instead, I found a partner. A warrior. A luna worthy of the name."
I turn to Iris and extend my hand. She takes it without hesitation, her fingers warm and steady in mine, and together we face the assembled pack.
"The conversion is complete. The bond is sealed. From this night forward, Iris is wolf. She is luna. She is mine, and I am hers, and any threat to her is a threat to me." I let my gaze sweep the crowd, lingering on the faces of those who questioned my judgment loudest. "Does anyone challenge her claim?"
Silence answers me. Whatever doubts they harbor, none are foolish enough to voice them here, in front of their alpha, with the evidence of her transformation standing proud beside me.
"Then speak, Luna. Let the pack hear your voice."
Iris steps forward, and her nerves flutter against my awareness before she steadies herself. When she speaks, her voice is clear and carries easily despite the size of the hall.
"I didn't ask for this bond." The words land with blunt honesty, and I see surprise ripple through the crowd. They expected diplomacy, perhaps, or careful words designed to smooth over the uncomfortable truth of how she arrived. Instead, she gives them reality. "I came here as a prisoner, bound by an ancient pact I never agreed to, promised to a man I'd never met. I resented him. I told myself I would rather die than submit to a fate someone else had chosen for me."
She pauses, and the hall holds its breath.
"I was wrong." Her chin lifts, and the wolf gleams behind her eyes. "Not about the fighting. Never about the fighting. But about what I was fighting for. I thought I was defending my freedom. Instead, I was running from where I belonged." Her gaze finds mine briefly before returning to the pack. "I've learned that some cages become homes when you stop fighting the walls and start building inside them. This is my home now. You are my pack. And I will protect you with my life, because you're mine now, too."
The silence stretches for one heartbeat, two, three. Then the scarred warrior who helped her defend the keep during Korren's attack steps forward and drops to one knee.
"Luna," he says simply.
Another wolf follows. Then another. Like a wave rolling through the hall, the pack kneels before their new luna, acknowledging her place among them. Not all of them mean it. I can smell the resentment lingering on some, the political calculation on others. But they kneel regardless, because whatever they think of Iris personally, they respect the strength she has shown. They respect the bond that ties her to their alpha. And they respect the wolf she is about to become.
When the last wolf has knelt, Iris turns to me with something like wonder in her eyes. Amazement bleeds through our connection, tangled with pride and a fragile hope that she might actually belong here after all.
