Chapter 87: The Festival Morning

The steam from the hot spring curled around them like ghostly fingers, rising in thin ribbons that blurred the trees and sky above. For a while neither of them spoke. Only the soft lap of water against stone and the faint toll of shrine bells carried from somewhere beyond the trees filled the air.

Sophia exhaled slowly, letting the warmth soak into her skin and the tension ebb from her shoulders. She had been wound so tightly since waking that morning she thought she might snap. Now, sitting here with Orion and the mist drifting over the water, she could almost breathe again. She felt relaxed even if only for a while.

Orion shifted on the boulder beside her. His voice broke the silence at last.

"You okay now?"

Sophia blinked, coming back from the fog of her own thoughts. "Yeah," she murmured. "I’m...I think so."

"Think so or know so?"

"What’s the difference?"

"Do you really want me to go into detail?" He asked her and she paused but then shook her head with a sigh.

"I feel calm now. Better too." She told him.

"Good," he said with a small nod. "Because I have to head back soon. Alpha duties." He grinned at her and she gave him an eye roll.

"But...if you’re interested, I could show you around before it starts. The main festival doesn’t kick off until about six, but the stalls are already going up. Food, trinkets, charms, you can get anything you want."

Sophia frowned faintly. "I don’t have any coin," she said. "I’ve barely been working at the library a month. I haven’t even been paid yet."

Orion leaned back on his hands and gave her a look. "You’re speaking with the leader of the pack."

"I can’t take your money." She shook her head. "I don’t...I can just..."

But before she could finish, he tipped his head back and belted out a song. And Sophia came to the realization that Orion was a bad singer. He was loud but off beat and his voice that sounded beautiful when he spoke even if he was angry or irritated sounded like something else right now. A false soprano? Sophia wasn’t sure. Perhaps this was not something that could be categorized after all. It could only be described one way...horrible.

"La-la-la-la-laaa—I can’t hear you!"

Sophia’s eyes went wide. "What..."

He kept going, louder and even more tuneless, grinning crookedly. "Na-na-na, not listening, la-la-la-"

She clapped her hands over her ears, laughing despite herself. "Stop, please stop."

Orion dropped his voice to a mock whisper, "Still can’t hear you," and then chuckled, the sound low and warm.

Sophia tried to glare at him but the corners of her mouth twitched. "How did you...what even was that?" She asked him.

"A song? I’d have you know my mum dang it to me when I was little. It always calmed me down." He told her smugly.

"That did nothing to calm me down at all. What the hell? You are a horrible singer." She told him.

"I know that." He told her with a laugh. "But it was because you were going to say something ridiculous."

"I was not going to say something ridiculous."

"It was going to sound ridiculous to me." He told her making her chuckle.

"So..." He said dragging the words but she got the message.

She rolled her eyes. "Fine. But Only because I don’t want to hear your horrible singing."

"Good enough. That’s settled then." 𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

He swung his legs out of the spring and stood, water streaming from his rolled-up trousers. His shadow stretched long across the mist. Then he turned, extending a hand to her.

"Come on. I’ve got to get back and you’ve got to see the festival before the crowds swarm in. Everyone will be busy at the shrine now."

Sophia hesitated, then placed her hand in his. His grip was warm and firm as he helped her down from the stone ledge. She was lighter than he expected, and for a moment she didn’t step away. Their eyes met, his brown irises flecked with gold, something she’d never noticed before because she’d never been up close. But it was obvious how much it suited him. His eyes were beautiful.

The steam curled between them, catching the sunlight, and for a heartbeat, it was just the both of them alone in the world. Her, staring into his eyes, heartbeats merging and him staring into her familiar but beautiful eyes. Those blue orbs calling out to him. Just tilting his head closer would bring their lips together. And all of a sudden, the world resumed.

Orion cleared his throat and stepped back. "Right," he said briskly.

She nodded quickly, brushing at her hair. "Right...um..."

She bent to pull on her boots, fingers fumbling, eager to escape the awkwardness. But as she tugged at the laces she lost her balance, stumbled, and nearly fell backward.

Orion’s hand shot out on instinct, catching her elbow. His brows shot up. "Seriously?"

Her cheeks burned. "Shut up."

A low laugh rolled out of him, "I don’t understand how you manage to do it. How do you trip over nothing at all?"

She straightened, "It’s not nothing at all. It’s..." She pointed vaguely at nothing.

Orion stared with wide eyes. "It’s..." He said mimicking her movement.

"I hate you." She huffed.

Lie

"That’s one of the worst lies I’ve ever heard in my life." He chuckled.

They bickered lightly as they left the clearing, the mist swallowing the hot spring behind them. The path curved between moss-lined trees, dappled sunlight spilling across the ground like coins scattered by an unseen hand. Ahead, houses rose once more.

As they drew closer, Sophia began to notice the changes she had missed earlier. It was like the whole pack had been transformed in just the blink of an eye. She had no idea how she had missed it.

Lanterns hung from doorways, each one etched with tiny runes that glimmered faintly as if catching the fading daylight and turning it into silver fire. They swayed gently in the breeze, casting patterned shadows across the cobbled paths.

Long ribbons of dark blue and silver had been strung between the houses, fluttering overhead like captured strands of moonlight. Tables had been dragged into the open squares, draped with cloth painted in swirling motifs of wolves and stars.

Children darted between the stalls, carrying small charms shaped like crescents, their laughter bright against the low hum of adults setting up wares. One man hammered a wooden sign into place while his partner arranged jars of honeyed fruit. A woman with a hawk’s braid lit another lantern, whispering a prayer as she touched the rune to activate its glow.

Sophia slowed, drinking it all in. It was beautiful. Everything was so perfectly in place.

It wasn’t just decoration. Every lantern, every rune, every offering meant something. Each light was a prayer to guide the lost back to the Moon Goddess, each ribbon a reminder of ties unbroken between the living and the dead.

"You’re quiet," Orion said beside her, his voice softer now.

Sophia glanced at him. "It’s... beautiful."

He nodded once. "It looks normal to me though."

"That’s because you’re used to it. But to me, this is new and beautiful." She told him.

She looked again at the flickering lanterns, the carved runes glowing like stars at each doorway. Families were already setting small bowls of bread and herbs outside their homes. Some left folded cloths embroidered with symbols Sophia didn’t recognize but felt like she should.

"Is that for the shrine?" Sophia asked.

"Yes. People bring whatever their loved ones liked in life. Food, drink, flowers, sometimes weapons. We leave them at the outer shrine at dusk."

Sophia touched the edge of one glowing lantern, careful not to smudge the rune. "And the runes?"

"They’re for protection. And for guidance. We light the way so they can find us, even just for tonight."

Her throat tightened again. She wondered if anyone was lighting a lantern for her, wherever she came from.

Orion watched her for a moment, then cleared his throat. "Come on. You’ll miss the best food if you stand here gawking."

"I’m not gawking."

"You’re gawking."

She narrowed her eyes at him but followed anyway. The crowd thickened as they reached the main square where most of the stalls had been set up. Spits of sizzling meat rotated over open flames. Bowls of spiced grains steamed in the cool air. Trinket sellers displayed carved pendants shaped like wolves, moons, and stars, each one glinting with a faint enchantment.

Children carried paper lanterns shaped like stars. Someone was singing a low, mournful tune near the shrine in the compound. The scent of pine smoke and honey drifted over everything.

Sophia’s fingers twitched at her sides. She had never been part of something like this. Not really.

Orion tilted his head toward a stall selling pastries filled with something sweet and spiced. "And this will be our first stop," he said.