A/N: Someone asked if they would lose their friendships if Remus is Alpha. No, they won't lose them, but visits will end up becoming less frequent. Remus is learning to rely more on his instincts and the wolf than magic & with the way wizards react to werewolves, it's natural they would end up growing slightly apart. Sorry about the delay, I had company, work and I lost interest in writing for a short while. I'm back though!

August 10th- Sanctuary

It was almost twilight on the night of a new moon. This would normally not mean anything special to Harry, but tonight it was more than special for him. Tonight he would bond with Remus under the Rituals of the People; tonight they would enter a life-long, unbreakable partnership. After tonight, Cadfael would be Remus' stepson and any of Harry's future children would be Remus' as well. Tonight the ferals of Sanctuary would once again have an Alpha and after concilium, the ferals all over the world would have a leader.

Such a bond as the one they would enter tonight was unbreakable by any means but death, as Harry well knew. He cleared his thoughts as soon as he realised where his musings were going. Tonight was about Remus and his new bond, Cadeyrn was his past and though they had loved, Daeyd was right when he said it was not a soul-love. But this, what he felt with Remus, the way his skin tingled and his whole body seemed to come alive, this was a soul-love. He just knew it.

He stood up, knowing even before Gwen entered that it was time for the ritual bath. With Gwen on his left he walked quietly down through the caverns, bare feet following a familiar path. Most of the pack was outside preparing for the ritual, but those few he passed either nodded and smiled or bowed their head in respect as he passed. Of course, the only ones that crossed his path tonight were Submissives; Harry was forbidden contact of any sort with a dominant until the ritual itself.

He wore a simple robe of soft white that pooled around his feet and covered every inch of skin aside from his head, from neck to wrists to ankles. The simple modesty of the garment underlined the importance of the following tradition. He took a left just past the basic kitchen and descended the stairs one foot at a time, clearing his thoughts. It was important that he focus only on what was coming up now.

As they descended the stairs in the growing darkness Gwen was lighting the sconces on her left, illuminating their path forward and back. As they left she would take a single crystal cup-shaped object from the room below and snuff each light. The area they were entering was used only for two rituals. It was seen twice by a submissive, only once by a dominant.

As they reached the bottom of the stairs and Gwen carefully lit the torches on the wall Harry's breath caught. It didn't matter that he had seen this room twice already; it was as beautiful and simple now as it had been the first time.

He was standing in the entrance of a roughly circular cavern that could hold perhaps 20 people. Directly to his left was a stone table with a pure white silk runner on it and two delicately carved wooden candleholders. In between them were a stack of fluffy white towels and a few sachets of herbs. In front of him however were the centerpieces of the room, two large, carefully carved pools. The first was full of piping hot water from a natural hot spring nearby; it foamed and frothed a little, turning the water a milky white colour. The other was calm, still pool full of the clearest blue water Harry had ever seen in his life, fed from the underground springs that provided water to the more public bathing pools.

Gwen had stepped over to the table and retrieved one of the sachets and a small container of liquid. Now she moved to stand on his right and spoke in a very soft, calm voice. "You need to keep your mind clear of all distractions, Harry. Most of our Submissives will only see this room twice in their lifetimes, you have now seen it thrice and will do so once more. These springs are some of the oldest in our area. For over 200 years we of the feral pack have used this cavern for our rituals, witnessed only by the Mother herself."

"Into this first pool I now place our harvested herbs of ivy leaves for fidelity, rose petals for love and lily of the valley for persistence," as she named the herbs she tossed them into the water. Then she moved to the other pool and said, "Into this pool I pour the essence of a coral rose for passion, a white lily for purity and baby's breath as a blessing toward family."

Turning to Harry she said with a soft smile, "You will come into this cavern once more, Harry. Then it will be with your mate, when you are 6 months with your first child. Your dominant will only see this room once with the blessing of the Mother; otherwise their very masculinity forbids their presence in such a sacred place. Now you need to listen closely."

"I am listening, Eldest," Harry replied softly, following the ritual. As Gwen was the oldest female of the pack, safekeeping over this ritual was her right and responsibility.

"You will enter the warm pool first. Though it is very hot, you must remain in the water until I tell you to exit. You must dry your body completely before entering the second pool. Your hair must remain dry until you enter the second pool, is that clear? The heat of the first pool will cleanse your body and mind of all impurities and those things that would undermine your new bond such as jealousy, thoughts of infidelity as well as physical cleansing of your body. The second pool is cooler and bestows upon you the future the Mother will see fit to bless you with. Keep your mind clear and only on the present, this is very important."

Harry took the band she offered and tied back his hair. It just brushed his shoulders but he put it into a short ponytail anyway. "I understand Eldest," he answered, clearing his thoughts.

He removed his white robe, shivering a little as the cool air in the cavern touched his bare skin before placing one foot in the water and slipping in. He had forgotten precisely how hot this water was on his sensitive skin but he stayed put, rubbing his skin with his bare palms and a small amount of the sand from the stairs carved into the sides. It was quite warm suddenly and he resisted the urge to get out, clearing his mind and instead focusing on the heat of the water to keep his mind in the present.

When Gwen gave the word he gladly walked up the stairs on the opposite side of the pool, stopping on the small mat in between the two pools. He took one of the soft towels and began to thoroughly dry his skin, encouraged by the sharp chill the cool autumn air caused against his hot skin. Once he had thoroughly dried his skin he gained a single nod from Gwen and undid the band from his hair, setting both towel and band in a woven basket to his right and descending into the clearer pool. He shivered at the coolness of the water; it was quite a shock to his superheated skin.

He carefully walked to the center and deepest part of the pool, tilting his head back until the water rushed over his closed eyes before moving upright again. He kept his eye closed as he straightened, offering a silent prayer to the Goddess in thanks for the life she had given him thus far. When he opened his eyes again Gwen was smiling and waiting for him with a soft, pale golden robe that fastened in front and was the same type as the white robe, only with draping, teardrop-shaped sleeves that would fall to his knees when his hands were at his sides.

Harry exited the pool and dried himself off, staying on the mat until Gwen offered him the robe and a pair of small, loose slippers to cover his bare feet until they reached the edge of the ritual setting. She helped him to dry his hair and made sure the robe was straight and properly arranged on his frame. Smiling softly at him she said, "The ritual of Cleansing is complete. Now you move on, to your future and the life you will share with the dominant who waits for you. Come; let us not leave the others waiting any longer."

/(*)\

The entirety of the Pack ages 18 and older had formed a circle in a single, large clearing. Remus stood in the exact middle, rubbing his palms inconspicuously against the inside of his soft gold robe and hoping he didn't look as nervous as he felt. Next to him was the oldest dominant in the pack, a male named Cassius. The name meant 'vain' and Cassius no doubt had once had good reason for his name. He was still a handsome individual, past 70 years old now with lines on his face and streaks of pure white in his golden hair. His eyes were an unusually pale blue and he possessed a quick and ready smile. Cassius wore white robes, the rest of the pack either sage or pale gold-brown. Gold-brown signified a mated individual, sage for a single.

The only individual not past 18 was Cadfael, wearing soft sage robes and small smile. Since the Ritual had not started he chatted softly with Daeyd, who also wore sage. Remus had been surprised at the robes, he would have thought an individual like Daeyd would have found a mate ages ago. When he had said so Daeyd had given a soft chuckle and pointed to Remus' gold ritual robes before saying that he had time yet, as Remus only now had found his mate.

Cadfael would be taken away immediately following his part in the Ritual by one of the junior members of the adult pack. Bonding Rituals were very intense and sensual, similar to the Beltane ritual which was also limited to adults over 18. Considering that it was the formation of a soul-deep, passionate bond between two individuals of the pack it wasn't surprising that tradition dictated the age of the participants.

There were 15 torches around the clearing, all but four already lit. The first ceremony was the one that claimed Harry as his husband and Cadfael as his stepson, including a small amount of blood. Once this was done Cadfael would be taken away and the Ritual would begin.

Soft murmurs made him look up and his breath caught at the sight of Harry, dressed in the same gold robes as he was and smiling softly. Gwen stopped next to Daeyd, closing the circle as Harry moved forward on his own, stopping less than a foot from Remus. Cassius cleared his throat and all conversation stopped as anticipation built almost simultaneously.

"Tonight we are witnessing a bond, that of an Alpha and Alpha Submissive," Cassius began. "Through the will of the Father of Storms, the Goddess and the Mother herself we will join this pair together in an unbreakable bond for the rest of their lives. Give them an open heart and a clear mind, please. Let those who would wish this pair ill leave the circle now."

No one did. Cassius smiled and said, "So be it. Remus, take Harry's right hand in your left and his left hand in your right, please."

When they linked hands across each other like that Remus could see that Harry's right hand was on top of his and the draping sleeves fell back a little, exposing the faint tattooed mark of Harry's bonding with Cadeyrn. It had faded to a barely visible image on his wrist, rather than the strong, almost dramatic blue-black lines on his pale skin. The mark from their Bonding tonight would be closer to Harry's wrist, on the inside of the old mark.

"Both of you enter this bond of your own free will?" Cassius spoke again.

"Yes," Remus said softly, aware of Harry's voice saying so at the exact same time.

"You promise to honor and respect your bondmate until such time that you are parted in death?"

"Yes."

"You, Remus, promise to respect and protect both Cadfael and the children your bond may be blessed with?"

"Yes."

"And you, Harry, promise to keep loyalty, respect and love in your heart toward your mate?"

"Yes."

"Come forward, Cadfael."

The slender almost-teen walked forward and waited nervously. "You trust and respect the word of the dominant bonding with your parent today?"

"Yes," he said clearly and without hesitation.

"You accept him as the father figure in your life and someone responsible for your health, safety and wellbeing until you come of age?" Cassius demanded quietly.

"Yes," Cadfael answered again, prompting a welling of happiness in Remus at the unhesitating responses.

Cassius turned from Cadfael to Remus and said, "You are willing to prove this in an exchange of blood?"

"Yes," Remus responded calmly.

Cassius picked up a blade with a simple handle and made a small incision on the back of Remus' left hand. He flicked the blood from the blade into a small bowl of clear, pure water and made the same incision on the back of Harry's right hand. Then he approached Cadfael and carefully cut into his palm, dropping four drops of blood into the water. The water now faintly red he added a few herbs and split it into three portions.

The first he handed to Harry, who released his left hand and offered it to Remus. Once the liquid was gone he placed the small bowl back where it belonged and repeated the offering to Remus, who held it for Harry using his right hand. The last was offered to Cadfael, who carefully drained the bowl cradled in both of his hands. The moment he finished a small flash of light filled the clearing and when it settled Cadfael still looked the same, with merely a tint of amber in his eyes and the faintest highlights of golden-brown in his dark red hair.

Cadfael was escorted away at the conclusion of his part in the ceremony as Cassius murmured, "So we have completed the first part of this bonding. Now we will invoke the Father, Goddess and Mother, bringing their blessings onto this bond. For this we need the elements."

Gwen moved forward at a silent signal, taking two of the four unlit white candles that waited in the center of the clearing. She stood and moved to one of the four unlit torches, lighting one candle from the torch next to it. She waited, face calm and quiet.

"Now we two, the physical representations of masculine and feminine, shall bring forth both the elements and the divine to this ceremony. First I call the cold North, the realm of the Father of Storms, representation of Air!" He lit the northern torch with one of his candles and the flame that leapt from the bracket was white.

"In answer I call the warm South, the bringer of fertility and warmth, representation of Fire!" Gwen answered, lighting the southern torch with a red flame. She then moved West, waiting for Cassius who had moved East.

"I call the East, the temperamental winds, representation of Water!" East was lit with blue flames.

"I bring the final element, the sturdy and protecting West, the solid wind that brings harvest and anchors ritual, the home of the Goddess, representation of Earth!" It was lit green.

The moment the last torch was lit Remus was nearly rocked to his knees by something in the clearing. It was a pressure of sorts, not from any physical presence, but the weight of that other was both heavy and breathtaking.

"Under the eyes of the divine we shall finish this bond," Cassius said quietly. "The words you say now hold more weight than any you will speak in your life, choose them carefully and make no hasty decisions."

His voice grew slightly huskier. "The People are different from humans in many ways, some more obvious than others. One of the most subtle is that while some humans change spouses on whim and fancy, we chose one Mate and it is for life. There is no backing out of the bond you are about to complete, no form of divorce that we hold true. When you complete this bond, you will be more whole than you have ever been in your life, your mind, heart and soul forever linked with the person standing across from you. Under the eyes of the divine who can see the truth in your heart, do you wish for this bond with the one across from you?"

Remus was about to automatically answer and then remembered Cassius' words. He thought for a long moment instead, making sure both heart and mind were clear on his decision. Then he linked eyes with the Elder and said firmly, "Yes."

Harry lifted his gold-green gaze and replied a soft, firm, "Yes."

"Then kiss the claim mark you left on your mate Remus Lupin and follow it with a kiss for your mate, to confirm your mutual choice."

Remus gathered Harry closer in his arms and kissed the mark on his neck before bending his head and placing a kiss on Harry's lips. There was another, brighter flare of light similar to the one around Cadfael and they slowly pulled away, aware of the smiles and clapping from the pack.

Harry gasped slightly and Remus looked down, staring at their still entwined left and right hand. On Remus' own ring finger was a blue-black tattoo of Celtic knots, tiny and amazingly intricate. The same design was repeated on a much larger scale around Harry's wrist, the knots were those of love, honour, family and cherish.

"You are mine, my love," Remus murmured softly, pulling Harry closer.

"Forever," Harry agreed, smiling.

Later they would break away and cement the bond in the most physical way possible, but for now they settled for remaining in a close embrace and accepting the congratulations of those who cared for and supported the new Alpha and the most beloved and precious Alpha submissive.