Just as Katherine and Nancy run out of sight, Mason comes down the stairs from the entrance of the guest house. As she makes her way down the stairs, she catches Katherine's lilac and cedar scent on the air. Kaycee’s scent is so similar, a lemon-cedar scent, that Mason trips on the last few stairs, catching herself quickly, before scanning the immediate area for the source of the scent. Noticing David and Valorie standing at the bottom of the stairs, Mason straightens her black shirt and brushes off her jeans that are flared around her black boots.
Putting out her hand to David, Mason smiles in greeting, “Copayequyna. You must be Fyraylo, Alpha Dawn. It's good to actually bect ju, meet you. You have the imera, same, look as your yayrth, brother. I am Alpha Mason Romoni.”
David nods in response, shaking Mason’s hand quickly, before pulling his hand back.
Valorie takes Mason’s hand also and shakes it as well, “I’m David’s mate Valorie. It's wonderful to meet the woman who was such a big part of our niece’s childhood.”
Mason freezes looking between Valorie and David in confusion, before nodding slowly and relaxing once more. “I had a special herbo, bond, with both quiriel, girls.”
Valorie smiles wider, “Of course. I’m amazed you treated them as equally as Gloria use to write to me about. Katherine said she never felt left out even though…”
“Kyniort. What do you mean Katherine said?” Mason interrupts as her entire posture stiffens, her focus going entirely on David who grimaces.
Valorie frowns and crosses her arms “Katherine, our niece, who we’ve had living with us for the last seventeen years,” Valorie says in monotone as she turns to look at her guilty looking mate. “The one David here should have told you about when he informed you Jonathan and Gloria died.”
“I was only informed by Giaomply Giagwacsau Lycaxyjon, Grizzly Mountain Pack, that my car had been blown up near their border with Xefe Occai, Fox River.” Mason stiffly informs Valorie.
Both women stare at David angrily causing him to growl, “No I didn’t tell her. It was none of her business. Katherine belonged with her family.”
Valorie’s hair starts to look as if it was on fire, “David Dawn. It was every bit her business. Jonathon was Mason’s Beta, and Gloria was one of her top medical researchers. Plus, Alpha Mason was a huge part of Katherine’s life, and you decided to not share that she had survived the attack. Not to mention, that being a pup, she was still a member of Blue Moon until either Mason allowed another, us, to claim her or she reached adulthood,” she spits out at him in anger through gritted teeth, her aura shining threateningly.
“I just…” David starts before stopping as Valorie glares menacingly at him.
Mason watches the exchange, with little of the amusement this sort of scene would normally bring to her. Sighing deeply, Mason rubs her hands over her face. “I would have never kept her from gryphayth, living with you. Katherine would have needed her kynherbo, family, much more than anyone here. I just wish you had told me so I…”
Mason goes silent in frustration, causing Valorie to focus on her and slowly calm, the fire that had seemed to take over her hair disappearing without a trace. “What is it,” she asks.
“If I had known Katherine had kynodermurncyr, survived, I would have been merka partyloyth, more proactive contacting you about Kaycee,” Mason explains.
Valorie, noticing David freezing in shock, moves to Mason, “You found Kaycee?”
Mason shrugs slightly, “Sort of. The local Hytherexyjon, Hunters Guild, had found her, and she refused to tell them about ry derm, the attack, or her soniprewyt, past, so they choose to focus on durkyth, healing, her until a pack came looking for her or she was old enough to find a fie lycaxyjon, new pack.”
“Why didn’t they talk to you?” David asks stiffly.
Mason stares into David’s eyes, “They didn’t know if her being with a kynowicka, mage, was a fluke or if her old lycaxyjon had given her to him. We’ve seen nekypomediel, situations, with that happening from Blood Moon Pack and Silver Mark Conclave selling yenrika’el, children, off, and so until they knew where she came from, contacting me would not have been goyant, helpful, since all aou, I, would have the flyrown, power, to do is raise an unknown yenrika, child, till they could choose a lycaxyjon to join in the first place.”
“Still when you did find out about her from them you should have called us. She belonged with her family.” David snaps, crossing his arms.
Valorie slaps his arm, ignoring his glare in response, “When did you find out they had Kaycee, Alpha Mason?”
“After her xify torlyca, first shift. She was nura-fy, eleven, and was struggling a great deal with the derm. When I tried to bring her back here she reacted zandlyo, badly, so I let her stay at the hytherexyjonsau, Guild compound, with more lycaxyjon ityrean, pack support, and she started to zonwandgrypha, thrive, again,” Mason shares, looking out at the homes nearby.
David watches Mason a moment, glancing at Valorie occasionally waiting for more information. Frustrated David growls out, “So why didn’t you send her to us?”
Mason turns and stares at David, “Kaycee only ityjeancyr, trusted, Katherine, Gloria, Jonathan and me as a yenrika, child. She was kynozanlyo, sick, for several months shortly after her xifur athrahyer, second birthday from Giaetnar-cevynor, Rage Fever. Ever since, when her emotional level was high, she tended to feel kynotyrsoblerya, uncomfortable, interacting with almost anyone outside of her direct kynherbo, family. Gloria and Jonathan could barely get her to brelya quryan, calm down, when she was pintu, upset, and she would only completely brelya for me or Katherine. When she torlycacyr, shifted, I had to decide what was best for her. The facts stood as Katherine being dermurncyr, dead, so it was best for her to stay at the Hytherexyjon so to have close access with me rather than fierika’el, strangers who, for all she knew, was only claiming to be her kynherbo, family,” Mason growls back at David, causing him to back up.
Valorie raises an eyebrow at David’s reaction before focusing on Mason. “I can understand Kaycee doing better here if Katherine was assumed dead but why not call us and talk about it,” she asks inquisitively.
“At first I wanted to see if Kaycee could durk, heal, enough to let her go to ju, you, and just make sure aou quyarcyr, I visited, for a while to see if she would learn to ityjean ju, trust you. But her ecigwiten, reaction, when she first returned to the Arun Muern, Blue Moon, made me focus on helping her here xify, first. Its taken xoseth rolentri’el, many years, for her to be trysoblerya, comfortable here again, and I kept putting off ealkyeyth ju, telling you, until I kynozyrekin, forgot, completely.” Mason answers, straightening her shirt once more to try and calm herself. “If I had zyrekincyr, known, you had Katherine I would have been more focused on echerboyth, reuniting, them rather than on Kaycee’s durkurn, health.”
David relaxes his stance, reaching out to hold onto Valorie’s hand, “What did she need to heal from exactly?”
“PTSD. She had major zandlyojaryie-dermiel, panic attacks, caused by gyromeligronite’el, flashbacks, specifically. She was not able to handle being nomprewyt, present, when a mage would use spectyr, magic, near her. The sulfur smell from the spells would fregryo, trigger an attack. She also had dermiel, attacks, when trying to step into sau’el, areas, she tended to go with Katherine or her tresynrika’el, parents. It's taken years for her to become tyrsoblerya here and she still kynoigwiten, freezes, at times.” Mason struggles to explain.
“PTSD? Panic attacks? You make it sound like she’s broken,” David scoffs.
Valorie pulls away to glare at David, “You did not just say that David Dawn.”
David looks at Valorie confused, “What?”
“Would you call Katherine broken?” Valorie snaps at him, causing him to shrink away and shake his head negatively. “Then don’t you dare call Kaycee broken. Katherine has PTSD too, and while she doesn’t have panic attacks, she has had periods of major depression after the attack. Kaycee may have reacted differently, but that doesn’t mean she is or has ever been broken.”
Mason can’t help but grin at David’s large form shying away from the shorter form of Valorie, causing her amusement to color her voice, “Kaycee is far from tordermen, broken. She is not as testhacopayeurn, wild, as she was before the attack, but she still likes to copayeurn, play, around. In fact, she’s the one who howled the werontestha sonie, playful challenge earlier.”
“You mean over at the game,” David asks in surprise, receiving a nod from Mason in response, “Your greeter said that your Omega is the one that howled?”
“Wayle, that's right. Kaycee is our, Ometha, Omega.” Mason replies, smiling widely.
Valorie stiffens slightly, “How bad are Kaycee’s panic attacks?”
Mason and David look at Valorie in confusion as she starts to walk at a fast pace in the direction Katherine had taken Nancy in earlier. “Depends on the nekypomed, situation. Eryz?” Mason replies as David and she moves to follow Valorie.
“Katherine took Nancy to go play the game,” Valorie states as she rounds the building.
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