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"Where is she? Is she okay?!"
Rafayel stumbled through the doorway, keys still in hand and his university lanyard dangling from his neck. Closing the door with a slam, he threw his bag on the floor and toed out of his shoes. Panic laced his eyebrows together. His cheeks were flushed as he gasped for air. He left the small entryway only to enter the living room and notice Zayne standing and Sylus on the couch with Mephisto perched on his fingers.
"Where…where is she?" He pressed. "She hasn't answered my texts. She called me in tears. I… I don't know what's going on, but I can feel her. I cancelled class and got here as fast as I could! Is she okay? Cutie!"
"Take a deep breath," said Zayne. "She's okay. She's in the bedroom with Xavier. We finally convinced her to get some sleep. She slept poorly last night according to our second hunter. He said she was awake periodically throughout the night, and he could hear her getting up and watching TV. He said at one point he heard her sobbing. He eventually sat with her until they went to work. She apparently had trouble focusing on her tasks and she left early."
Sylus nodded once. "I was sleeping when the twins alerted me that she was there. Not too uncommon for her to be in the N109 zone with me, let alone while I'm sleeping. Sometimes I wake, other times she busies herself while I'm resting, but for Luke and Kieran to dare disrupt me? I knew something was wrong. They felt I needed to wake up and see to her because she was sobbing. I've never seen her so distraught. I could feel it too. She managed to take a small nap, but it wasn't more than an hour or so. We came here and I contacted Zayne."
"She never showed for her appointment today. She's been better about actually attending her follow-ups and examinations these days. Since I had a cancelled surgery, I came over as soon as I could. She was inconsolable. She finally fell asleep on the couch, and we placed her in bed. Xavier is staying by her side right now."
Rafayel nodded and took a deep breath. "I was supposed to meet her for lunch. She said on the phone that she needed to cancel, but didn't say why. She was sobbing and I tried to ask what was wrong but she hung up. Then she didn't answer my texts. That's not like her. I couldn't stop the feeling that something was wrong. Even when she's annoyed with me, she at least responds or puts a thumbs up to my texts. She's spoken to you two, and is asleep with Xavier. So that’s three. And where's Colonel Clingwrap?"
Caleb slammed his laptop closed from his place at the kitchen table, causing Rafayel to jump. "Here. And I thought we agreed to stop calling me that."
"Ohhhh that's right." Sylus lifted an eyebrow with a slight smirk across his lips. "You have been such a good puppy this last month, haven't you? Such a good boy…"
The colonel took a deep breath through his nose, "I'm not responding to you."
"You just did, sweetie."
Caleb rolled his eyes and shifted his attention to Rafayel. "I got here as soon as I could. Zayne, Xavier, and Sylus were trying everything they could. Pips is really upset."
"She's not properly eating or hydrating," added Zayne. "I didn't want to disturb Caleb, but I figured if anyone could get her to eat, it would be him. I thought his expertise, for lack of a better word, would help."
"She managed to eat an apple and a glass of water. It's not much, but at least she agreed to that. I'll cook tonight and see if she'll eat. Some rice porridge might help. She doesn’t seem to want her usual comfort foods. Pips must be feeling worse than we think. It’s rare for her to say no to my classics, even on her worst days."
Rafayel sighed and pulled out his phone. "Do we at least know what this is about? Has anyone called Wolverine yet?"
"You gotta stop with the nicknames," groaned Caleb. "They're too obvious."
Sylus scoffed. "You're just upset because there's another puppy in the house who’s clingier than you… and this one looks better with a tail."
"Shut your mouth."
"There's only two people in this room who can make me, and you're not one of them. Though I love seeing you try."
Rafayel smirked at that and continued drafting a text, while Zayne's ears grew red. Caleb stood, his jaw tight, waves of his evol beginning to waver the space around Sylus. Mephisto cawed and Sylus chuckled, the red crackle of his own evol rising toward Caleb's. Suddenly the temperature in the room dipped and snowy fractals crept toward both men.
"Stop, both of you!" Zayne cried. "Sylus, enough. Caleb, you know he only teases you cause he likes your reactions."
"I know and that's what annoys me most," Caleb sighed.
"Aaaaanywaaaay!" Rafayel huffed. "Back to Valko. I just text him. It was a full moon earlier this week, though. I don't know what that means for him yet, he and cutie haven’t explained. She had some small bite marks on her fingers the other day after they met up at the cafe. I don't know if that's cause of the moon—"
"He bit Pips?!"
"It really wasn’t that serious."
Sylus hummed."Now we have two biters. Kitten's found a good match."
"Three if we count you," countered Rafayel. "Some of us bruise easy, y'know."
"You healed quickly, did you not?"
"Now I'm ignoring you. Look, I know their relationship is still new, but I liked the guy. Tell me she didn't dump him. We didn't even get to have our dinner with him. I was gonna call it our Welcome to the Poly Pack party."
Caleb leaned his shoulder against the kitchen archway and folded his arms. "That's actually what has her so upset. Valko's gone. Well, I dunno if he’s actually gone, or if he's just not responding to her texts and calls. He said he'd be back, but they've lost contact."
"More specifically," Sylus added, "our resident wolf is not too different from a couple of us. There's the usual concerns...you know, bounties and the like. He has people after him. He's an excellent fighter, and he's a strong wolf with a loyal pack. But this time it's not so clear what's happened. She still has his ring. He made it clear she's safe with that in her possession. But as for him…we don't know."
Rafayel's face fell. "When was he last seen? She had a date with him Monday morning, or was it Sunday? Whenever they were last at the cafe and he bit her fingers around the full moon. Did she see him after?"
Zayne shook his head. "He text her that he'd be back for breakfast and she was there but he wasn't. She got some news from one of his allies and they are searching for him. He hasn’t responded to any of our texts either. Right now he's effectively missing."
"Are you serious?! Oh, cutie…. No wonder she's like this. Is there anything we can do?"
"I sent Mephisto on a search." Sylus lifted his left hand and gestured at the mechanical bird. "I just finished reviewing the intel he's found and there's mostly rumors. Valko’s pack is sticking strong and they found allies to take up the search as well."
"The hospital hasn't received any patients that match his profile," added Zayne. "I'm doing some research to learn more about his condition. I fear a certain company may be responsible, though his corporation I thought was affiliated with them similar to the way Akso is also part of the web."
"I've been checking things on my end as well," said Caleb. "He hasn’t responded to my messages and we were scheduled for coffee this afternoon. He said he wanted to make sure we were okay with each other for her sake. He was growin’ on me. Now it’s silence. No sign in Skyhaven, but a contact here in Linkon shared intel regarding someone who matched his features. Though it was around the time he was with her, just shortly after—”
"Rafayel?"
All eyes turned toward the hall where you stood with a blanket around your shoulders and Xavier at your side holding your hand. One look at his face along with the expressions of your other partners sent you back to tears.
"Cutie!" In an instant Rafayel had his arms around you and your head tucked beneath his chin. "Shh, it's okay," he cooed. "Let it out. We've got you. We're looking for him. I’m glad you’re safe. I was worried for a moment. Shh, we’ve got you."
You hiccuped against his chest, and felt another set of hands touch your back.
"We will find him," assured Xavier. "Until then, we'll be here for you, whenever you're ready."
"I'm," you sniffled. Everything hurt. "I don’t…"
"It's alright," said Zayne. "We know it hurts. Let it all out. We're listening."
You pulled back from Rafayel only to find Sylus, Caleb, and Zayne circled around you as well. Five of your men by your side, ready to comfort you and search for the one who'd just joined your pack. Mephisto perched on your shoulder, the near quiet sound of his servos calming you as he tilted his head and nestled himself closer to the crook of your neck.
You gave a watery chuckle and patted him while making eye contact with a certain fiend. "Did you give Mephie a cuddle mode?"
"No, but he does learn things," said Sylus, tapping his temple twice before shrugging. "He must be trying out a new way to comfort a sad kitten. He's also been doing his best to help find the last piece to make this family complete."
"I'll ask around," said Rafayel. "Everyone else is doing their part. I'll get my contacts searching for him. We'll find him."
"I was…," you sniffled and lowered your eyes as another sob shook your body. "I was just getting to know him. I just started to fall…he…I felt connected like I did with each of you. I don't remember but…I was starting to. I'm afraid I'll forget him like I forgot you all. I'm scared he'll never come back. I don't want to lose you all either."
"We're not going anywhere, darling," Zayne pressed. "We're right here. We won't leave."
"I know but we've all parted before and we found each other again, and I remember things now, and I don't…I don't want to lose any of this. I want us all together, with Valko. Maybe I'm too greedy—"
"You're not too greedy, sweetie. Come here." Sylus guided you to the couch and, as you both sat, Zayne sat on your other side while Rafayel and Xavier sat at your feet. Caleb stood behind you, leaning against the low back of the couch, a gentle hand on your shoulder. Sylus sighed through his nose and squeezed your hand. "You deserve happiness and your heart's desires. You’re never greedy for wanting what you like. You want Valko too, and that’s okay. That’s more than okay. We'll find him."
"But what if you don't. What if he doesn't come home? I don't know if I can take his pain."
"Well, we'll just have to take it a day at a time," said Caleb. "We don't always know the future, but we just take it moment by moment and day by day. In those moments where you don't know if you can take it and it's too much, find your anchor point, remember?"
You nod, remembering the call. "And what if—"
"We'll figure it out," assured Rafayel.
Xavier nuzzled your knee and looked up at you, "For now, you need to rest some more. Please? We're worried about Valko, but we're also worried about you too. What would he say if he saw you like this?"
"I don't know him well," began Zayne, "but in the few moments we interacted it's clear he wouldn't want you to be without food or chocolate."
That was enough to make smile and chuckle. "You're just saying that because you want chocolate."
"While I do want chocolate, I'm saying it because it's true. When he comes home, he'll want to see you are okay. He'd be worried if he saw you weren't resting or eating. You've been crying a lot too. Your head will start to hurt if you don't drink some water."
"I'm not hungry," your eyes fell to your lap. "I just feel numb. A little sick too."
"You don't have to eat a bunch, but a glass of water and a snack before lying down again will help," added Sylus. "Please? Caleb can make something easy on your stomach."
"I can make fish broth for later if you'd like?" Rafayel nuzzled your other knee and gave a pout. "Please, cutie? You need your strength."
They were right. You hadn't slept well last night and you couldn't remember the last time you drank something, let alone ate. You'd spent the day checking sources for information, hoping someone, anyone, spotted him. If this had been anyone else missing, Valko would tease you and have you in his lap, practically holding a bottle of water with a push-pull sport cap as if it were a baby bottle to get you to drink. He'd squish your cheeks, wrap his tail around you, and nuzzle you like Rafayel and Xavier were now. He’d hold you close and take in your scent, hoping with each breath and second together that you’d smell more calm, like the soil after rain or the first cold snap of fall. Only when his sensitive nose caught the smell of petrichor wafting from you, would he’d try again.
Please? He'd say your name and your nickname, nuzzle you and maybe playfully nip at your cheek for good measure. C'mon, don't make me eat alone! Please? I’ll let you touch my ears as long as you want!
"Please, pips?"
"Please, cutie?"
"Please, starlight?"
"Please, darling?"
"Please sweetie?" Sylus brushed a tear away from your cheek. "We just want you to take care of yourself. Re-fuel and rest tonight, we'll pick back up tomorrow."
You nod. "Okay, I'll get a glass of water and eat…then maybe try to go to bed? Thanks guys. I…I think I’ll send one more text first, okay?"
A chorus of their voices replied in various forms of yes and of course.
Pulling your phone out of your pocket, and upon swiping it open, you noticed the photo behind the apps of your home screen. Valko, eyes closed, ears fluffy, in a black tank top in your bed. He was joking with you right before and then fell asleep shortly after. You'd snapped the photo before joining him. Opening your messages, you tapped Valko's name and opened your text thread. One of his last messages was something about howling at the moon. You’d asked if he’d ever done it, he said he only howls to communicate sometimes and that he’d do it to note his feelings for you now you were together. He followed shortly after with:
I told the moon I looooooooove youuuuu! How’s that? Did you hear it? i can reenact it later. See you tomorrow at the cafe when I’m back, k?
The rest were messages of you asking where he was and not getting a reply or confirmation that’d he’d seen them. You take a breath and send one more message, hoping it would reach him and he'd reply soon.
We miss you. Please come home.