Did she want to talk about it?

She knew Lorcan needed to know and understand why she had given the message that she had given her brother. It was a threat that she was serious about, Aleksei had hurt her and her mother for the last time. Most of all he had hurt her daughter whether Oksana knew it or not Inna did and that was all that mattered. So she had agreed that she would talk to Lorcan and she would take him to the place that was so important to her. She didn't think the tawny healer knew Lavender Ethos was where her father was buried but there would he time to explain that to him as well.

So once he had Oksana grasped gently in his mouth and had backed out of the den she followed into the sunny morning. She was thankful that rain was taking a break so Oksana could come, Inna wasn't too keen on the idea of leaving her daughter alone or with a sitter while she and Lorcan talked. The Baranski inhaled the crisp spring air before setting off in the direction of the ethos. It was a couple hour journey and towards the end the black tuft had started to get fussy which Inna could see as she looked back at Lorcan was distressing him. The sight of it brought a smile to her face, the first one she'd had since the message from her brother.

“Not long now,” she told the healer, “The Lavender will do her good.”

And it would she hoped help her daughter to calm down. She may not be a healer but she did know how calming the scent of the purple flowers could be. As she had stated it wasn't long before the field of Lavender came into view as they neared it. Inna stopped at the edge her sides heaving with a deep sigh, it had been some time since she'd been to see her father, too much time. The Baranski waited for Lorcan to come and stand beside her, “I’ll take her,” she told him and waited for him to place their pup on the ground.

Once he had she grasped her daughter's tiny body gently in her mouth and carried her to the place she knew her father to be buried. She placed Oksana gently upon her father's grave amongst the lavender that now after a year grew wildly around it. “I’ve brought you granddaughter and her father for you to meet,” she told the grave a glance given to Lorcan. “Aleksei had left for the final time, I won't let him hurt this family anymore especially mother.”

Inna then placed a kiss to her daughter's crown before turning to Lorcan, “I'm sorry if I scared you back there and I hope you know I would never harm our daughter,” Inna said looking at her paws. She had seen the fear in his eyes when he’d come into the den and she had known that he had feared for Oksana. “I just had to let him know that he won't be welcome back ever.”

She looked back at the black tuft as she seemed to be calming down into slumber once more. She would not let her brother do to her daughter as he had done to her.

The longer their journey lasted the more agitated their daughter became at being held in her father’s jaws unable to go anywhere. The loudness of Oksana’s whines and cries did concern the mother causing her to look back periodically to make sure that Lorcan was doing okay with the tuft. She left him to handle their daughter, he needed the practice and this was the first time since her birth that he’d had the chance to really be a father to her. She didn’t let the healer see it but she was smiling at the chance to finally see them together. She hoped with her brother’s departure Lorcan would get the chance to spend more time with his daughter.

Inna felt there was new hope that she would see that scene she had described to him when they had visited Fireglow Glade. Inna hoped that they would take Oksana there when one day when she could make the journey herself. She wanted her daughter to know of the place where she had rekindled her friendship with the tawny healer. Inna wanted to share everything with her daughter including the fact that Lorcan was her father despite what he showed on the outside. The Ebony Baranski knew that there would still have to be some level of separation between father and daughter for the benefit of the pack but with Alek gone she felt they would not be watched so closely.

This trip however was not to share with Oksana but her father because he deserved to know what had transpired between brother and sister to cause such words to leave her maw at his departure. So she had brought him to the place where her father rested after his fall the past year and for her father to meet his granddaughter. How she wished Maksim could look upon Oksana and see the beautiful girl that she was, the smile that Inna imagined would cross his features. Any anger The patriarch had felt because she had broken pack law would dissipate. He would dote on his granddaughter and teach her what he had taught his daughter. Inna knew that wouldn’t ever happen but it was nice to think about as they came to the edge of the field, here Inna paused to allow Lorcan with their wailing daughter to catch up.

The first time she had come to Lavender Ethos to visit her father’s grave she had been apprehensive but this time she waited for Lorcan to set Oksana down so that the new mother could grasp her by the nape of her neck and carry her to where her father lay. She set the pup gently in the bed of Lavender before speaking to her father and introducing her daughter and Lorcan to him. She also told him about Aleksei and how she would keep him from harming their family. Her mother didn’t deserve to be left by another of her children only to return and do it again. Her brother had made his choice and Inna would make sure that he couldn’t ever hurt Kisla again. When she turned to Lorcan she apologized for her behavior and whatever feeling it might have brought up in him.

A small smile tugged at the corner of her lip as he confirmed that he knew she wouldn’t intentionally hurt Oksana, “I wouldn’t, she is too important to me for me to do anything to her and as long as I can prevent it I won’t allow any harm to come to her.” She would protect her daughter from any harm as long as she could whether it was emotional or physical but Inna also knew she couldn’t protect her from everything. Aleksei was one thing that she could and would with her last breath if that was what it took. Her smile widened as her gaze fell on her daughter once more, “I think she does like it here. Maybe she can sense the importance of this place and what it will one day mean to her.” Inna didn’t know how true that was but she would like to think that maybe there was some truth to it.

Inna had sat back on her haunches as Lorcan settled beside their daughter who was now slumbering peacefully on the bed of lavender that had spread across her father’s grave. For a moment before Lorcan asked the question that she had been sure had been on his mind since Alek’s departure her gaze fell on him. She lowered herself to lay next to their daughter, they might be there awhile.

“Alek wasn’t there for my puppyhood,” she started which she had decided was where it had all started. “I am not sure exactly what happened before his return last year but he came back while my mother was away informing some of our extended family of my father’s death. He promised me that he would not leave again, that he would be the brother I needed after my sisters and Orren left. Things were good between us after that, we even went looking for Karina on the mountain before my return when I saw you again. It became really bad when I returned from my time with you, he wasn’t happy obviously and rightly so.” Inna paused to allow Lorcan to process what she had just told him but it was by no means the entire story.

It was important for Lorcan to understand just what their daughter meant to her that in no way did she regret the last months carrying her and now caring for her and making sure she had everything she needed. Most importantly how much she loved Oksana but it was hard to show that when it was something that he would have to see over time as she did the small things that showed just how much she loved their daughter. She nodded as he spoke of not seeing her so angry, “I have never felt so angry at anyone as I did in that moment,” she explained, “For him to leave after what he has done. It’s wrong and hurtful, I can’t even imagine what my mother must be feeling.” Inna would have to go to her and ensure that she was doing okay and make sure that she was taken care of if she did need anything. Her gaze went to her cub as she curled up among the lavender and then to Lorcan as he too was looking at their daughter.

It pleased her that the tuft had finally settled down and seemed to be falling asleep and as always Inna watched her for a long moment to make sure that she was okay. It was her first time out of the den and Inna wanted it to be a good experience for her even if she was still so young. She watched as Oksana’s sides rose and fell with each breath a smile forming across her features before Lorcan’s comment brought her thoughts to what had the pup so calm. She explained what she imagined it could be but she knew that the healer was most likely right, she nodded. “I’m sure it’s the lavender but it’s a nice thought.” He mentioned too that she had taken Lavender Hyssop during her labor, “I didn’t’ know that, how did it help me?” she asked curiously, “Are you suggesting that it might have had an effect on her, me taking it during my labor?”

Inna felt that they would be there a long time so she settled down next to her daughter across from Lorcan. She went on to explain on to explain about her brother starting from the beginning as it was the most logical place. He didn’t understand why she had been so angry that she would banish her brother so he had to hear every instance of where her brother had done her and her family wrong. She stopped at the point that she had arrived back in Hearthwood after spending two weeks with Lorcan and what Alek’s reaction was to that. She was just about to continue when things went badly. She didn’t get the chance to continue the story just then as it seemed something she’d said had struck Lorcan.

She could tell something was wrong just by the expression that crossed his face, it worried her and for good reason as a few moments later as the emotion on his features seemed to grow he was standing turning away from her uttering about it being his fault. Inna sighed as she knew that she would have to explain to him that this wasn’t his fault. It was her’s had she waited until the scent faded from her coat or done something to rid her pelt of his scent Aleksei would not have been the wiser. At least not until her scent had changed and she started to show her pregnancy. The whimper from her brought Inna’s gaze to the tiny pup and a few comforting strokes were placed upon her crown until she settled once more.

The ebony Baranski rose to her feet and when to the tawny healer brushing her muzzle along his chin. “This is not all your fault Lorcan, I do not blame you so you should not blame yourself. This is Aleksei’s fault because he is the one who reacted the way he did and he is the one that said the things that he did to me. Could you control that? Could you stop it? You couldn’t. He you did not tear my family apart it was me that did that and it’s me that has to fix it. Alek could have easily chosen to accept what I had done and moved on, doted on his niece but he chose to hate me and everything about Oksana. So please don’t blame yourself for something that was completely out of your control and don’t forget you and I made the decision together.” Inna pressed a kiss to his cheek, “There is nothing for you to be sorry about.”

There were so many things going through her head in regards to her brother's disappearance. Some if it had to do with her, how true could his words have been if he was willing to leave again, was he do delusional they he believed himself to be better than her. At least she hadn't left their mother for too long and when she had Kisla had known about it. She had always sought permission to leave if she knew she would be gone for too long. She had returned and she had stayed and to her two weeks away with Lorcan hardly counted when Aleksei had spent months away. Mostly she thought of her mother and how she would take his departure, Inna doubted Kisla would allow him back after what she'd said. “I expect it will be hard on her to lose another child but hopefully her pups will help and Lekalta band I are still here for her.” Inna hoped that would be enough to help Kisla through losing Aleksei again.

Inna wasn't sure what her beliefs were when it came to death or if her daughter could sense Maksim was buried under the place where she lay. She'd never given it much thought, losing her father had been hard on her but she also thought about Kjors. Finding him in the mountain picked at by scavengers had been horrible for her too see and something she had not been able to get out of her mind. She wasn't sure what it all meant but a smile did form on her features when Lorcan agreed it was a nice thought. She was curious what the lavender had done to help her during her labor. Lorcan was quick to inform her which she appreciated and the way he said it amused the ebony Baranski. “Well I think it did help some.” She remembered not worrying so much about what could go wrong and was able to focus on bringing her daughter into the world. Inna's eyes went to Oksana once more as Lorcan spoke about it having a calming effect on the cub now that she was laying in a bed of it. “I think it is too, hopefully she will sleep while we talk.” Inna didn't want to disturb Oksana with their talking when she still needed so much rest.

Once she was sure their daughter was taken care of and was comfortable among the lavender she began the story of what had gone wrong between her and her brother. The ebony Baranski was not expecting the reaction from Lorcan that she had gotten. After he had turned away from her and Oksana​ she had made sure that her cub went back to sleep before she went to him. She felt badly that he was feeling guilty over what had happened between her and Aleksei. Inna tried to comfort him and help to understand that he may have had a paw in it she also had made the choice. She too was at fault but mostly she blamed her brother.

He was the one that chose to react the way he did instead of accepting her and the fact that she was carrying a pup of her own. He chose to continue to be angry with her and so self righteous about the whole thing. Everyone else in the pack seemed to accept what she had done and we're moving on from it but Alek could not. He in the end made the choice to leave, no one had chased him out but himself. The hatred he had shown her and the way he had spoken of her daughter and treated Lorcan she could not and would not let him back into Hearthwood where he could harm anyone that she cared about.

Inna watched the tawny healer waiting for him to speak, to say anything that might indicate what was going through his mind. She worried about what he would say or if he would run like he had the last time things had gotten this way between them. Her gaze went to her daughter worried that maybe she would have to grow up without her father if they couldn't get past this. She shook her head to rid her mind of those thoughts, she had to trust Lorcan. They had made a promise to prevent what had happened last time. He kept his promise to be at their daughter's birth so there was no reason for him to not keep this one.

Inna watched as his gaze went to their daughter and a few moments later she placed a kiss in his cheek. She hoped it would help him see that she wasn't angry with him for what had happened between her and her brother. Then he wanted to know what had been said between her and Alek, it was her turn to be guilty. How found she tell him when he had reacted so badly to what she had said before? Inna backed away from him with her head lowered, ears flattened, and tail tucked up under her as she avoided meeting his gaze. What had been said was horrible and she did not want him to feel guilty for that as well. “I’m sorry but…,”