KARA

I had been climbing the stairs behind a mother and her two children, a six year old boy and a bright blonde pigtailed four year old girl. I caught the mother's words down to the girl. "Then ask her nicely, but if she says no just say okay, alright?"

The girl turned, pink pillowcase dress swirling and chewed on her finger. I couldn't go any further up the stairs without rolling right over her, so I stopped too.

"Are you Beta Femawe Kara?"

"I am," I tried to quickly blink back any remaining tears.

"You're a gyood singer."

"Thank you, I guess." She must have seen the video too. I gave a half laugh exhale. How widespread was that video? Did they watch it in preschool? "Do you like to sing too?"

She lit up, face alight with sunniness. "Uh-huh! And my favorite is Ewsa! Will you pwease sing Ewsa?"

"Ewsa?" I asked confused and looked to her mother.

"Elsa. From Frozen." Her mother clarified. "I'm sorry Beta Female Kara. As soon as Lexi recognized you she wouldn't stop pestering me to have you sing Elsa. That would be lovely if you could," she stared into my face and frowned, "but it looks like you've had something on your mind. So maybe we'll ask you another time." She reached for the girl's hand.

"No!" The girl cried and bent away.

I stooped towards the girl, crouching so we were eye to eye on the stairs. "Is your name Lexi?"

She grinned and swayed back and forth. "I'm Yexi Dawn Kedge. I'm four. Mommy is Jean and Daddy is Mayson and he's a patrow officer. We yive at four B dirty-one. Yiam is my brother. He don't yike Ewsa dough."

"Liam," the brother grumbled. He was in cute overalls with a plaid shirt, but a large green cast over his entire arm. Before I could ask what happened Lexi was speaking fast again.

"So could you pwease pwease pwease sing Ewsa!"

I laughed. "I think I could sing for you. How about Anna instead? I could sing For the First Time in Forever?" I was pretty sure everyone had heard enough of Let It Go for a lifetime.

She jut that sweet little pink bottom lip out and eyes got big and pleading. "No. I want Ewsa."

"Lexi," her mother scolded. "Don't you want to hear Anna's song? Beta Female Kara wants to sing that one."

Lexi's eyes started to get watery. "But I yove Ewsa."

I grinned at the persistence and stood tall, my legs were starting to burn from squatting. "Alright Lexi. I think I remember Elsa's song, but you might have to start it out for me."

She beamed jumping up and down. Her mother had to pull her to the side before she jumped into an older gentleman trying to hobble up the stairs.

"It goes yike dis. 'Snow gyows bright on da mountain tonight' okay? You gots it?"

"Good enough," I laughed and took a peek around the stairs. The man was still climbing up and another family was a flight down, but I just went for it anyway.

♪ The snow glows white on the mountain tonight ♪

And I sang my heart out. My voice echoing back beautifully, the stairwell giving almost the enchanted eeriness of the cold tundra of the movie.

With every verse I started to feel better, the worries with Melvin melting away as I saw the little Lexi's watchful face. She was grinning like I was her favorite character, the snow swirling around me and a snowman dancing beside. She sang the chorus with me and I loved how our voices spread over the stairwell.

♪ Let it go, let it go

when I'll rise like the break of dawn. ♪

The other family even stopped to listen, having three little girls of their own. And then I realized this would probably make it to tomorrow's announcement email and I was sure to fumble the high notes. I did my best and then stopped, letting Lexi take the beloved last sentence.

"Da cowd nevah bodered me anyway!"

The old man, the other family, and a few other random people had stopped to clap, so I motioned to Lexi and she did a theatrical bow clear to her toes. It made me laugh as I looked on and the others around the stairs started off to wherever they were going again.

Her mom prompted, "Okay Lexi, now what do you say to Beta Female Kara?"

"Dank you very much." She made a big nod. "You dids good to sing dat song."

"You're very welcome pretty Miss Lexi."

"Alright," her mom spoke, "let's let Beta Female Kara get back to work, shall we?"

"Mooom," little Liam complained, holding his cast out. "It itches!"

"I know dear. You're just going to have to deal with it until it heals. I'm sorry."

He truly looked in distress and the word heal had me bending back down, this time to him. "What happened Mr. Liam?"

His mom spoke for him. "Oh, boys will be boys. He fell out of a tree. Broke his arm."

"You broke your arm? Ah that stinks." I looked over the elbow to knuckle cast. "Did you know, I used to put casts like this on dogs and cats?"

He looked up. "I like dogs."

"Yeah, me too buddy. I put a green one on this super nice beagle once. His name was Buster. I helped him get better. Maybe I could help you get better too? Can I take a look at your arm?"

He held it out. "It's itchy."

"I bet!" I kept talking while I let some of the healer drain out to help with his break. "Buster kept pawing and biting at his! He sure thought it was itchy! We ended up having to make him wear a cone around his neck so he wouldn't touch it. You don't need a cone though? Do you?"

Lexi laughed, the sweetest little melody. "No! Woofies don't need dose!"

But as she spoke, I was testing his arm with my healing and it was already healed. I stood ready to give the good news to the trio. "It looks like a visit to Dr. Nyx is on the agenda! It's already healed! That's why it itches so bad, it's already done bud."

His mother stared at me uncomprehending. "But he needed to have the cast on for six weeks. Did his wolf healing take care of it already? Most kids don't heal like adults do."

"Six weeks is just a general timeline. You can tell Dr. Nyx that Healer Kara says it's time for the cast to come off."

She still stared with speculating eyes. "Beta Female Kara, it's just that Liam's only had the cast on for two days. Dr. Nyx said six weeks, just day before yesterday."

The stairwell seemed to blank out of color. "What?"

"Liam just barely got the cast."

"But it was already healed when I... touched it." In my mind I replayed, and I squatted back down, taking his arm in my hands again. I closed my eyes sensing over the bones. My mind detected them like an x-ray.

They were. They were all healed as if never broken before.

I stared beyond the family for a minute trying to comprehend how it was already healed. I hadn't touched him. Werewolf children did have better healing than humans, but it shouldn't have been good enough to heal in just days. Could it?

How?

I tried to come up with a solution. Did it involve me?

And then I recalled the old man's walk up the stairs around us, limping before...

... and easily after.

My eyes went wide with thought.

Did I?

I stood quickly and spoke to the stunned family. "Sorry! I've got to go!"

I ran downstairs for the dungeon. I had to test my theory.