Mason barely resisted the grimace that threatened and instead managed a weak chuckle. "See, I wasn't entirely sure congratulations were in order." Mason was very familiar with his cousin's... demeanor and somehow the professor highly doubted that the redhead before him was one who would put up with that. Actually he rather thought Barney might die at the hands of a woman like Maeve Connolly. She reminded Mason quite a bit of his mother in personality and so therefore he assumed that she too would not suffer any fools for very long.

"I'm afraid I also rely heavily on my mother for such niceties, news is few and far between up at the castle." In all reality the school itself wasn't very far from town, but news seemed to stay put unless it directly involved a student or impacted the school itself. He wasn't complaining, the seclusion was a nice respite from the outside world and kept him far removed from things like amortentia-laced love letters.