"One of these days I am going to find you in a good mood Ashanti." Hollow spoke up from where he had been. Of course as per the usual he was snooping around his territory, searching for prey and scent trails. Ashanti's had been there and so as a leader should, Hollow checked up on his pack mate. There was Ashanti, appearing sullen as she often did. One of these days it would stop he hoped, one of these days she could just be happy and accept that things happen that were out of her control. It seemed the cream colored she wolf always blamed herself, and always wondered at the bad, while turning a blind eye to the good. But as a guardian of heart and body, and a leader of wolves, it was Hollow's job to make it right.

"What seems to the problem Ashanti?" Hollow asked with genuine concern, he had heard her speaking but he had no idea what it was she had said. The male had been too far away to hear fully what Ashanti was upset about, but he did know from experience that her past was more than likely troubling her once more. It seemed everyone's did from time to time, while his had remained dormant for a long period of time it would always be there just as the others' pasts would. The only difference was that he had made a point of finding his way past the bad, and to the good. Yet the others always seemed to have some unseen connection with theirs. As if no matter how hard they tried, they never would free themselves as he had. Even if the past remained it was gone, they were always free from it, they just had to see it.

Miccah was tired. It had taken him 3 days to be from the foothills of the mountain to, what he assumed, was the northernmost part of these lands. He was loath to admit it, but, he was giving up hope on finding Ashanti. And it had only been a little more than a week! Miccah shook his shamefully. He couldn't give up that easily, not on Ashanti. He wouldn't.

With renewed fervor, Micccah trudged on. They were many packs in these lands. He had scented various ones in his travels, though he dared not get close to their borders. He didn't want to be mistaken for an intruder or a loner seeking for a home. He had vowed to himself in this journey that he had taken himself, to only join the pack that Ashanti was in.

He didn't know what it was, but Miccah knew in his gut that Ashanti was here. There were no more qualms about it. He was sure that she resided in these lands.

His tail brushed against the dying grass of what he could tell was a place of lush greenery in the summer and spring. That was another thing to worry about. He hoped he found her before the true fury of winter hit. This frost that he saw no was only the beginning. And considering it was a pretty early frost in general, he knew by instinct that it would be a tough winter.

His body clumsily walked through the dense thicket of trees he now found himself in. His body was not made for grace, but for strength. He was still not used to the different terrains in these lands. His muzzle took in the various scents and his body recoiled slightly as he smelled strong scent borders that clearly marked pack territory. He decided to just trace back his steps since he sincerely did not want to cause trouble.

But for some reason, his body stopped, and his ears became alert. It took him a few seconds to notice that it had been a voice that had stopped him in his tracks. It took him even longer for the words to register in his head.

"One of these days I am going to find you in a good mood Ashanti."

His heart stopped. He literally didn't breathe for a few precious moments. Suddenly, his brain began to work again. His paws moved in their own accord towards the voice that was obviously male. Could his search truly be over? As far as he knew, they're weren't that many Ashanti's in the world. But Miccah knew that thought was illogical.

He moved closer. He just needed to hear this 'Ashanti's' voice. He knew if he heard her, he would know if it was truly his Ashanti. With bated breath, he waited--and soon rewarded.

"Its just that I've lost someone, though it happened before I ever met Nina or you, and lately I can't get my mind of them. I was close to him like you are Azariah. We were separated though, when my aunt killed my parents, siblings and family to take over the pack. It kills me, I don't even know if he's alive. Then I look at my son.... he reminds me so much of him, his fur might be a bit darker than Bane, but I don't see that man anymore, I see Miccah. I can't go on without him Hollow. It would be similar to as if you lost Azariah. I just can't bear it."

Miccah wasn't so close that he heard every word, but he had heard enough to know that this was his lost love. His paws now took control, barely hiding his presence. A gleam of hope was in his eyes as he got closer. Before totally making himself known, he slowed to a walk. As he appeared to the two wolves, his eyes immediately landed on the white beauty before him. It was her.. His chest slowly puffed as he took a breath and exhaled. With a glance at the male, Miccah knew he needed one more piece of the puzzle to completely believe that this truly was Ashanti standing before him.

"Asha?" That one single questionable breath spoke every emotion that he felt. Hope, fear, longing,...love. If she didn't remember him, then he was a lost cause. Both physically and emotionally.

Hollow listened as Ashanti spoke, of heartache and pain. Things he knew well, much better than she had thought. Hollow's mother and father had been slaughtered, as had his brother, the only teo survivors had been himself and his beloved sister Simaea. Though she was miles away in Whisper caverns he always hoped she was well, and often thought of the young gravel voiced she wolf and smiled at the thought that he now knew exactly where she was. So he knew the pain of loss, but also the joy of discovery which was what he would try now, to give to Ashanti. Hope that one day she would find her own beloved. Hope that she would one day find a love as strong as his was for Azariah.

Just the thought of losing Azariah set his heart back, it missed a beat and he felt a small twinge of pain. He couldn't go on without his golden furred love. She was his angel, the one whom he ran to whenever his heart was hurting or the weight of responsibility began to crush the bones in his shoulders. That pain would be unbearable, just as the loss of his parents had been when he was young. It would crush him now though, worse than he had ever been before. For it would mean he had lost almost everything.

As his jaws opened however he heard a single word, "Asha". Hollow knew well this was his friends nickname, in brief time Isen had spent in Secret Woodlands she often referred to her sister with the name. So Instinctively he moved in front of her, no doubt she had seen the stranger, but Hollow was still unsure for the male smelled wild and of dirt and trees, mountains and far off places even Hollow had never seen. For a split second he almost felt as though he were looking into a reflection but of course there wee differences.

Hollow's head and tail rose to their full height, "What do you want with my pack member stranger?" His voice was neutral even as his stance made the point. The male was to come no closer until Hollow knew his business. Patiently the leader of the woodlands waited for the male to speak. Or Ashanti, whomever made their voice known first.

Miccah's form tensed instinctively as the man with eyes lighter than his own stepped in front of Ashanti protectively. It was weird to see another man protecting his love when he himself had done it for so long, naively as it was.

His posture turned completely rigid when his white beauty stood up, aggression screaming from her very pores. Outwardly, his face was neutral, inwardly, he was in turmoil. Did she not remember him? Did she not wish to see him? After all, it had been almost a year since he had seen her last. For all he knew, this was her mate standing right in front of him! The thought alone brought a painful pang to his already mauled heart. His eyes showed a brief flicker of pain before they were once again clouded in neutral indifference.

He was deciding whether to follow his heart, which told him to leave now with some of his pride still intact, or his head, which logically told him that he was jumping to conclusions. He didn't know the whole story. And then the unthinkable happened. In the midst of his thoughts, his dark blue orbs trained on Ashanti, noticing that she had relaxed. A smile had formed upon her maw, and her tail was wagging happily.

Why, she remembered him! His stance immediately relaxed as he heard the words that she had spoken to the man named 'Hollow'. Her voice was still music to his ears. A smile formed upon his own maw as he spoke teasingly, his deep baritone resonating through the thicket. "You spoke about me, precious?" Sending her a lingering smile, his attention turned to the male.

His muzzle had long ago picked out their unique scent--they were part of a pack. It was obvious that this male, because of how he displayed himself, he was either alpha or second-in-command. Bowing his head in a sign of both respect and submission, Miccah decided it was high time to properly introduce himself. Lifting his head, he raised himself to his full height, his tail swishing softly behind him in a neutral position. "Miccah Athesila is the name. It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

Hollow awondered at the uncanny timing fate seemed to bring here. It was almost like magic, where you could miss someone, and if you loved them enough they would show up at your side... just like that. It was a nice sentiment, but Hollow knew deep down that these things just happened, and good things were never to be questioned, just accepted and enjoyed. He smiled at the words that passed between the two wolves before the attention was turned to him. "I am Hollow Nite, leader of Secret Woodlands, I have heard much about you." Hollow gave a nod this was one occasion in which he would not warn them of their current proximity to the pack. After all even as a pack leader, Hollow could recognize when a wolf was in love. After all, he was.

So he circled and made himself comfortable before lowering himself to the grass, and lying down. His head remained high and his ears pricked. Hollow was at ease with Ashanti, and knew he was fit enough to move quickly should things change. Still he would not leave, "I apologize for hanging around here, but I cannot leave my friend unattended, after all she helped to found this pack, and if she ran away. Well it would be devastating." It was Hollow's gentle way of saying "don't take Ashanti away or I'll have to eat your face." Plus if less than friendly wolves appeared, two wolves were better than one. They would just have to accept that he wasn't going to go away any time soon.

As unmanly as it sounded, hearing Ashanti say that she had missed him every day ever since she had fled the pack, made his heart sing and a grin to appear across his maw. But her next words quickly made that smile turn upside down. Why was she uneasy around males these days? Had someone dare to wrong her!? To hurt her!? He barely restrained himself from snarling, intent to ask her who had dare hurt her so he could right their wrong, and shred them to pieces.

The angered thoughts coursing through his head were rare for the male, but not completely uncommon. Whenever it came to Ashanti, protecting her was key--from who or what didn't matter. His goal was to keep her alive.

Not realizing it, his hackles had raised, radiating his anger. He forced himself to calm down, and soon he was back to normal. He wanted to envelop her in his embrace, lather her with his love, and he even took a small step forward. But then he remembered. They were not alone. He remembered that his almost twin was laying, right there beside them.

His mind remembered Hollow's previously spoken words, and one side of his lip tilted up in amusement. He understood what Hollow didn't say, but the man had no reason to worry. He wasn't taking Ashanti anywhere, his desire was to settle down, with her.

Taking the man's approach, Miccah got himself comfortable, laying just a couple of feet away from the other black male.

His ears pricked as he heard Ashanti's voice, zoning in on the use of Bane. "Hollow, I’m not running off anytime, who else would teach Nina’s pups and Bane." He was about to chuckle and tease that he was clearly no longer a child, when she spoke once again, her tone rushed to explain herself.

Another Bane that wasn't him? He was going to ask her to elaborate on her 'really long story' when he decided that it would be best to speak of this when they were alone. He'd have to talk to Hollow about that, his intent to join. Like reading his mind, Ashanti had brought it up herself.

Miccah lifted himself up from his position, knowing that this would be a conversation better left spoken while standing. Waiting patiently for his love to finish speaking, he opened his maw. "It would be a great honor to be part of your pack. You would have my loyalty always, no matter the circumstance." Truth rang in his words, and a determined look came into his eyes.