He felt no anger towards his little girl, just relief that she was back by his side. Her reaction to his presence was reassuring and he was glad that their bond had not been torn over the months of separation. For weeks he had searched endlessly for her, only to turn up empty, his heart heavy. His saving grace, once again, had come in the form of his sister. Ash's ears cupped forward when Nineva began to speak and he felt his heart sink when her words came. While he could appreciate her apology, he did not care for it. He wanted to know what happened over the time that she was gone, where she'd been and what she had learned from her experience. And most importantly to him, if she would return to their family, to Secret Woodlands where her blood kin were.

He swallowed thickly, a strained smile on his lips, "There is no need to apologize, my dear. I am just so glad that you are doing well. Now tell me...what have you been up to all this time? Where have you been?" He made himself comfortable, looking towards his daughter. He was quite curious. After all, he had searched and was unable to find her every single time. The little Hervok learned how to hide well and Ash wanted to know exactly where she had been hiding this whole time.

Mossy green eyes were trained on his daughter, waiting to know where exactly she'd been hiding. Ash was aware that Nina had known of her location but kept it from him, for his daughter's good and she had given him a hard talk about how children needed to make their own choices. They had argued but the man had come to see his sister's reasoning. Nineva would accomplish no good in life if he was controlling every aspect of it for the rest of her life. He just wished that she would remained with her family for a little while longer before going off to do whatever the hell it was she did. It was so, that his ears pricked to attention when she began to speak. He kept his face neutral as she spoke, not wanting to upset her and wanting to know the truth at the same time. It did not surprise him to hear that Nin returned to the Caverns, he often felt that yearning but he knew that it was his duty to remain within the thickets and that his sister would wonder where he was if he did not return, especially with all the recent accusations that had been flying around recently.

What shocked him the most though, was her confession about her location. She was only a few territories away, not far from where he had searched tirelessly for her, for days on end. Again, he would not admit this aloud to her, for he did not want to upset his daughter. She meant the world to him, as did his other two charges, and he was just happy to know that she was safe. Ash was unfamiliar with all of the names that she mentioned but he would be sure to find out more about them later and so he committed them to memory. Mossy green eyes took in the growing figure of his dear daughter. It hurt him to know that she felt like she didn't belong with her family but he was happy that she felt as if she found a place elsewhere and was making a name for herself. The last words she said, however, stuck with him. The first thing that he wanted to do was argue back and tell her that it wasn't true but that would have been a lie. She had deserted them and had it been any of his subordinates or even Narime that had deserted him he would have pushed them out of his life and tell them to figure it out themselves.

He evaluated his daughter silently, jaw tense and gaze intense. His voice was strong when he spoke, "That's true. But right now you're being truthful and you came back." He sighed softly, his visage hard, continuing, "Family is very important to me, Nineva. It upset us all greatly when you left and it just relieves me greatly to know that you are alive, do you understand?" The russet-hued man looked towards his daughter for some kind of sign of whether or not she understood or not. Slightly hopeful now that she was here Ash spoke again, "Have you decided to return to The Woodlands?" Mossy green eyes held a hint of hope within them. At least now he knew where she was and where he would be able to find her, especially since the pack had a standing alliance with Grizzly Hollow.