As soon as he was sure everything was in order and Nina didn't need him anymore, he left the little group and trailed after Ashanti. He didn't immediately follow her, so he had to count on her scent to find out where she could be. After a bit of time, Miccah came upon a cave, and he could hear soft sobbing. A flicker of pain briefly tugged at his heart as he recognized the voice and he entered the cave.

The sight that awaited him made the pain in his heart even stronger. His angel was sobbing her heart out on a cold, cave floor. Her fur was streaked in mud all over. He wasted no time in forcing his large bulk into the cave and appearing at her side. Laying on his stomach, he nudged @Ashanti's muzzle with his own in what he hoped was a comforting gesture.

A pianed whine slipped past his muzzle. he didn't know what to do. He didn't know the words that would succeed in bringing her comfort. He felt utterly useless. He thought he knew what was bothering her, but he couldn't know for sure. He was a man, and he couldn't read a women's mind.
"Tell me what's troubling you Asha. I can't help if you don't tell me." Another pained whine escaped his throat as he spoke. He absolutely loathed when she cried. It made him feel like he wasn't enough. Because wasn't he supposed to make her happy? Last time he checked, tears didn't go with happiness.

Her previous words were meant with nothing. Not a touch, nor a word. He was too busy trying to figure out a way to just tell her--it didn't matter if she was the same old Ashanti or not. Everyone changed one point in their lives. He himself had changed. He wasn't that little boy anymore that dogged everyone's paw prints. He made his own now, and one day, wolves would follow them as his subordinates. Maybe that dream wouldn't come true, but right now, at this moment in time, it didn't hurt as bad as he thought it would. With Ashanti by his side, leader or not, he was still happy.

And then she spoke. Words that he had hoped to hear ever since he had first laid eyes on her. His breath had caught in his throat, and he fought to breathe so he could respond in turn. Finally, a ragged breath was drawn into his lungs. He turned his head and licked the side of her face that he could reach, since her head was pressed into his neck. Over and over, his tongue swiped her face in an intimate manner. When he finally stopped, he moved his maw to her ear. In his rumbling baritone, he spoke softly. "You don't know how long I've waited to hear those words. I love you as well, my white-furred beauty. I always have. I don't care if you think you've changed, everyone does. That doesn't mean that I'll stop loving you. That can never happen." Nipping her ear gently, he buried his head into her shoulder. He breathed her in--his very life source. As he continued to hold her in his embrace, he spoke his greatest fear. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost you again."