out of my element

Alaric could see the hesitation in the woman's eyes, the wind blew harshly between them sending a mix of bitter cold and snow over them. "They are friendly, yes." He called out to her, glancing to his hounds. They were friendly enough, as long as their companion wasn't threatened. As if some type of spell was broken over the woman, she moved down the rocks and towards Alaric. Alaric went to move his body towards the direction of the cave, only to be met in a embrace by the woman. Her smaller, red, figure pressed against his chest. He stopped in his tracks, for a moment he was lost in thought. "Follow me." He spoke, breaking himself out of the storm of emotions that pulled in his mind. He led the woman towards the cave, his feet carefully placed on the rocky terrain he was so familiar with traversing. When they reached the cave, he guided her into the the middle of the cave. Maul and Cinder followed in shortly after, shaking their bodies free from snow and settling down in a nearby corner of the cave. They huddled together for warmth. Alaric swallowed. He had no materials for a fire and doubted he would find anything in this rocky terrain either. "Lay down." He commanded, his voice softer than usual. Once she had complied, he would sigh to himself. He would swallow hard and curled himself around her smaller frame, nestling her head between his thickly furred chest. "This will have to do until you're rested enough to travel." He told her, his voice hushed slightly. He would fall quiet, his orange gaze flickering from the cave entrance, to his dogs, to her. He didn't know what to say, the feeling of another felt so foreign against him. His mind flashed back to Atreyu, when she had hugged him. How deprived of a man was he really? He could almost scoff at himself. Yet this felt so...nice, almost. His muscle relaxed slightly beneath him. He breathed in, her scent filling his nostrils from the closeness. Eucalyptus. Exotic. She was truly out of her elements out here. "What brought you out here?" He finally broke the silence, wanting an answer to....this. To her.