Hey! Thanks for nice reviews, (as always). Well, I have been wanting to sort some of the other characters into this story. Tell me if you like it so far, and tell me what you don't like. : )

Never Let Go

Chapter Nine- Comfort in you

Sid woke up to a couple great slaps on the back. "Ow, ow, ow! Hey!" Sid was awaken by a rough sloth in his group named Bruits, a typical bully, even more out of shape than Sid.

"Get up, sloth!" Bruits commanded. "Everyone has been trying to wake you up."

"Well, that was a rude way to do it." Sid grumbled, shaking his arms out, getting up off of his rock.

"Tough." Bruits spat, leaving Sid behind, waddling up to the other sloths in the group.

"Alright, did SID enjoy his nap?" One of the sloths taunted.

"Its not my fault that I'm a little bit of a deep sleeper." Sid huffed. 'Geese, when will this stupid migration be over! All of these beautiful girls are too shy to talk to me, and I'm stuck with these rude nerds.' Sid groaned and continued walking, sluggishly following the other sloths.

*********************************

As Sid was being sentenced to another day of walking in the heat, Diego was relaxing in the somewhat cramped room. The room let in some of the sunlight, Diego didn't want to wake up it was a little too early for him, but he couldn't get back to sleep. Diego rolled to his side seeing Angel's brilliant aqua eyes staring right back at him.

"Hi." She giggled.

"Hey, how long have you been awake?" Diego managed to laugh along lightly with her.

"Um… I don't know. Only for a couple of minutes." She shrugged, standing up to lick her fur.

Diego got up too and stretched his claws out. "Last night was… well." Diego began, choosing to stop there.

Angel just giggled, "yeah, it was." She paused to yawn, "you do know that if my mom ever found out we would both be dead."

Diego smirked, "luckily she doesn't have a clue. And well Trevor is just… stupid. And his teeth aren't anywhere near as cool as mine." Diego showed off his trophy teeth to Angel.

'You do love your stupid teeth.' She said in her head. Smiling to herself, liking Diego's prideful side. "Oh yeah," She said sarcastically, "those fangs are… just beautiful." She smirked at Diego. "But… not as good as mine." Angel gave Diego a white, sharp smile. They were slightly larger than his.

"They're alright." Diego chuckled. A moment passed with out talking, then another, resulting in an awkward silence between the two. "So…"

"So…"

"So… you want to… go get maybe some fresh air." Diego suggested. "I doubt that that attention craving, desperate, lying-"

Knowing that all of this was directed toward Trevor, Angel interrupted not wanting the romantic night and… fun little morning to be ruined. "I get it Diego." Angel laughed," But you're right- we should get out of here."

Angel eyed him, expectantly, waves tipping the boat, back and fourth. Giving him the you do know how to get out of here look. Diego suddenly (and fortunately) remembered how the older saber, Duke opened the door. A great way to impress Angel. "I've got it." Diego jumped to his hind-legs and leaned against the wall next to the rock. He looked back to make sure Angel was impressed. He studied her face, not exactly finding impressed, but amused. That was alright with him, so he continued. Putting his mouth to the stone knob, his mouth slipped the first few times at the attempt to turn the knob enough to open the door. He smiled at her.

'He's doing this just to impress me. That's so cute!" Angel mentally gushed over him. 'I'll have to ask Gabe who taught him how to do this he may be smart. But he's not that smart.' She looked up at Diego when she heard the door click open. It swung out while Diego agilely landed on his front paws. And while the door clumsily hit a passing by saber in the face.

"Oh my gosh!" Angel ran to Diego trying not to laugh. "Is he okay?"

"Oops." Diego said, shrugging. "Yeah, just unconscious. But still, he's fine. Lets go, incase he wakes up." Diego took into a slow run, with Angel following him behind.

"Dance today." Angel perkily reminded him.

"Yeah…" Diego sighed, wondering what Gabriel and the singing tiger, Jake had in store for him.

They walked up the wooden steps, having to squint their large cat eyes, when the blinding light came into view. It was much brighter on the main floor of activity then the lower level.

"Lets go to the back!" Angel suggested. She ran, her lightly colored tail twitched from side to side, teasing Diego who followed behind.

They arrived at the fresh ocean scented back of the boat. Salty water sprayed as the boat would run over a wave. Angel laughed, she sat down with one paw hanging over the edge of the boat. She sighed, exhaling the ocean's smell.

Diego came up behind, he sat next to her. Looking out to the deep sea. Though there were many tigers who walked around, talking merrily it felt as if the two were alone together.

"Do you miss them? Are you wishing that they could be here with you?" Angel asked, noticing Diego's change of facial expression when she asked the question. She plopped her paw in and out of the salt water. Noticing the little water particles sliding off her sleek fur, waiting for Diego's response. "Homesick?" She put another suggestion out for him.

"Well, I mean. There's not really a need to be homesick. I mean I will see them soon maybe tonight, tomorrow." Diego started out. He saw Angel look up into his hazel-gold eyes. "I mean. I am kind of. But it's a… different kind of home sick. Not so much a miss them as kind of a… you know empty feeling. I've never been a day without them since we met, you know?" Diego sighed. Angel was really good at getting him to open up his soul and analyzing his true emotions. She kind of reminded him of his day older sister, Sarah.

Angel splashed water on Diego's paw. "I do know what you mean." She sighed wistful. "I mean, not right now. Which is an abnormally good thing. But usually… I don't know. Sometimes I just feel like… no one is really… there for me. Like, animals there to understand me. Uh. I dunno, even since my pack died. You know we were really close."

"Its okay Angel. I know sometimes that's how I felt after my pack died. But then I met Manny and Sid, later Eddie, Crash and Ellie. And it fades away." Diego tried to comfort her, not that good at it, splashing her paw with the water again.

"I know, I know. It doesn't hurt so bad now. I barley remember since it has been so long since it happened. But my family and I… we were close you know. " She returned the splash. Then felt a splash on her cheek, she noticed that she was crying. Damn, Diego had reversed the game and now instead of him opening up his soul, it was her opening up her soul. Stupid… bad memories.

"Angel." Diego could not think of what to say. She was crying now, testing the one thing that he had no true experience with, comforting. "Don't cry about it. I sometimes get lonely too even now-"

"Its not that… I dunno how to explain in to you. It's just that whenever I'm with you I… never get lonely. I love you; you're always so fun and great to be with. I don't even know why I feel this way."

"Maybe its because we are basically in the same situation here. Maybe you stop feeling that way for the same reason I did when Manny, Sid and I became friends." Diego now had a little bit of an idea where he was going. "It might be because in a way we're good for each other. You know? Angel you and I complete each other, that's another thing that I love about you. And since we both had to deal with having our packs be killed. I kind of know the same feelings of what you're feeling. But I don't know what it would be like feeling that way and with just your mom. I at least had four other brothers with me." Diego did the traditional splash of water to her paw.

"That too, but another thing. When I was actually with Trevor, to me, it was almost like. He is the one, this is it, I wont be lonely anymore. But then, we started getting into unnecessary fights. He started acting weird you know, almost like he was purposely picking fights with me. That's when the loneliness started coming back."

"Aw, Angel. Don't worry about him. He blew off a terrific girl. You know that everything happens for a reason. And maybe this is just me, but maybe you and Trevor grew apart… so we could be together." Diego tried to make sense to her, but it just seemed like a jumble of words to him, but Angel seemed to understand. Splashing him, this time hard in the face.

Giggling watching him wipe off his face, "thanks Diego. You comfort me, really thank you." She hugged, the nuzzled him. He nuzzled back.

"I love you." Was his response.

"Love ya, but I should go to my mom now. Before she has Trevor track me down. I'll meet you… here! A couple minutes before the sun's highest? I guess right before the dance starts." She smiled.

" 'Kay, bye!" Diego smiled.

She walked off, but not before getting a huge wave wash from the sea, onto the boat, all over her fur. She gasped as Diego started laughing. Then she chuckled too, "yeah just wait and I might push you off of the boat!" She teasingly threatened.

"Hey, you deserve it!" Diego called after her.

******* A few minutes after Angel pouted off.*******

"Diego!" Came Gabriel's voice.

"Oh, hi Gabe, Jake." Diego addressed them.

"Come with us." Jake pushed Diego to follow them.

"We have some work to do." Gabriel said, content.

So, how was it. One of my attempts at writing a mushy gushy chapter. Haha! Please review! I love feed back! C =