The guilt that Kovu felt was far heavier than the burden of bearing Simba on his back. Lucky for him, even though it was a long walk to the apartment, Kiara hadn't seen what Zira had done to him. She was more worried about her father anyway. He wondered what that had to be like...he'd never felt that way about anyone but her.

At first, he thought he felt guilty because he hadn't been there to help Simba sooner. So he kept himself quiet as they walked. Looking over at Kiara every few seconds, it took only a few minutes for him to realize what it really was. He'd never had to deal with something like this before, and he had no idea how he could help her. So instead...he just stayed quiet. He did feel like Simba getting hurt was his fault, at least a little, and that didn't make it any better. He didn't realize how much she needed him.

So when they finally got to the apartment, he didn't feel any relief. Really...he only felt worse than before.