Hushed Willows world enough, and time

The longer Kin waited, the more eerie the place became; the land was so very quiet, and in the absence of bees buzzing and birds calling, something else seemed to whisper to him from within the trees. A few times he called out a tentative, "Hello?" — but there was no one there to answer him, and he had fallen back into uneasy quiet by the time Eleuthera came near enough to hear him.

His ruddy tail wagged in equal relief and happiness as she finally appeared to him, even though she stopped far short of a proper greeting. Kincaid supposed it was too much to hope that they might pick up where they left off; he wondered, uncomfortably, if she was embarrassed by her actions, looking at him now in the light of day.

"I said I would," he told her, taking a few steps toward her, but leaving still a respectful distance between them. "I can come back another time, if you're busy," he added, giving her a graceful out, if she so desired one. As crushing as the idea was, Kincaid couldn't blame her. He did his best to keep up a friendly an unaffected facade.