Broken Antler Fen give in to the lonely

About a month and Maia had still shown few signs that anything had taken. She thought, maybe, once or twice.... but every time she began to get excited, she couldn't quite manage it. It felt like there was too much of a chance for that to jinx it.

Still, spring was in full force and it was a gorgeous day. Maia breathed in deep and sighed, enjoying the sun and the quiet. She'd been thinking on and off on that story, but she still hadn't found her villain yet. Normally she didn't have this much trouble.

The sound of someone nearby broke her from her thought train and she looked up, expecting to see Eljay, or maybe Wraen or Teya. Ibis was probably busy with her pups now and the others Maia tended to see less of. Instead, she was surprised to see a familiar but unexpected face.

Akavir?! You're back!? She smiled huge, tail waving in greeting. That's so great, oh my gosh! When? Are you?... She caught herself launching into a question tirade and cut herself short, but still waited expectantly. She was too thrilled, and distracted by both surprise and her own thoughts, to notice anything off about him from first glance. Naively, she imagined Ibis had to be thrilled to have him home and that made her excited as well. She hadn't spent a ton of time with him before he left, but he'd seemed both important to her niece and like a genuinely great guy. She was happy to see him okay and back home.