Lost Creek Hollow Call her Miss Mirage

He waited, and he thought about what he would say to Faun. So many words came to mind, but when he finally heard her sharp little barks like the chiming of bells, they all left him. At first he didn't know what to do; he was overwhelmed by the weight of it all, his absence and everything that had filled it. Then he took a breath, and thought of her. Faun.
Kel went to her.
Faun! His voice was soft but brimming with excitement as he called to her even with distance still between them. His pace picked up as he neared her rather than slow, despite his exhaustion. Kel had missed her more than he'd known. She reminded him of home, he realized all at once. Not The Evergarden, not that too-perfect place, but Willowspire. The difference between the pristine houses in the movies and those you actually live in; where the kitchen table is a shared space for mail and art projects and old jewelry you still haven't gone through, and tonight's dinner shoved somewhere to the side, forgotten, and it feels like home.
You've been away, He breathed as he came close enough to take in her scent. Their neighbors. Herbs. Makes two of us, I guess. Kel smiled a helpless and tired smile. I missed you. You and all your herbs. Could've used them a few times.