
Wind brushed through reeds poking up from marshy swampland as her lantern struggled to penetrate the murky night; each muddy step more difficult than the last.
“Willow?”
Her tone plaintive as tears threatened.
In the distance, a bark. A tentative smile and then, wet fur with sloppy kisses.

Aw, I love happy endings.
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Love the happy ending, here!
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There’s a lot of tension in the first sentence just with your word choices: difficult, muddy, struggled. It is a good contrast to the end.
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The “plaintive” really cemented the images for me.
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Excellent – you nailed it!
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Just love this.
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