Blackfeather Woods I don't usually give in to peer pressure

@Rowan if you are interested?

Sobek had spent an ungainly amount of time staring at a pile of leaves which had been collecting at one of the entries to the tunnels; it had been collecting for a while, there was nothing special about it but here he was, practically nesting next to it and staring. His back was to the dark tunnel. The grotto spanned all around him and if he wanted to, he could turn and hike north to the temple where he had found his mother weeping and mourning the loss of her friend.

The leaves trembled when a breath of wind tousled them. He didn't really notice; Sobek was too busy thinking, maybe even planning. The boy was often a quiet and thoughtful sort - it was a wonder what a young mind such as his could really comprehend. The important part of all of this was his precise location: not quite the heart of the territory and far from his usual haunts. Whatever worked through his mind appeared to resolve itself abruptly, at which point he rose up and began to plot a course across the loose, fragrant soil.

His path crossed east until some sound in the trees prompted him to stop, look around, then launch in another direction; this lasted an hour or so, during which Sobek got thoroughly muddy, mostly his paws and his face, as he kept dipping his snout to the earth as he went - tracking.

At some point he found a trail worth pursuing and the tempo of his steps increased until he encountered a few deep patches, where he scrambled against the risen roots of trees time after time, fighting gravity as much as his gawky child's body. As he emerged triumphant on the southern border of the mire he finally shook the chilling water from his shoulders and called out to a passing shadow with a throaty yip. He had found what - rather, who, - he was looking for.