Blackfeather Woods And I'll keep it safe

Sobek had kept close to his little family when the forest had split apart, when Maegi had been gone for days, keeping himself calm through the ritualized patrols around the areas of the forest that were still safe; if he wasn't with Rowan he was with Anansi, and on this particular day there wasn't a worse place to be. The willow was not luring him close. He knew his brother was fixated on it, had been for a while, but without an adult nearby Sobek was cautious of it. They visited because Anansi wished it (and Sobek would never refuse him anything).

He looked away for a moment. Just a blink - a breath. Watching for signs of the ravens return, missing them so deeply, and their calls, their watching eyes. That was when the world upended itself. Something shook, something shifted and Sobek did what came naturally - he stood up and bolted a few feet closer to his brother, eyes wide, at the exact moment something went wrong. He saw a great gnarled arm slamming down against the forest floor; he heard a shriek, cut short.

His ears were ringing as the debris settled, and through his shock Sobek heard shouting. He was still just standing there, feet away from where Anansi had been, and watched as his ghostly mother rounded upon them. He didn't move, didn't breathe, for the longest time - but then pitifully, his voice pleading softly, he called out: A ..Anan...si?