The morning after the Festival of Light, Ravenswood awoke to a gentle mist and the lingering warmth of celebration. Laughter echoed in the square as children played, their ribbons trailing behind them like tiny comets. Yet, beneath the surface, a new unease began to ripple through the town.
Mara found Alex near the chapel, her brow furrowed. "Some of the children wandered too close to the woods last night," she whispered. "They came back pale, saying they heard voices calling their names."
Alex's heart tightened. The woods had always been a boundary, a place where the web's protection felt thin. They gathered the children and listened as they described the whispers—soft, tempting, promising secrets and hidden treasures.
The Shadow Weaver appeared, his presence a comfort. "The Unraveler's shadow lingers," he warned. "It seeks new cracks in the web, new hearts to tempt."
Alex called a meeting in the square. "If you hear the whispers, do not listen alone. Speak to your family, your friends. Fear grows in silence, but fades in the light of truth."
The villagers nodded, forming small groups to walk the edge of the woods together. Eli, holding tightly to Mara's hand, confessed he'd heard the voices too but had remembered Alex's words and run back to the square.
That evening, as the sun set and lanterns glowed, Alex stood at the boundary of the woods. They tied a new ribbon to the old boundary stone—a symbol of vigilance and hope. The web above Ravenswood pulsed gently, as if in approval.
The darkness would always test them, Alex knew. But as long as the people of Ravenswood stood together, sharing their fears and their courage, the web would hold.
And somewhere in the depths of the woods, the whispers faded, retreating before the light.