define('WP_CACHE', true); Chapter 7: The Burrow – Crossed Paths – Logs

Mar 10

Chapter 7: The Burrow

Chapter 7: The Burrow

In Which the Companions Seek Shelter From the Weather In A Small Cave.

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Arrin Woodgreen: He thinks. “There should be a cave somewhere nearby…” He thinks while pulling on his shirt.

Yazeth: Jozra nods. “I’m looking for one. There’s a ledge over there that we might be able to use, just in case we don’t find anything better.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He perks up slightly. “The ledge, is there a tree on top of it?”

Yazeth: The ferret peers. “Err… yes, actually. Kind of stunted.” She chuckles. “It blended right in with the shadows.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods. “It should be to the right of that and down on ground level, you got to crawl in though.”

Yazeth: Jozra nods. “Okay…  There. I see it now. This way.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods yet again and follows the ferret.

Yazeth: The entrance of the cave is slightly overgrown and very gravelly. “You sure there’s no snakes in there? I’d rather not meet a viper.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He crouches at the entrance and picks up a pebble tossing it inside. He waits for a few seconds. “It’s safe…”

Yazeth: The ferret glances dubiously at the dark hole but shrugs. “Do you want to go first, or should I?”

Arrin Woodgreen: He shrugs. “I will.” He stoops and crawls inside.

Yazeth: Jozra waits a bit before following, thankful that she is a ferret and thus, slim enough to handle holes such as this, though she never really had much experience with burrows before.

Arrin Woodgreen: The cave gets wider and taller as you go in, and it evens out.  Soquan is already setting up.

Yazeth: The ferret finally emerges at the end and looks around, allowing her eyes to adjust.  The light in the cave is only through the hole they came to and what light there is very dim and getting dimmer by the minute.

Arrin Woodgreen: He looks towards her. “I think you might be able to start a bit of a fire… The smoke will leave through the entrance.”

Yazeth: Jozra nods and begins building a small fire. “It would be good to have a warm dinner too.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods. “Aye, it would… Should I start digging out a place for us to sleep?”

Yazeth: The ferret lights the small fire before responding. “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He begins to dig a shallow hole for two beasts to sleep in. “Shall I make it a bit bigger this time? Last time we were a bit squished…”

Yazeth: Jozra grins. “Yeah, that would probably be a good idea also.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He chuckles. “I slept with your elbow in my ribs that night…” He widens the hole.

Yazeth: She slices some of the fish into small pieces and adds some water from the canteens along with this and that. “I figured a sort of fish stew for tonight with the bread.  Think I should add some cheese to it?”

Arrin Woodgreen: He wrinkles his nose. “No.”

Yazeth: The ferret nods. “Thought not.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He finishes digging. “There, that should be enough room.”

Yazeth: Jozra looks at the hole, squinting in the firelight. “Yeah, that should do it. The stew should be ready in a few minutes too.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods. “Okay.” He rummages though the bags and pulls out all the blankets, placing them inside the hole.

Yazeth: Soon the stew is done. Jozra pulls out the few utensils and pulls out the bread.  “Food’s ready.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He comes towards the fire. “Great.” He settles down and waits.

Yazeth: Jozra ladles some stew into a bowl and puts the bowl and a spoon into Soquan’s paws. “Got a chunk of bread here for you if you want it.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods. “I’ll have it when I’m done.” He samples the stew. “It’s good.”

Yazeth: The ferret grins as she prepares a bowl for herself. “Thank you.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He grins. “Anytime.” He eats another spoonful.

Yazeth: Jozra eats her stew. “Seems as though a wind has picked up…” Her ears prick towards the cave entrance.

Arrin Woodgreen: His ears perk up. “It has… It’ll be cold tonight.”

Yazeth: The ferret nods and finishes her bowl of stew.

Arrin Woodgreen: He finishes not long afterward. “Can you pass my piece of bread?”

Yazeth: Jozra places the piece of bread into the otter’s paws. “There’s a little of the stew left. Did you want it?”

Arrin Woodgreen: He munches on his bread. “Save it, we can eat it in the morning…”

Yazeth: The ferret nods and sticks her piece of bread between her teeth before cleaning up and saving the leftover stew. “Moof ihea.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He chuckles and takes another bite. “Anything I can do to help?”

Yazeth: She stops to chew and replies before putting the bread in her mouth again. “Nope, I’m nearly done cleaning up anyway. Think we should keep the fire going? We don’t have much to burn.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He shakes his head. “Put it out, save the fuel. We can just lie down and talk.”

Yazeth: The ferret carefully smothers the fire, attempting to conserve fuel. “Hrm, seems it got very dark while we were eating.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He reaches towards her. “C’mon, I’ll help you around…”

Yazeth: The ferret grins in spite of herself. “In this situation it seems as though our roles are reversed.” She hesitantly feels around until she finds the otter’s paw.

Arrin Woodgreen: He laughs slightly. “C’mon.” He guides her gently to the hole. “Watch your step.”

Yazeth: Jozra feels around with her footpaws, navigating the slight slope.

Arrin Woodgreen: He grins. “There ya go.” He lets go of her paws and begins to bed down in the cloak-blankets.

Yazeth: She feels around to her place and curls up in the blanket cloaks. “Goodnight.”

Arrin Woodgreen: He nods and curls up in the covers, his back resting against hers. “Goodnight Jozra.”

 

Jozra

1 comment

  1. See, this is nice. Just two friends going about their life. Not trying to save the world or find a lost city. Just having fun. That’s something that’s lacking in far too many Redwall stories, I think, and it’s definitely nice to read about for a change.

    Just one thing: Soquan says they can lie down and talk, but then they just lie down and go to sleep. Sure, nothing wrong with it, it just seems like they would have talked at least for a little bit.

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