tunnels FAMILIAR HELL [tunnel cleanup]

[SCORCHSTAR]

༄༄ The meeting had ended earlier in the day, long enough ago that Scorchstreak has moved past it, for the most part. Sunstar had not spoken up in her defense against Sootspot’s disrespect, a fact that irks her—but she does not need the leader to speak for her. She has endured far worse in the past, has endured sneers and insults from both friend and foe. She will not allow herself to be unsettled by the ex-leader’s kit with an overblown ego. Nothing that Sootspot says matters—in the end, the truth is in their positions. She, a lead warrior just as capable as she’s always been, and he, a distrusted former traitor with no claim to power. Besides, the clan knows her skills, and should understand that they will not fade from two months spent away from her tunnels. She was born in the tunnels, after all; she knows them better than she knows the tops of her own paws, better than she knows the new scars that cross her chest. His remarks about her being somehow incapable of doing her job are borne of petty jealousy, not any sort of truth, and the calico trusts that this will be clear to any WindClanner who is still sound of mind.

Slinking through the tunnels feels just as it always has, though a lingering irritation rests in the bristling of her hackles. The tunnels are not quite in a state of disrepair, but debris lies scattered across the floor of the tunnel. Their efforts in cleaning and repairing the tunnel system have been slow, but after today, they will have made more progress. "This is such a mess," she hisses to the tunnelers behind her, tail whipping with irritation. Disgraceful. She flicks her tail, though she knows that none of the others can see it in the pitch black of the tunnels. "The badger’s den we dug through is just up ahead. Be cautious—it may have returned while we were gone, and even if it didn’t, we need to ensure that the den is still structurally sound." She cannot detect the creature anywhere, but it is better to be cautious than to rush headfirst into the waiting claws of a badger. Dappled paws carry her into the open cavern of the den, and when no badger-scent reaches her nose she turns to speak to the others. "It’s not here. Check the walls, pack them in if needed. The last thing we need is to collapse the tunnel." It would not be a loss, entirely, if certain cats on their patrol were to perish, at least.

// @PINKPAW @SOOTSPOT NOT a pafp, feel free to post before !​

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[SOOTSPOT]

It was easy to blame Scorchstreak for his feelings towards her. Her teeth had been the first he'd seen when he'd reached the barn, slander hissed through gaps in them that could've made his return to WindClan trickier had he not warned them of Sootstar's attack. Then came the ban on seeing his mother, leaving her dead with too much unspoken. The final straw was the repeated insults towards the Tunnelers under Sootstar's reign, that they'd let the tunnels get in such a foul state - the truth would not have hurt so much if it did not directly involve him. He'd spoken honestly when he talked of abandoning the tunnels in favour of border patrols (too few moor runners, not Snakehiss' incompetence) and truthfully of navigating safer sections of them even when it wasn't necessary (to escape from chores that would give him too many enemies, not to escape mental affliction). It was no surprise he thought it truth that he should've been leading the tunnel operation instead of Scorchstreak (not because she was bad at her job, but because he believed himself better). Sunstar's compromise was not the overwhelming victory he'd wanted, but it was something - he didn't doubt a part of the tortoiseshell would be seething.

If she made a mistake because he lived in her mind? All the better. Mention of the badger caused his belly to sink lower to the abandoned earth as they pressed forwards, claws unsheathed and prepared for combat... luckily, none arrived. Facing a badger out in the open was a much more comfortable idea than facing one when their choice of direction was limited - he doubted a wall of Tunneler bodies would be able to spare him from the wrath of such a vicious beast. "We may benefit from narrowing the entrances," he suggested, slipping into the cavern. "Were I a big, hulking creature, I would still be tempted by the spaciousness of this place." 'Then again, I am not your ex-mate.'


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[mistcrawl]

Mistcrawl wasn't born for these tunnels. Seasons ago he had stumbled upon the Clans, their formation interesting him. He brought his young, his lover, all to join the likes of WindClan - to feast on what the moors had to offer. His size lent him to the tunneling role and he took to it well, though admittedly he was never a natural at it. Sootstar's downward spiral made him itch and he considered grasping all of his lineage and heading back to the twolegplace - however unfortunately as it was, circumstances stapled them down.

"Thinning it out would take some time," says the chocolate tom, sniffing the walls. He doesn't smell any newer badger stenches, but with new leaf that doesn't mean they won't return. "I wouldn't mind staying behind to complete that, whilst a few of you forge ahead," maybe they would do well to split up. It would definitely lessen the tension between Sootspot and Scorchstreak, he thinks.​

 

[DUSTYFOOT]

Dustyfoot has been quiet the entire trek so far. Silently judging Sunstar, it would seem, just as Scorchstreak at their head. Sootspot had proved. . . useful, in some sparse aspects. This was not one of them. The smugness that radiates from the loyalist is enough to put any sane cat in a sour mood. Or– well, maybe just him. He has no issue sticking towards the back. His bottlebrush of a tail touches the tunnel walls, snagging occasionally on roots or buckling walls that he stops to tuck back in. "Too much work to lose because some cats had their heads buried up–" He does not finish that sentence. Its ending comes with an audible clip! of his teeth.

"Mistcrawl's right. It won't take all of us, and we can at least scout ahead while this is being finished. Make sure there aren't any other obstacles waiting for us. Why don't you keep Sootspot? It was his idea."

𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐖𝐄 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃 𝐓𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘  ╱ ( 𝐀𝐋𝐋 𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍? ) 03.18.2024 ꠶ ݁ ˖༄

• OOC. —
• 𝐃𝐔𝐒𝐓𝐘𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐓. HE - HIM - HIS. HARDWORKING TUNNELER OF WINDCLAN. ——— hardworking and swift of foot with a dirt-colored pelt fit for the finest of tunnelers, dustyfoot is an overall overage warrior despite his hard, excellently done work. he holds himself to a forgettable standard.  ╱ PENNED BY REVELATIONS
  
  a small seal sepia chimera with dull green-gold eyes. his thick fur gives him the illusion of greater size, quickly dispelled by the sight of his bottlebrush pelt disappearing into the rabbit holes of his clan's territory. made of dark colors darkened further by the dusting of dirt and packed mud, the only part of him that gleam are his teeth through endless chatter and his eyes in their clever gleam.

• "speech"

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