Dragoncrest Cliffs a boy named stargazer

There was only one word that could properly describe her movements: frantic. Meerkat hunched, tail a rigid poker over her back as she clawed at the earth. She pulled great clods of mud out of a growing hole, grunting with the exertion. By the time she slowed down and stopped, her pelt was a mess; her muscles were trembling; and she could barely catch her breath.

She pushed backward out of the ditch she’d dug in the soft clay deep in The Saltmarsh. Meerkat stood there and made a tsk sound at her handiwork, then sighed and retreated to sit with her back against a nearby tree. She looked down at herself, slathered in wet dirt, and let out another sigh as she slumped against the rough roots.

She’d made an executive decision: she did not want to use their former den in Greatpine Wildwood. Meerkat was still on the market and now doubtful the marsh was a viable place to excavate. The process of finding a new whelping den was further complicated by her emotions, which had officially boarded a roller coaster again shortly after Fish’s decision to travel with Quennell.

Meerkat let her feelings get the better of her and wallowed there the rest of the day. It was well after nightfall by the time she finally made herself sit up and stretch. Her eyes slanted toward the night sky, amber gaze clinging on the thick sliver of moon hovering over the sea. She should probably head that direction and get cleaned up.

@Stingray

Stingray wallowed as well, but in a different sort of way.

He had not been back to the whale carcass since the incident with Suzu, and in fact avoided even being close enough to see the bones arcing toward the sky. This led to him spending more time inland and less on the beach. His daily swims suffered for it. Once, he went down to Ankyra Sound to try to swim there instead, but Njord's spooky tales about the place got under his skin after only a few minutes. He hadn't been back.

By now he was mostly over the humiliation of Suzu's prank, but he was reluctant to spend much time with her or any of the other kids since. He tried telling himself it was all in good fun, that she hadn't meant it, but the memory of urine running down his leg made it difficult not to focus on just how mean she was to him. He wished his brother was here.

Stingray stayed close to home in Fish's continued absence, wandering the territory proper rather than surrounding locales. He was doing the same now, and when he tripped and fell into a ditch someone had dug in the ground with a muffled cry — waugh! — he could really only blame himself for wandering around in the dark.

Struggling to right himself in the slick mud, Stingray growled and shouted, unaware of his mother stretching nearby, Suzu! Is that you again?! You... You total jerk! He was gonna wring her stupid neck if she was trying to embarrass him a second time!

Still she didn’t move, staring ever upward as she found herself guessing at the moon’s phase. If memory served, it had been a little slenderer a few nights past, which meant…

Waxing gibbons? she whispered, picturing her dad’s face with a fond twitch of her lips.

“WAUGH!”

Meerkat jumped, face whipping toward the source of the nearby cry. She squinted at the dark shape near where she’d been digging earlier, trying to discern details in the moonlight. She thought she saw a glimpse of neon blue eyes right before the yelling started, her son’s voice a dead giveaway despite the angst in his tone.

She blinked at the accusation he hurled into the dark, then quickly swept to her feet with a sotto voce, No, Ray, it’s me.

Meerkat paused and then hastened toward his silhouette. She suspected he might’ve stumbled across her dig site, which was confirmed as she came closer. She let out a breath, guilt quivering in her gut even as her snout moved to touch Stingray’s face.

Shoot, she apologized against his golden cheekbone. Are you alright?