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Today is quiet. Too quiet.
The protector of Hallownest (reduced to just the protector of Dirtmouth), stands on the roof of the tallest house, looking across the small town. Someone is ALWAYS up to something, she has not known a single calm day since taking up this role. And yet… no sound, no chaos, nothing obvious.
Taking her needle, she looks down the streets one more time before leaping down to begin a patrol. If she can’t see what they’re up to, then they must be hiding it. And if they’re hiding it, then she won’t know that something is wrong until it’s too late.
The main street of Dirtmouth is empty, save for Tiso who leans against a streetlight not far from the town’s bench. She’s certain he isn’t up to anything, he hasn’t moved from his position since she took perch. Someone likely just hurt his ego and he’s trying to stand out here to look cool.
Lights shine in the windows of most of the occupied houses as she makes her way toward the community house that most of Dirtmouth’s inhabitants now share. Someone is in Bretta’s old house… odd, but not concerning. She takes a moment to try and peek into the window, but the view is blocked. It’s fine, Bretta hardly causes problems… unless she’s with Zote, in which case those two are almost always doing something stupid.
…
It’s likely nothing to worry about. She’ll keep her eye on the building.
When she arrives at the front door of the communal house, however, she finds Myla standing guard. Nearly a head shorter than her, the miner steps up to block her path as she approaches. “Sorry miss Hornet! The house is off limits right now!” She declares, holding a hand out.
She’s surprised Myla would even try this. Her eyes narrow, and she attempts to peer through the window only to have Myla put a hand over it. “Why is that?” Hornet asks.
Just questioning her purpose is enough to make Myla shrink. “Um, because— b-because Cloth and Hollow are baking! And their focus can’t be interrupted!” She says.
A fair enough excuse, though she can’t imagine why it would require the entire house to be blocked off. “I will steer clear of the kitchen, then.” Hornet says, and moves to step around her.
And once again, Myla moves to block her path. “Nope! Sorry, opening the d-door would be too loud!” She continues.
That’s entirely ridiculous! She may know next to nothing about baking but she’s certain it doesn’t take that level of focus! Another quick move, another block from Myla, and finally she has to accept that (without force), there’s no way she’ll get into the house.
“Fine.” Hornet sighs. “Is anyone else in? And if not, do you know their whereabouts?”
Myla just shakes her head. “Nope! House is empty, n-no clue where anyone else is!”
“No one is home?” She asks, and Myla immediately seems to jump slightly from her tone. “Ercu? Xena? Ghost? Brooks? No one is here??”
“No, no one is here, b-but—” Myla starts, but she’s already departed before the miner can finish her sentence. Out of everyone, having those four be completely unaccounted for is a dangerous sign. They could be anywhere, up to anything, and they somehow managed to sneak off with her seeing them!
Needle in hand, she leaps onto a nearby roof and is a moment away from throwing it when Tiso loudly clears his throat, in a gesture that is clearly meant to get her attention. She turns and glares down at him. “What is it?”
“Hmm? Oh, I didn’t see you there.” He says, stepping away from the wall and looking back up at her. The stupid smirk on his face, how nasally his voice is, all of it is far more than she’s willing to put up with right now.
He reacts a full second after the tip of her needle stabs into the ground in front of him, and he reacts by letting out an embarrassing yelp and jumping back. “HEY!” He snaps, throwing his arms out and stomping in place.
“I have neither the time nor the patience for your antics.” Hornet snaps back, before pausing. Tiso is in the same crowd as Ercu and Xena, all three of them were part of the colosseum at one point… if anyone would know where they are, it would be him. “Where are the other fools from your colosseum? If you know anything about their whereabouts, I demand to know.”
The ant scoffs and crosses his arm, his face twisting into a grimace. “None of your business. They’re their own people, they can handle themselves.” He says, and then after a moment of thinking adds “Lemm and Quirrel aren’t here either and I don’t see you getting worried about them.”
“Because Quirrel and Lemm don’t have a penchant for destruction, and I can trust them not to cause problems.” She answers. Those two didn’t tell her they were going anywhere either… no notice, not even a note (unless it’s inside and she can’t access it), which Quirrel is usually good at.
Ugh, she doesn’t have time for this! Every second wasted is a second more for whatever mischief they’re up to! She retrieves her needle before throwing it out. The well into Dirtmouth is really the only place those two could have gone… and what they might be doing she has no clue.
When she arrives at the well, however, she finds her pursuit of Xena and Ercu blocked by the other two bugs she was looking for. Ghost and Brooks are dueling right in front of it, with the Grimmchild lounging on the well’s lip. That duel ceases the moment she lands in front of them, all eyes turning onto her.
“Do not mind me, I am looking for—” Hornet starts, only for Ghost to step forward and go into a defensive stance. “Little Ghost, I— I have no time for a duel right now. Move aside.” She demands.
Ghost keeps their position, while Brooks shakes with silent laughter behind them. She makes a move to get around the smaller vessel, only for the slightly larger one to immediately straighten up and block the well with its own blade. Even the Grimmchild perks up, letting out a tiny hiss. Are they— are they seriously blocking her from going down the well?!
She tightens the grip on her needle, for a moment debating if she should try and fight her way past them… before giving up. It would be more trouble than it’s worth, would take up too much time and energy. At least she knows where these two are now.
Ghost and Brooks go back to fighting the moment she turns her back on them. At the very least, she has many other options to get down into Hallownest, she doesn’t *need* the well.
The elevator into the Crystal Peaks has been broken for some time now, crossing that off the list. Less expectedly, though, is that the door to the Stag Station is locked when she tries it.
Rustling through her pockets doesn’t find her the key she usually carries for the old building, and it’s only when she remembers that Iselda asked to borrow it the day prior that her concern starts to morph into suspicion. She hadn’t questioned it at the time, Iselda had never been one to get in the way of her duties to Dirtmouth and its people, but— but what other explanation could there be? Her siblings to be blocking the well, and Myla to be guarding their house, everyone but Tiso to be hidden away or down in Hallownest, and her options to enter the ruined kingdom are being closed off one by one.
They have to be up to something, but what? And why? She must get down into Hallownest immediately!
Dashing further past the Stag Station, she heads for the Howling Cliffs. Climbing to the top and then back down through the Baulder’s nest into Greenpath will be tedious, but it’s the only path she has left. But, as she expected, this pathway is also blocked.
Just at the edge of the crater Dirtmouth rests in, at the entrance to the King’s Pass, are a series of familiar red tents that fill her with dread. She'd told the troupe that they weren’t welcome in Dirtmouth, to not come back, what are they doing here now?
Rushing past the tents and jumping up to the ledge, she finds the construction of some horrid structure, blocking off the entire access to the King’s Pass doorway. Grimm’s little troupe members are working quickly, ensuring that entry is impossible.
Flames suddenly crackle behind her and before the troupe master can even utter a greeting, she has her needle at his throat. “What are you doing here?”
The Troupe Master seems completely unbothered by the danger to his life, even with the tip of her needle pressing against his chitin. “No need for such threats, we know our place and we have no intention of encroaching on your little town.” He explains. “We are simply setting the stage for an upcoming show!”
She presses her blade further, putting pressure on the point it meets his throat but he doesn’t respond. He’s going against her orders of staying away, he’s still too close to Dirtmouth for her to be comfortable, and he’s still leeching off of her home. And even more, he chose now of all times to return. “Are you responsible for what’s happening in Dirtmouth?”
Grimm smiles coyly at that. “I haven’t a clue of what you’re talking about. Just as you demanded, I have kept my distance from Dirtmouth! Whatever is happening there, I assure you it has little to do with me.” Grimm continues. “I’m just returning a favor by putting on a show, nothing more.”
She doesn’t believe him. She doesn’t trust this AT ALL, everyone acting weird just as the Grimm Troupe arrives in town, everyone spread out through Hallownest and hiding away in their homes. The Grimmchild was with Ghost and Brooks as well, could Grimm be controlling people using it? She didn’t notice any dream catchers while in town, but maybe she missed them.
Without another word she zips back across town, trying to figure out a plan of attack. The air is clear of dream catchers no matter where she looks, but it’s entirely possible Grimm is doing something by some other means. Whatever is happening, whoever is doing it, it’s clearly happening in Hallownest. Perhaps she could scale the wall up to the Crystal Peaks, or—
“AHEM!” Tiso practically yells when she goes past him again, causing her to skid to a stop.
“What? What do you want?” She snaps. “If you haven’t noticed, something is clearly wrong and I HAVE to get the bottom of it before someone gets hurt!”
And as she expected, Tiso just looks at her like she’s grown a second head, and says something stupid. “Have you not seen Lace yet today?”
“Of course I’ve seen her today, I—“ She starts, before freezing. Lace was still asleep when she departed for her rounds, but she hadn’t seen her since either. “Has something happen to her?”
“No no, I haven’t seen her either. Was just… uh, wondering.” He says, before clearing his throat again.
She squints at him, trying to discern if he’s hiding anything from her and a moment away from asking why he’s coughing so much when she notices movement out of the corner of her eye.
Two figures, poorly attempting to sneak into the open door of Bretta’s house. Tiso yells out a “wait!” when she starts charging toward them, but she doesn’t listen, doesn’t slow, and he doesn’t chase after.
Bretta and Zote scramble the moment she starts moving, and rush toward the door as well. She half expects them to hide inside, but instead Bretta slams the door shut and the two of them jump in front of it. Bretta leaning on the doorframe, and Zote standing guard with his wooden sword pointed toward her. The tiny window on the front door is blocked by Bretta’s head, preventing her from getting and glimpse of what they’re obviously hiding.
“Um, hi Hornet. What’s, uh, what’s up?” Bretta stammers. Zote, suspiciously, doesn’t say a word of greeting. Wyrm, this is the most egregious attempt at hiding something she’s seen all day! At least everyone else was trying to be discreet about it.
“What are you two doing?” She asks, causing the two of them to exchange looks.
“We, um, weren’t— weren’t doing anything, just… just, uh—“ Bretta says, trailing off as her eyes jump across their surroundings like she’s never seen Dirtmouth before.
“We were hard at work until you interrupted us!” Zote exclaims, earning a panicked look from Bretta.
“With what? Neither of you carry anything, and everyone else is gone or has their doors shut.”
“We were helping… Tiso?” Bretta says, but the way she speaks makes it sound more like she’s asking a question than answering one.
An easy lie, Tiso would never ask someone for help. “Nope, try again.”
“We were moving supplies for Sly,” She says, sounding only slightly more sure of her answer this time. “And Sly didn’t want us to tell anyone, because it’s… for a surprise sale!”
More plausible, but Bretta has rarely lied to her in the past (she’s barely able to talk to Hornet most times without stammering and her face getting flushed). For her to have told such an obvious lie to begin with… something more has to be going on. She turns her attention to Zote instead, she remembers that one of those precepts of his is to not lie. “What are you two really doing? The truth, this time” She demands.
Zote’s response is immediate, and he raises his nail higher and waves it around as he speaks. “Must I remind you of my precepts? Precept fifty! Don’t linger on mysteries! You are only wasting time!” Zote says. “Regardless of the day, this is no way to treat a warrior! Bossing us around like this when we’re—!” He continues, and Bretta abruptly slams a hand over his mouth and glares at him. Whatever he rambles out next is unintelligible.
“When you’re what?” Hornet asks, but Bretta just stammers on about helping Sly again. Why is everyone being so stubborn today? They’re clearly not possessed, so why are they acting like this?? And what did Zote’s comment about the day even mean???
She lets out an exhausted sigh and leaves, leaves them to whatever nonsense they’re doing. The moment her back is on them, they scramble inside Bretta’s house and shut the door. She just hopes their foolishness won’t affect anyone else.
What is there even to do? Her typical exits are blocked, everyone working together to keep her in the dark on whatever is going on… and she still hasn’t a clue of what actually IS going on. If everything were on fire, she’d know what to do. If everyone were being possessed, she’d at least have an idea of her enemy. But this? This is just chaos. Seemingly organized, but for a reason she can’t even begin to guess.
After a short time going through her options, she decides she needs to find Lace. She needs an ally, or at least someone who might know what’s going on. With no clue where Lace actually is as well, she searches across the entire town once again.
The lights in all of the houses are now off, and even Tiso has vanished from his spot on the street. The atmosphere in Dirtmouth has become tense, almost as if waiting in anticipation.
Despite her desperate searching, Lace ends up finding her in the end. She hears her call out, and Hornet cries back in relief the moment she lays eyes on her. “Lace! Are you okay?” She yells out, panicked and out of breath.
“I should be asking you that, dear. You look awful.” Lace pouts, taking Hornet’s face up in her hands. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you today, where have you been?”
After the frenzy and confusion that today has been, she struggles to settle into the sudden softness. “I’ve been looking for you too… Everyone is acting weird, I– I can’t leave Dirtmouth, I don’t know what’s going on.”
The look on Lace’s face turns to one of regret, before she lets out a sigh. “I’m so sorry, Hornet. I was supposed to stay with you to make sure this didn’t happen, if I hadn’t overslept this morning…” She says, voice trailing off.
A lull of silence follows, as she processes what Lace said. “So you know what’s going on?” She asks, and earns a slight nod in response.
“I can’t explain it, not yet. Come with me?” Lace says, and Hornet silently takes her hand and lets herself be led back through Dirtmouth.
So some kind of plan is in motion and Lace was supposed to be involved. If she had to guess, Lace would have kept her occupied while the others did… whatever they’ve been trying to do all day. She isn’t sure how she would have reacted to today if she hadn’t been alone, but she’s certain it wouldn’t have been this.
Worst of all is Lace’s last comment, which keeps ringing in her mind for the entire walk. Lace hadn’t overslept at all. No, Hornet had woken up early to patrol Dirtmouth. If she had just stayed put, just slept a little longer… none of this might have happened.
At last they arrive at the communal house. Lace opens the door and motions for Hornet to enter, and with a moment of hesitation she does. Her thoughts run wild as she steps inside, at what could possibly be waiting for her here.
None of those thoughts come even close to the truth.
The moment she’s fully stepped inside, the lights turn on and she’s bombarded by just about everyone in Dirtmouth yelling “SURPRISE!” all at once. She recoils in shock, eyes going wide as they jump between all of the smiling faces.
She’s speechless. The best she manages to get out is a confused and surprised “Wh-what?”
Lace urges her forward a few more steps. “It’s a surprise party.” She says, but the words barely register, Hornet is still taking in everything around her.
A pile of boxes sit in one corner, and a tall cake sits on a table right in the center of the room. She can smell grilling meat, a smell she instantly recognizes as dirtcarver— her favorite food. And everyone is here, all crammed into the tiny community house most of town lives in.
All she can say once she’s finally taken it all in is: “Why?”
“Because you’ve been working so hard lately!” Cloth answers, and the rest of Dirtmouth chimes in as well. Comments about her effort, her dedication, and how much they all appreciate what she does.
The gifts are all for her, come from just about everyone in town, and she learns that they were being temporarily stored in Bretta’s house up until today. All of that weirdness with her and Zote sneaking around was an attempt to move them here without her noticing.
The dirtcarver is delicious, and freshly hunted as well. The God Tamer Xena and her friend Ercu had went down into Deepnest earlier than she’d awoken to find them.
And everyone else had been doing everything they could to make sure Hornet wouldn’t spoil the party, both by leaving Dirtmouth or seeing something she wasn’t supposed to. Tiso was stood in the center of town to warn others where Hornet was, and Lace was supposed to accompany Hornet through the day.
In all her time acting as Hallownest’s protector… she’s never been thanked before, the life she gave to this place and its people never appreciated. She doesn’t know how to react to this, doesn’t even know what to say.
What she does know though is that she’s not waking up earlier to patrol Dirtmouth ever again.