Ynglyfar

Though the youngest of the four hatchlings, Ynglyfar was quite enthusiastic about the digging. After all, it had been her idea! (Even if their eldest brother, honorary Bogsneak (aka Imperial), had acted like it was his.)

And she knew which way the storeroom was, despite the windings of the tunnels that the Scrublair's Ridgebacks had dug.

Therefore, she needed to do her best in order to keep everyone else on track!

Still, it was a lot of digging and they were Bogsneaks (and an Imperial), not Ridgebacks.

''This is a long tunnel,'' their eldest brother intoned. (He seemed incapable of speaking any other way. It was probably a fault of being hatched an Imperial.)

Ynglyfar considered the length. It was, in truth, about as long as a Bogsneak hatchling and a half, and as wide as two of them digging almost shoulder to shoulder. (She'd gotten them to trade off, so two dug at once, and the other two shoved against the top of the tunnel so it wouldn't collapse on them.)

''If you want to rest,'' she said doubtfully, ''I suppose you can. But shiny-brother is right. They're gonna send someone in.''

With a sigh, their eldest brother intoned, ''I will dig.'' He eeled to the front, letting Ynglyfar go to the back and start shoving the walls and ceiling more firmly together. As the tunnel was inclined down, slightly, all their wonderful mud was slipping down with them. Which was good for squishiness, but not so good for progress digging.

From the entry to the cave, a voice called, ''Ah, my dear hatchlings?''

There was a chorus of ''uh-oh'' from Ynglyfar's brothers, who all started trying to dig faster.

Ynglyfar didn't smack a foreclaw over her forehead, because that would be a good way to get mud in the eyes, and nictitating membranes could only protect from so much. Instead, she hissed, ''Keep trying!''

Then she turned and flop-bound-squished through the muddy floor towards the amber-gleaming Imperial who was in the cave's archway, whose deep brown circuitry-markings matched her own. In her highest voice, Ynglyfar squealed, ''DADDY!'' and flung her muddy self into the base of his neck for a muddy, sticky hug.

Gingerly, Sunbright hugged his youngest daughter back, ears canted in unspeakable emotions at the squishy bundle of mucky joy. ''Uh, maybe it's bath time for... for all of us?'' he ventured. Adorably, Ynglyfar said, ''Tell me about baaaaaaths, Daddy!'' In their corner, their father diverted from dragging them off to whatever a 'bath' was, her brothers continued to dig.