Hello Fan’s Ore-samma here!
So another one done from this forum post = One-shot requests (6) SPECIAL EDITION | Fandom
A Guide for an Ant arachne how to survire in Giant ant nest.
This one was a perfect story to write as a prequel to another Ant Arachne one-shot I did.
Here is the sequel as a part two = PART 2
What a wonderful story to write, and such an interesting premise!
Ever your Servant-
Ore-samma
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I flipped through the guide book my mother gave me, How to survive in a Giant Ant nest! to the chapter that detailed how to get into the nest in the first place!
Chapter 4
The first thing you must do when you find the giant ant nest is to find the place where they put their towels for washing! Their scent will be all over it, and when you get a few towels, you will need to rub their scent all over you so they won’t immediately detect that you’re different than them!
I skittered about and looked. The Ant nest was near a river, so where was- Ah ha!
“Got you!” I cheered as I snatched a few sweat soaked towels and started to rub it all over my body.
“Pew! What an aroma!” I muttered. It wasn’t as if they smelled bad- it was their aroma was almost overwhelming!
I looked at the book and noticed a subsection of the chapter.
Do note; Ant Sweat is very pungent and aromatic! It will take at least a few days to get used to, so don’t walk around inside their tunnels with a look of disgust on your face, hide your disgust with a tired smile! Smear a little dirt on your face, and you’ll fit right in!
I sighed, and dusted my face and clothes with dirt and held my stomach as it growled and roared. It had been almost a week since I ate last, and I needed to find a way inside and into their food larders or I was a goner!
I looked to the next chapter.
Chapter 5
It is almost guaranteed that you will feel like the world's biggest imposter! That is the normal reaction. But trust me! As long as you are pretending you fit in, you will! Go in, and start following the smell of food! But be warned! The Larders are always occupied early in the morning and when the sunsets. The Ants will get breakfast, and enough for lunch, then when they return they will be hungry for dinner. You must not enter, or be in the Larder during these times!
“Okay….okay-okay-okay-okay.” I huffed as I walked in with all the confidence I could muster as I ducked my head and entered the nest past two guards who smiled at me with a head nod.
My eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness and I followed it to a simple wooden door and quickly went inside.
“Food!” I whispered in tears, as I looked at the rich bounty before me and started to gorge myself on venison and bread, washing it down with watermelon juice from a barrel.
At last I was full and hid in a sheltered spot near sacks of grain and looked at the next chapter.
Chapter 6
Now that you’re in the next and your belly is full, you’re going to need a place to stay! It is guaranteed that every burrow in the nest will be occupied, so you will need to do some exploring and find a spot where you can have your own burrow that you can get an Ant to dig for you!
This is how you do it- you find a shovel that is broken- don’t worry there are plenty of them. Make a large cut or gouge in the tunnel wall you want your burrow and leave the shovel there. The ants won't be able to resist digging out the gouge and make the wall smooth again. Keep repeating this process, and before long you will have you own small burrow.
Be sure to mark the burrow with your own version of the Giant Ant smell by mixing their sweat with your venom!
With a full belly and renewed confidence, I skittered about and was able to get a few broken shovels and mapped a perfect under-used tunnel and gave it a large cut with the shovel and skittered away.
Several days passed with me napping in the Larder every afternoon and late night, and seeing my little burrow being formed out.
At last it was deep enough that I quickly took it over with my venom and ant scent and was able to add a few bits of finery with my silk and I at last felt at ease enough to look over the final chapter.
Chapter 7
By now you should have your burrow, a steady supply of food, and have already learned the routines of the Ants!
The last thing you must take care of, is to not get too confident! If the Ants ever discover who you are, they will put you to work as a maid or right alongside them.
Keep your humility, remember the Ants are gracious enough to supply you with food, shelter, and protection. Don’t be greedy, and smile, be polite, and before long, you might be able to catch a man for yourself. Remember what this book taught you, and pass it along!
“And how!” I said with a happy tone as I left the Larder and-
“Ooof!”
And ran right into a young Ant who was getting a late-night snack.
“Hello? My name is Miley! Who are you?”
“Hello Miley! My name is Joanne!”
Miley looked at me strangely and rubbed her chin, “What wing are you part of, Joanne. I’ve never seen you here before.”
“Fourth wing.” I said with a smile, feeling my insides thunder with fear.
Miley shook her head. “You are not an Ant! You are an Arachne!” She cried out her face now carrying a strange expression.
I gulped and almost ran away when Miley smiled and took my hands.
“Oh! Oh! Do you have silk? I ripped my dress the other day! Could you please make me a dress?”
I felt numb as my head nodded on its own accord. “Um, well- this way.” I whispered as I skittered to my burrow.
“OH! So this is your burrow?” Miley said, looking around. “I wondered who lived here! I was about to claim this burrow since I was the one who dug almost all of it out, then one day I smelled that someone claimed it. That was you?”
I scratched the back of my head and gave a nervous chuckle. “Well, you know...um, you could stay here too, you know!” I said with a small laugh, and a prang of guilt. “And...lemme make you that dress!” I added quickly, and wove a dress at top speed.
“Wow! It looks so pretty!” Miley said with a smile, looking at me. “Thank you for sharing the burrow! You’re really nice!”
I nodded and patted Miley’s head and quickly wove her a bed made from silks and sticks I have been saving and placed it on the other side of the sleeping part of the burrow. “Here, and a bed!”
Miley crawled into the bed and smiled. “Can you tell me a story?”
“A story?” I rubbed my chin and started to tell a nonsense story I heard my father tell me when I was young. Miley seemed enthralled by it all. Soon, she fell asleep….but I laid awake, wondering what would happen to me tomorrow….the thought of working like these Ants made me shiver a little from fear and the thought of working till exhaustion.
(later)
I gulped as I heard the Ants returning, wondering if Miley would come back alone, or with a few of her sisters to expose me to everyone else.
“Joanne!” Miley cried out as she entered the burrow. “She wiped her sweat and handed me the towel, “I’ve seen you take used towels before, so you can have mine!” She held up a watermelon. “And I got you a watermelon for dinner! Could you tell me another story tonight?”
“Um, Miley? You didn’t tell anyone about me?”
Miley shook her head.
“Uh, not that I am ungrateful, but….why not?”
Miley shrugged. “I like you! I can work for the both of us, and you can tell me stories and give me dresses when they tear or wear out! That arrangement will be fine by me!” She hugged me. “If I tell on you, they will either make you go away, or make you work so hard that you will run away like the other one did.” She gave me a double wink. “I like you! I want you to stay! So I won’t tell them!”
I exhaled a breath of relief and smiled as I shared the watermelon with Miley.
Later, I told her a story as she fell asleep and opened the book and added a line that would serve any Ant Arachne well.
Chapter 8
You can’t account for everything that may or may not happen. So, it is always best if you can find some way to make a friend!
Barring that- learn the lingo and dialect the ants speak. They may ask you a question that will identify you as an intruder if you don’t know what to say.
I closed the book and kissed Miley’s forehead and went to sleep, with a deep sigh of contentment.