[She was] the only beast I ever trusted with my secret thoughts.
Dirva was a very old female rat and the personal assistant and counselor of the Sable Quean, Vilaya. Unlike most vermin counselors, she was friendly and kind to the Quean, almost a mother figure. Vilaya was in turn somewhat kind to her, as well. They both became enemies of the Quean's commander Zwilt the Shade, who mocked her when their Dibbun prisoners escaped.
Soon after they found the tunnel the Dibbuns escaped through, the tunnel was split into two directions. Vilaya and some guards went one way, while Zwilt, Dirva and some guards went the other. Vilaya asked Dirva to spy on Zwilt. When she saw the Shade whispering with a female stoat called Gliv, Dirva went angrily up to the stoat and demanded an explanation. Though Gliv would not tell her what was going on, Dirva said she would keep an eye on her. That was when Gliv's mate, Lugg, lifted the old rat off of the ground, throttling her neck with one paw and blocking her nose and mouth with the other.
As it later turned out, Zwilt had ordered the pair to murder Dirva in such a way that there would be no marks to show how she died. However, after Vilaya found Dirva's body, she immediately knew who was responsible and vowed to kill Zwilt.