Whitebark Stream conflict of interest

@Kaori -- for Daylily and Kaori to swap stories of lore and religious belief.

Daylily was a bit of a worrier, if she had to admit it to herself. While she was very excited about Whitebark Stream and all it had to offer as a pack, she was worried sometimes that, with so many members all joining at once, perhaps there would be some kind of conflict of interest. Was anyone from the mountain group angry at having to leave their original territory, the one they had claimed before Bhediya had decided to move them? Would someone want to challenge Dawn for leadership? Daylily wandered through the trees, lost in thought, as she contemplated all of this. Perhaps she would do some kind of spell or perform a ritual later to try and ease any potential uneasiness within the pack. She just wanted everything to start off on the right foot.

Whilst anger did not linger, disappointment was able to take hold and feed off its host—a parasite, truly, causing the girl to worry. She worried about what her mother might think, should she ever leave the Draconid Tribe again and seek out her daughter. She worried, too, if the right choice was made by leaving the lair behind. There would always be something about that place, a calling to return; whether or not it may ever be answered, even Kaori was not yet certain. But in the meantime, she explored the new territory as she could.

Drawn beneath the cover of the trees, the dragoness was not on her own for long. Footfalls told her of another approaching, light, and she refrained from steering herself in another direction. Rather, she met the female head-on, poised and curious but silent—watchful, wondering to herself what the other may be up to.

Daylily was so lost in thought—something that happened to her quite often—that she hardly noticed the other woman until she’d nearly run into her. “Oh!” she said, startled, and looked up into a dark face. Though this woman had black fur, the opposite of Artyom’s, she couldn’t help but remember that this was almost exactly how she had met the man. “I-I’m sorry!” she said. “I was… thinking. I…” She shook her head, and then dipped it in greeting. “I’m Daylily. Daylily of Oakstead,” she said, by way of greeting. “I… have a tendency to not watch where I’m going, I suppose.” She scrunched her eyebrows in worry. She’d have to try and squash that habit quickly or she might walk herself right off a cliff one day.

Thankfully, whilst the other was lost in thought, Kaori was paying careful attention to her surroundings. As the girl continued to edge closer, the dragoness retreated several steps, avoiding contact. And once the other came to her senses, clearly startled, she offered a gentle, apologetic smile. “I did not mean to frighten you,” she assured her. “You do not need to apologise.” After all, she did not make her approach known through verbal means—she wrongfully assumed she would be spotted sooner.

Their near-collision aside, the female returned the introduction: “I am Kaori Draconid.” Perhaps the only Draconid to still reside within these lands. “It is nice to meet you, Daylily.” Another smile, once friendly, turned into one derived from amusement. “It is alright. I used to do the same,” she told her. She could remember several times in her youth where she nearly—and in some cases, did—ran right into someone else. Eventually, the embarrassment of such events, coupled with maturity brought on by age, ended that chapter of her life; she could only assume that the other female would eventually grow out of it, too.

Daylily breathed a sigh of relief when Kaori seemed to get over almost being run into so quickly. She promised herself quietly, though, that she would pay attention from now on, and that if she wanted to go off on a daydream that she would simply sit down. “Y-you said your last name is Draconid?” she asked, trying to think of something to talk about now that she’d nearly run into the woman. “That’s an interesting last name. Dragon.” Stories of dragons and other mythological creatures had been common in her family pack of Oakstead, so she knew what the word draconid was referring to. She’d never heard of anyone named after a dragon, though. The idea seemed exciting!

Daylily and Kaori spoke for a little while longer, and then went their separate ways.