Sunbeam Lair And miles to go before I sleep

The swarms had come and gone, leaving behind the destruction of Teekon in their wake. The plant life had been reduced to nothing but broken twigs and barren branches, nothing that produced any waves of life detectable. Within crevices and smashed beneath rocks were the herbs she and her tribe had worked so hard to collect, but many of them had also fallen victim to the tiny chompers of the insects. Those that hadn't had been dried out and properly stored away, any locusts caught nearing their private space squashed or eaten. In some cases, the lingering pests still managed to reach the herbal caches and gnaw at the remains, but few seem interested in eating that which had already died—those picky, inconsiderate assholes. Nevertheless, the chieftess was not deterred, believing still that she and her followers would survive the hell that they'd been cast into. Their loyalty to one another would, surely, heighten their chances, for none would be assumed to have started hoarding meals for themselves.

It was along one of the small streams that she'd found herself wandering, eyeing the slow current and catching glimpses of the fish within it. She'd considered trying her luck at catching one, but was unfamiliar with the task. On the bank the girl had stationed herself, gazing down into the rippling water, until something drew to it her attention. It was but a whisper by the time it'd reached her, the caverns walls having reduced the echo to nearly nothing. Yet, still she'd managed to catch it, and towards the entrance of her home she'd gone. Her pace was even and not at all rushed, for she viewed no harm in testing the patience of visitors every now and again. Even when she'd spotted an unfamiliar being in the distance, her footfalls were not quickened, but upon the female did her silver eyes linger. Never did she look away, even after having grown close enough to speak. The only change following her arrival was that she'd started to observe the other, gazing upon her body and scanning it in silent consideration. After all, while she enjoyed the feeling that came with helping others, the present was not the time for her take in and nurse back to health someone that had been injured.

When the dragoness had decided then to speak, she'd looked to meet the woman’s gaze, offering a slight smile in greeting. "To some, perhaps, though here we are known as a tribe," the girl stated, answering one question verbally, while the other had since been responded to with her arrival there. "What might be your reasoning for seeking an audience with us?" The first thought could not always be the assumed truth, and so each time she asked, and each time she let their visitors disclose the cause behind their presence.