The divide between the Greenwoods and the Darkwoods had been in place for centuries, the product of centuries more of bloody warfare. Krynn had read her fair share of historical tomes, detailing the violent border skirmishes between the various denizens of the forest, eventually culminating in the great alliance of fey, sprites, wood elves, and several others. The books called the subsequent campaign a war of good versus evil, in which the drow, goblins, and other darker-natured races were pushed back from the territories they had taken, back into the thorny hollows, dark caverns, and putrid swamps they had come from. When the dust settled, the casualties numbered in the hundreds on both sides, but the borders had finally been drawn. To cross that line was to re-ignite a war that had simmered dormant for ages. There was the occasional border skirmish, of course, but for the past several years, life in the Greenwoods had been free of strife.<br/><br/>It could mean nothing good, then, that a little sprite had begun making a habit out of stealing into the Darkwoods. Her intentions were nothing sinister, only to study the flora and fauna that existed there, but that didn't negate the fact that her little excursions were dangerous. To be caught trespassing by one of the Darkwoods folk, she knew, would almost certainly mean death.<br/><br/>In that case, surely all she had to do was<i>not get caught.<br/>
</i><br/>The moonlight filtered down through the branches as she traveled down the path, twisted and moss-covered trees to either side of her. There was a purposeful air to her hurried stride, and though she knew better than to let down her guard in a place like this, she couldn't stop the wave of excitement that bubbled deep within her. For the past several weeks, she had been studying the differences between the ambient magic of the two realms, and tonight her experiments would finally bear fruit. To any magically-attuned being, there was no denying that the two kingdoms had a distinct difference in "feel", but was it due to the creatures that lived here, or did the land itself influence it? That was the question she had set out to answer, weaving spells into several copper charms and leaving them in the Darkwoods to passively gather the magic around them. With these samples, she'd be able to study the magic of the Darkwoods from the safety of her own home, rather than risk venturing out every night.<br/><br/>Peering around a tree cautiously, she stepped from the path into the underbrush, until it gave way to an open clearing ringing an ancient oak tree. The sprite grinned, approaching the tree and kneeling by its roots, absentmindedly brushing a strand of malachite hair from her eyes. The charm was hidden by another spell, cloaking it from any passerby--she'd have to dispel that before she could collect her prize.<br/><br/>Krynn let out a breath, then shut her eyes and focused, a glow spiderwebbing out from her hands as she worked to untangle the magical camouflage she had created. Engrossed in her task, she momentarily failed to stay alert to her surroundings, but nobody ever passed by this area anyway. With any luck, she'd be finished here and on to collect the next charm in a few minutes.