<div align="center"><strong>Yukina</strong></div><div class="floatleft">(http://i.imgur.com/vhKOAa1.jpg)</div>Life felt oddly symmetrical the closer Yukina got to the edge of the Duskwood. She had been born in Haven, and it was on a day much like this one that she and her mother left it. The idyllic farms and orchards were far behind them past the thick wood on the road to the port town of Compromise. And beyond the sea, her ancestral homeland of Yamato. Now she was retracing the steps of that swift flight, and, like her mother, Yukina stopped by the shrines along the road. The shrines had seemed to not have changed much since Yukina last saw them. The Duskwood, even as well traveled as it was, still contain potent dangers beneath its great canopy; the occasioned prayer to deities of travel and civilization were free and didn't have to take very long--a small price to pay for a safe journey.<br/><br/>The shrines Yukina had come across thus far were varied as they were many, but most were adored with offerings, however token. Yukina usually did her best to travel light, the pack on her back containing the absolute necessities. At the other shrines she had simply prayed for safe roads and uneventful travel. But this shrine of Desna allowed her to do something more substantial. And when the butterfly graced the Ooagami Elite with its presence, how could she refuse? Butterflies were sacred to Desna--perhaps this was a good omen? From her pack, Yukina fished out her flint and tinder box. With both in hand, Yukina lit the candle upon the altar and knelt before it in silent prayer. The journey had been uneventful thus far; all Yukina wanted was for her luck to hold out just a little while longer.<br/><br/>Once done at the road-side shrine, Yukina snuffed out the candle with her fingers. She might have left it burning, but she decided to leave it for the next passing soul.<br/><br/>Yukina dressed for the road: a cloak wrapped around her kept her warm beneath the chilly Duskwood. Sturdy boots clad her feet, hose her legs. Her loose shirt was fitted large to help conceal the chain shirt she had on beneath. For someone hailing from the island nation of Yamato, Yukina would have easily been mistaken for a mainlander were it not for her complexion--and that was the idea, hers to be exact. When she had landed with the rest of the Yamato scouting party she ushered everyone into a tailor's shop to get them more suitable, less conspicuous clothing.<br/><br/>The other scouts went to investigate the North, while Yukina insisted that she alone go to Haven. That was five days ago, and soon she would be upon her childhood home.