<hr/><div class="floatleft">(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/0/09/Lilah3.jpg)</div><br/><strong>Name:</strong>Lilah 'Li-Li' Oliver (https://elliquiy.com/forums/index.php?topic=200832.msg9813377#msg9813377)<br/><strong>Faction:</strong>not widely known<br/><strong>Date:</strong>May 22nd<br/><strong>Time of Day:</strong>mid-morning<br/><strong>Location:</strong>Sioux Camp<br/><strong>Tagged:</strong>whoever's watching<br/><hr/>It wasn't yet noon but the day was already warm and the sun a steady presence beating down on her shoulders as she approached the Sioux encampment. It was nothing like the high heat of summer, of course, but it was definitely a promise of things to come and a good reason to plan on being near some shade come the afternoon. Her pace was steady and her gait even and she reckoned from a distance her nerves looked calm enough though she was starting to feel some apprehension about her errand. All the stories she'd heard of the horrors the Sioux inflicted on their enemies flitted through her mind unbidden and she tried to banish each as quickly as it appeared, knowing that dwelling on such things would surely work away on her nerves. She wasn't there to start no trouble anyway so she knew the bigger concern was that there wasn't one single, solitary redskin in the world that had any reason at all to help her and she had nothing of real value to offer in return for the information she sought. Folks like to say injuns were savages, that they reacted to things like beasts and when all you had was logic, reason, and sense of purpose in your corner, it could be a mighty touch road to haul. Folks were were wrong about a lot of things though, she told herself, and wouldn't be dissuaded from at least the possibility of some cooperation from them simply because it was the right thing to do.<br/><br/>That was a  mighty thin branch to walk for anybody, no matter the color of their skin.<br/><br/>She couldn't shake the feeling she was being watched and it made her skin crawl and the sensation was growing stronger the closer she got to camp. She'd likely been watched for quite some time, she knew the Sioux were experts at remaining hidden when they wanted to, but she could practically feel the eyes in her back now though she knew if she turned around she'd see nothing and look like a greenhorn jumping at her shadow to boot. It was their right to watch her anyway, she figured, she was coming onto their ground and who was she? Aside from some kind of hostility breaking out, the worst outcome of course would be that they had no information to give or that they'd just treat her like a crazy woman and shoo her off. What would she do then if her efforts left her empty-handed, the most likely outcome? She had no idea where she would turn next.<br/><br/>She slowed and the stopped as she reached the edge of the camp, feeling like t would be bad matters to break the circle f shelters that had been erected. She stood silently for a moment, arms slightly away from her side to show she wasn't going to reach for anything, then awkwardly reached up and removed her hat -- maybe they knew enough about white culture to know it was meant to be a sign of respect -- and cleared her throat softly.<br/><br/>"My name is Lilah Oliver and I didn't come to make trouble," she said. She didn't holler, suspecting in the stillness there were ears close enough to hear, but she did pitch her voice to be heard. "I was hopin' to speak to somebody 'bout things beyond my ken. It's a matter that should concern us all."<br/>