It seems like it's a pretty simple case of an overlap in jurisdiction.
Gaia is the Goddess of Nature, and all things of Nature are contained
within Her realm. Twilight is the God of the Darkness, and all the Dark
is contained within His. So what do you do with something that is both
Dark and Nature?

Well, you *can* squabble over it, and hurl insults, and kill people, and
pound your chests, strutting around like a bantam rooster whose henhouse
has been threatened. That's one way of trying to deal with the
situation. Not a very productive way, or one that is conducive to
actually getting any work done, but it is one way.

Or you can try to work out a way of equitably dealing with the overlap.
First by acknowledging that it's *there*. BOTH Gaia and Twilight have a
claim to the Darkenwood, and it has nothing to do with who created what
or who was involved in which ceremonies. It has to do with the realms
upon which their very existence is built. Gaia IS Nature and Twilight IS
Dark. Thus you cannot escape the conclusion that the Darkenwood (it's
very *name* being a graphic demonstration) is an overlap of *both*
realms. Gaia and Twilight *both* have a legitimate claim to the
management of the Darkenwood.

The Darkenwood is forest. Plants thrive there. It burns, it can be
exterminated, and it is not isolated from the rest of the realm. Fires
started there can spread to other parts of the realm, and exterminations
allowed there can lead to exterminations in other parts of the realm.
Thus it becomes necessary to protect it from exterminations and fires,
for the sake of all nature in the realm, not just for its sake.

This has nothing to do with the Darkness of the forest there. This is a
simple fact of Nature. Thus, it would make sense that Oakstone would
have jurisdiction of patrolling the area on a regular basis. Oakstone
has the people and the resources, and the experience, to deal with such
things.

By the same token, the Dark aspect of the wood itself lends credence to
the idea that only those who follow Twilight and the Dark should have
access to the plants or groves contained therein.

Why can't there be an agreement? Druids who follow Twilight may imprint
in the Darkenwood, and Twilight's Druids and Sentinels may harvest
there. But Oakstone continues to cover patrolling for fires,
exterminations, and overharvests. Perhaps further agreement could be
reached as to where payments of fines might go.

And on a slightly more philosophical note...

I have never cared two figs for light versus dark or good versus evil,
or whatever words people are using for such a moral split. I care about
the forest. If someone walks through the forest without impinging on its
health, then they don't even register on my thoughts. I don't notice, I
don't care. It is only when the forest gets *harmed* that I care. Trying
to make this issue over some "dark versus light" thing, or trying to
claim that "oakstone hates the dark" is simply a red herring. I've been
around long enough to know that most of us don't care about light or
dark. Most of us have friends on both sides. What we care about, what we
have always cared about, is making sure that nature is protected. That's
why we're here.

In other words, it's people *actions*, what they've actually done, that
matters. There are plenty of people who follow the dark, who realize
that we all depend on nature for our survival. And I'm content with
calling them allies when it comes to fighting fires or defending the
forest. It is only the people who would actually harm the forest that I
ever have any real issue with, and they aren't all dark.

I consider myself sort of a shade of grey. Well.. maybe not grey, maybe
sort of a forest green. Yeah. I'm not dark, I'm not light, I'm forest
green.

Feverfew Nusiki

Penned by my hand on the 21st of Phaestian, in the year 302 AF.