She frowned, squinting at him for a few moments. Though, after another inspection, Snow White could tell that he was not lying. It only made her more curious as to why he was here, but she supposed that the question would be answered soon.
The black-haired girl hesitated before slowly lowering the knife, wincing slightly as she did so. By accident she had grabbed her dagger with her wounded hand, and she hadnāt had time to bandage it when Loki appeared. She quickly switched the dagger to her left hand; and though it felt strange at least she wasnāt making the wound on her hand worse. Her eyes widened at his name. He had heard of him-he was in one of the many tales her father spoke of, one of the tales that she remembered, though the memory wasnāt clear. But his name revive the memory-or at least enough of it to know who he was. āWhat is a Norse god doing in Tabor? Unless you havenāt been to other kingdoms, this place is not exactly the best place to be now.ā She said, and though her voice never lost its edge the curiosity tinted her cautious tone. Her body never seemed relaxed-her whole being seemed tense, those green eyes the color of a new leaf on a young tree expressionless and looking in all directions. At his question, she straightened and said, āI am Snow White, Princess of Tabor, though that title means nothing here. I am a fugitive in my stepmothers kingdom. What has brought you here to this unfortunate place?ā
Loki watched as she lowered her weapon against him, noticing the large open wound on her palm. āNot here to harm you, truthfully. I am not here for any particular reason actually. You see I was attempting to use my magic to teleport myself from one place to another but I ended up here instead of where I wanted to be. My magic is very limited to me as of recent because of this,ā he told her, holding up his arm and showing her the black leather bracelet around his wrist.
āI am rather declawed at the moment, you do not have much to worry about from me,ā he told her, though he knew that was rather misleading. Of course he still had the strength of a god and the intelligence, but she did not need to know that.
She nodded slowly. When he mentioned magic she grew even more suspicious of him; Queen Ravenna used her dark magic to harm others-what if this man did the same? However, she would give him a chance to see if he was a friend and not a foe. It was only fair, wasnāt it?
Cautiously, she stepped forward and inspected the leather bracelet. It seemed to be a normal bracelet to her, but his story seemed to be right anyway. After all, he was dressed strangely and had appeared out of no-where. Her green eyes studied the bracelet carefully before she sighed and turned towards him.Ā
āI believe you, Loki. It is rather hard to believe, but I know you are telling the truth. If this is your first time in Tabor, you should know that this forest is not the safest place. I can help you at least out of the forest and away from the huntsmen if you want me too-I do not think I can bear with the thought of just leaving you here.ā She said this only because leaving his here would be like condemning him to death. A traveler like himself was likely to get caught and taken to the Queen, and Snow White knew that she would not stand for any more deaths in her fatherās kingdom.
Loki stayed still as she inspected the bracelet he had. There was really nothing special about its appearance, it was only black in color and had a few indents and designs in the leather. He smiled as the girl back away and seemed to accept his story.
Loki took a moment to look around as she explained different things of the forest and of her own situation. Of course, he had no idea who any of the people were, but he only put them into two categories: avoid and ignore. āYou do not have to help me, I will be fine on my own, however I do not know anything about the terrain or where I am to go, perhaps with that, you may help me?ā he asked her, returning his hand to his side and looking her in the eyes.
Snow White eyed him curiously. He was confident enough to walk though this forest alone? Clearly he did not know about Tabor, but it was no matter now. Hopefully he was wise enough to avoid the huntsmen, and if he was caught to at least come up with a good lie so he didn't die at the hand of the Queen.
"The terrain here varies with the different areas. Mainly you must avoid the large patches of what look like small dried plants-those plants release some sort of pollen that leaves people who inhale it with strange visions and a terrible headache and a ringing sound in the ears that stays there until you succumb to unconsciousness or even death. The area is rather large, so try to stick to some direction and find your way out. There are...the queen's men after me, so if they spot your or, God forbid, capture you, try to..."
Her instructions were cut off by the sound of rusting very close to them. Immediately she turned, her dagger once again clutched in her wounded hand. "The forest is a dangerous place, but not nearly as dangerous as a huntsman or the queen. If you are to try and escape this place, I would suggest to do itĀ now." She stepped in front of him to protect him from the huntsman that was clearly hiding in the trees.
A moment later the outline of the burly man could be seen, axe drawn, and Snow White raised her dagger, ready to fight.
