The stray leaves of the colossal spindles rustled under the stranger's soft, feathery paddling :
A now shredded, long and colorful dress stood out of the female's appearance as it occasionally kissed her milk-white skin, making it harder and harder to walk past the trees' plump, twisted roots.
Her maroon, off-shoulder top was left clutching her figure for dear life, as blazing, loose curls flowed wildly, only finding ending their course near the girl's lower back.
A lot of questions flooded the young woman's psyche. After all these years she still couldn't figure it out. She wasn't able to put her finger on either the cause of this lunacy situation or why, out of the blue, she was the only one that weighed nothing more than a disgrace to human kind.
Was that a phenomenon compassed by her ancestors? Maybe her parents played an unwittingly role in this calamity.
Her parents ... The people she never got to meet yet she held in her heart so dearly ...
Then, all of a sudden, the redhead - also known under the name of Rin Mansken – snapped right back from her train of thoughts, diving once again into the deep, cruel influx of reality.
She cupped her sides in both fear and awareness as bright azure orbs rose from the forest's pathway only to be met with a jade death stare, causing the nineteen year old to immediately recognize the danger towering above her:
Damian Ashworth, Rin's natal village's most skilled hunter, supposed practitioner of the old Irish tradition, witch hunting.
Not missing the only opening she could benefited of at the moment, the redhead let her reflexes take over her being. In one swift movement, her feet detached themselves from the slippery ground, ducking while successfully dodging the six feet man in front of her; although it's not like one of the best huntsman in Ireland would ever give up that easily, is it?
The young adult's smirk only grew wider and wider as his gaze followed the colorful remains of the so called witch's robe that started to fade more and more into the green depth of the arbores neighboring his range of vision. Letting go of the smirk that previously took over his facial features, Damian too, took off into the darkness of the forest.
Mere minutes passed and, owing to the man's both well built figure and incredible sharp perception, not only did he easily recover the lost ground, but also anticipated and followed an alternative route in order to catch his prey off guard; stealthily and cautiously he proceeded in hiding in the most secluded place he could think of – in the wake of a lichen covered tree trunk.
As the hunter promptly adjusted himself in order to be able to successfully identify Rin's fragile frame, the girl herself rose up from behind a leafy bunch of the wild bushes blooming all over the forest's territory.
The same menacing and lusting grin from earlier contortioned Damian's aspect: brows deliberately knitting, while the young man's right gloved hand progressed in getting the hoodie of his short leather coat over his ebony curls, action which only accentuated the huntsman's verdant pupils and sharp, stubble covered jaw line. He reconstituted the image of nothing other than a fierce wolf hunting for its forlorn prey.
Step by step, Rin unknowingly approached the impending danger she faced plain minutes ago. Anxious yet vigilant, the girl wasn't able to distinguish Damian's presence in good time and, as a consequence, the said individual got his chance in caging the frail being in his sturdy arms performing nothing more than a swift movement by dint of his skillful and athletic limbs.
A terrified look now ghosted the young woman's features. In exchange, the lurking hunter's dull expression didn't even display any feeling anymore. His eyes looked almost ... empty, mouth ajar and breathing slowly, yet not making the mistake of loosening the grip on his prey's forearms. In her turn, Rin did nothing more than to face the young man in a doubting demeanor.
She knew his intentions
Why is he hesitating now out of all times? Was he not satisfied with the velocity of their prosecution? Or maybe, to him, this was nothing more than an atrocious act? ... Either way, given the circumstances, one thing the female was aware of was the dangerous situation she finally thrived to get herself into.
Eventually, after gathering the courage required, the woman's soft chirp rang in thin air:
"What are you waiting for?"
Her timbre audibly trying to imply a mix of calmness and coherence, but unfortunately failing miserably under the hints of trembling and stuttering in her voice
Damian, on the other hand, was undoubtedly taken aback. He found himself unable to recall the last time his being hearkened such a melodious tonality ever in his life. Gradually, the taller male loosened his grip, stopping only after both his calloused hands clasped Rin's vulnerable ones; Still, he refused to let the fairy-like figure rising in front of him go out his inquisitive eyesight.
Taking a second look, the so called "witch" he was bound to imprison didn't only seem to be one of the most beautiful girls he had ever encountered, but in his analytical perspective, the "threat" so many people have come to despise with all their being is nothing much than a scared, astray nineteen year old girl. What were the rumors people implied all these years and up to now?
'Wicked hoaxes ...' - the emerald eyed huntsman thought in disregard - 'She's nothing more than an innocent and simple girl' - the man continued, absently taking in all of Rin's definitive features.
On the girl's side, unfortunately, Damian's actions seemed to be nothing but pure anxiety triggers taking in consideration the circumstances these two found themselves in. Now though, it was only thankful to the same male's sharp instincts that he quickly unmasked the said emotions.
Releasing the restraint around her wrists slowly while also mouthing his heartfelt apologies, the man proceeded in making sure to obtain the woman's full trust by getting rid of all the dangerous weapons he conveyed on his back and around his waist.
Firstly, the young woman was left as confused as a she could get, thinking at nothing but finding a quick escape route; after taking a moment and actually taking in Damian's smiling facial expression, she was, after all, more than sure the young adult – now meekly kneeling in front of her – did certainly not represent a threat anymore.
What Rin didn't comprehend though was an actual wonder for anyone possibly attending the setting: Why and how did the man give up so easily?
Minutes after our girl trying to think of an at least relevant answer, matching the question in cause, the huntsman found himself speaking once again, this time as a warning. A simple guidance advice, as we can see it.
He had the pure heart to save the flaming beauty dazzlingly wandering the enchanted forest's boundaries. He addressed her about the other people – the people mercilessly raiding the arbores in aim of capturing the undying flame that rose proudly in front of him – the same individuals that also chained Damian's apprehension and deceived him into taking part in this hypothetical witch hunting ancient foolishness; the absurdity that nearly fooled him into taking away Rin's most desired aspiration
Her freedom
As the said people's faint, menacing voices could now be slightly heard haunting the eternal-living woodland's silence, the slightly older man didn't waste any more time thinking about his future actions.
And so, by getting up from the muddy surface and gently grabbing both a confused Rin and his scattered away weapons, Damian hurriedly made his way into the depth of the woods, not caring about anything else than the moon-eyed woman clinging onto his forearm.
