Unfamiliar: Obi x OC snow white with the red hair fanfiction

14

Cress's POV

"Oh, you're coming along?" Obi sounds surprised when I appear in front of him and the others. "Don't you need to sleep?"

I pout slightly. "Everyone's so insistent on that- I don't see the big deal." I glance at Zen, who's mounting his horse. "Besides, Zen told me I could come and that I could sleep afterwards."

"Really?" Kiki stares at Zen.

Zen shrugs. "It's her first job of her trial period. I want her to get some experience before I decide she can have an official title."

"Alright, then, let's go." Zen starts to move.

"Wait," I suddenly call him back. "Why don't I get a horse?"

"Well, we didn't think you'd be coming along, so we only prepared four horses." Mitsuhide scratches his head apologetically. 

Kiki gestures toward Obi. "You can ride on his horse."

"Yeah, Blue, I'd gladly give you a ride." Obi grins at me annoyingly, and I roll my eyes.

I shake my head. "No thanks, I'd rather walk."

"You sure you can keep up with the horses?" Zen frowns. "We're not going to slow down for you, you know."

"Yeah, I'm sure." I answer with a determined voice. "Don't underestimate me."

***

I dart from tree branch to tree branch, making sure to keep my eyes on the horses of my comrades nearby. I am keeping up with them, indeed, and I even pass ahead of them from time to time. 

"Stop," Zen whispers, and the horses stop. I stand still on my tree branch. "Listen," the prince says, and we all remain silent as we listen to several voices talking loudly about how they fooled the soldiers at the fort with the poisoned wood. Those must be the bandits. How bold of them to stay around this area after what they did. I flex my fingers, reaching for my dagger.

"Now," Zen says, and we walk calmly through the bushes to a clearing under an overhanging rock. "Thank you for you confession," Zen says loudly, causing the bandits to turn around and look at us. There's about a dozen of them, maybe one or two more. 

"Who the hell are you?" One of them grabs a sword and waves it at us.

Zen grabs the handle of his own sword, but doesn't pull it yet. "We're soldiers representing the crown."

"Soldiers? Ha, we're supposed to believe you five are soldiers?" The bandit squints at me and Kiki. "Look, boys! They even brought ladies to the party! How incompetent they must be-"

"Silence!" Zen hisses, his grip tightening on his sword. "I will not allow you to insult anyone here?"

"Oh yeah, what are you going to do about it?" Another man mocks Zen, taking a sip of liquor from a bottle. But before he puts the bottle down, Zen draws his sword, and with a clang, cuts the bottle in half.

Zen holds the sword out in front of him, pointing it toward the bandits. "Instead of that, you should be asking why I'm taking your theft personally. Why am I so angry? Who must we be that we have no fear of you?" He pauses for breath, his blue eyes shining with decision. "You ask what I'm going to do? I'm going to be the kind of person she can rely. Someone she'll never want to walk away from."

Ah. He's talking about Shirayuki. I realize. Everyone except the bandits knows.

"What the hell are you talking about?" The closest guy finally yells, charging forward with his sword in hand. As he clashes with Zen, the rest of us fall into battle as well.