The truth. People always asked for it as if it was the easiest thing in the world to deliver, as if one was supposed to just blurt it out without concern over repercussions or consequences. The truth was that Lorelei didn't know this swordswoman that stood before her. Currently there was no clear intention in those wintry blue eyes to pin Lorelei to the wall with her blade, but that alone didn't account for all that much given her initial readiness to give chase and the fervor during their flight through Radasanth streets. She could still be one of Dolgen's lackeys, or even a member of the City Guard, presently out of official uniform but still obligated to protect the denizens of Radasanth and uphold the city law. And if she was either, there was still a possibility that her pursuer was merely trying to get more information before pinning the crime on Lorelei. Needless to say, the sorceress was reluctant to spill the beans, scarce as they truly were.

“Are you with the City Watch?” she asked in between sniffles, precariously approaching her dropped satchel and lowering herself to one knee. The leather thong that usually held it closed had gotten untied at impact and some of her belongings were scattered in the surrounding trash. Lorelei fished her items from the pungent litter, hey eyes constantly shifting between the woman above and her things as she stuffed them back in her pack.

“I don't see how that's of any importance right now,” her armored pursuer said, hands on her hips now as her frowning eyes observed the quarry.

“He said that the guards wouldn't believe me even if I went to them. Said they'd sooner believe his filthy lies.” This last word was delivered with considerable venom as Lorelei returned a dented water flask to her satchel with considerable force. Several other knickknacks she threw in without much thought as well – a pair of leather hair ties, a jagged piece of flint. But when she came upon a threadbare piece of dun cloth that might've been blue once, she picked it up carefully and after a quick shake to rid it of the trash sticking to it, she folded it and found a place for it in a separate compartment of the bag.

“Who said that?” the taller woman demanded. Standing back up to her eye level with the satchel back on her shoulder, Lorelei found it hard to get any clue on the face of the black-haired woman. Whatever thoughts ran beyond those piercing eyes, they seemed forbidden from coming to the front.

“Dolgen. The owner of the shop I...uh, blew up,” Lorelei said. Though there was nothing comical about her current situation – indeed, chances were still great that this woman would insist of bringing her to the authorities – Lorelei couldn't prevent a minuscule smirk from creeping to the edge of her lips. She had never been a particularly belligerent soul, and while she had scarcely had the time to reflect upon it at the time, but by the Thaynes seeing that room implode made her feel good. No, good was perhaps not the right word. Righteous seemed more fitting. She reckoned that was how her father had felt all those times he brought down criminals or saved damsels in distress. The memory of her father combined with the fresher one of Dolgen flying though the air as his shop collapsed chased some of the confusion from Lorelei and replaced them with somewhat higher spirits.

“I see. Well, I'm not with the Watch. So why don't you tell me what's really going on?” her pursuer said.

“Then why did you chase me? Just happened to be there and decided to play the hero?” Lorelei allowed herself a bit of gumption, trying to turn the tables of the interrogation. The stronger woman dismissed her attempt momentarily, the hard look in her eyes only growing harder.

“I'm the one asking the questions here. So tell the truth. Now!”

“Very well. I wanted to buy something from Dolgen, but he tried to trick me, so I exploded his shop and ran away. Is that good enough?” Lorelei quick-fired the words at her captor, offering the very thinnest of nutshells. She knew her explanation was far from satisfactory and was certain that this woman would ask for more, but now that the sword was sheathed and no immediate threat loomed over Lorelei's life, she felt some of that Ravenheart defiance reassert itself.

All she got in response was a tired sigh and a long blink as her pursuer held back her annoyance. “You're testing my patience, girl. Specifics.”

Lorelei took a deep breath and exhaled audibly through her nose and threw her hands up again. “Fine,” she finally surrendered. Obviously there was no getting out of this mess without telling at least a portion of her tale. Looking around briefly, she found a relatively clean barrel with a firm lid on which she planted her behind. The other woman didn't follow suit. The most comfort she allowed herself was leaning her shoulder on the nearby wall.

“I've been scouring the local shops for a magical item...”

“A magical item,” the swordswoman's tone was clearly dissatisfied with this general description.

“Fine. It was purple magicyte,” Lorelei said after another weary exhale.

“Magicyte?” The word finally broke the stony visage of the raven-haired warrior, making her raise an eyebrow. “That's potent stuff. Dangerous too, from what I know of it.”

“Lady, swords are dangerous as well, and yet they sell them to just about anyone.” The teenager didn't necessarily mean it as a direct jab at the person questioning her – her aversion to the ridiculous ease of access to things that ended human lives was more general in nature – but given the current situation it could certainly be considered as a slight.

“Swords don't have the potential to kill hundreds of people in a matter of seconds,” came the brusque retort.

“Sure they do. You just need more of them,” Lorelei said. “Look, be that as it may, magicyte isn't illegal as far as I know. And I didn't try to acquire it through a shady deal. Dolgen said that if I came around today, he'd have some in shop. But when I came around he tried to sell me some cheap crystals painted purple. And when I called him out on it, he put a knife to my back. Look!”

Rotating her upper torso while still seated, Lorelei offered her back to the woman, presenting the rip in her robes that Dolgen's blade made. For a brief moment she could hear no motion, but after several second passed she could feel the rough texture of the gloves passing over her spine. Despite being fairly certain there was probably no harm to come from this woman, her touch combined with the memory of those seconds when her life hung on the greed of one man made the sorceress shiver.

“I panicked,” she finally said once inspection was done. “I panicked and I lashed out as hard as I could, hoping to get him away from me. And it worked. Worked better than I expected, to be honest. And seeing that Dolgen wasn't too pleased with how well it worked, I ran before I got in even more trouble.”

The silence filled with measuring gazes ensued. Again Lorelei could read nothing in those eyes of a perched hawk that observed her with eerie neutrality. The teenager tried to replicate it, turn this whole contest in a battle of wills, but with so much happening in such a short time span, with her heart still beating at an accelerated pace and the flashes of moments from very near past where her life hanged by a thread, she was unable to keep calm.

“So what are you going to do to me?” Lorelei asked.

“Why do you need purple magicyte anyways?” the sword-wielding maiden asked her.

Lorelei allowed another one of those minuscule smirks. “I just really like it's color.”