The carriage took Katja right back to her front door and as soon as she stepped onto the ground, it disappeared, the only reminder of her wonderful night. She quietly opened the door, since her sister may still be sleeping, and stepped inside, taking her weapons that she left by the door and entered her shared room with her sister, taking off her clothes from the night before and changing into her normal attire, which consisted of dark green and brown tunics, leggings, boots, and a cloak. Something twinkled out of her dress pocket and onto the ground, making a pure and light ding. Katja worried that her sister may have woken up, but Ingenbjorn was still sleeping on the other side of the room, her loud snores drowning out the crickets that played outside. Katja bent down to observe what had fallen and she remembered that it was what Prince Charming gave her. A golden ring, in the shape of a snake, whose tail coiled around her finger, its eyes, emeralds. On the inside was engraved: to do a great right, do a little wrong. Katja recognized the line, Shakespeare's Merchant of Venice. She tried it on her fingers but found that it only fit on her ring finger. She slipped it onto her right hand, for she could get blisters from holding her bow if it were on her left. She admired it for a while, before falling asleep, thinking of the best night of her life and her prince charming.

++++++

When Katja woke up, she could hear her hungover father's groans. She slipped on her arm guard that she made herself out of deer hide, strapped on her daggers around her waist, and slung her bow and quiver over her shoulder. Looking over, she saw that Ingenbjorn was still sleeping and thanked Valhalla. She peeked into the living room and saw her father whining, his head buried in his arms that lay on the table where the invitation was not a day before. She reached into the room to open a cabinet when its hinges creaked. Orvar's head snapped up and he glared at her, and then his eyes shifted toward her hand. Katja immediately let go of the cabinet, hiding her right hand behind her. He walked over to where Ingenbjorn keeps the knives, and Katja was surprised that he knew where they were, considering how little time he spends in the kitchen. He grabs a carving knife, the same one that Ingenbjorn uses when she makes fowl. He held it tightly in his fist, knuckles going white.

"Father, what are you doing with that knife?" Katja asked nervously, her father rarely made good decisions while sober, and he made especially terrible ones while hungover.

"I'll put it away as soon as you tell me where you got that ring." He growled. Katja shifted her stance, hiding her right arm behind her, keeping her left shoulder in line with her father's right side, knees bent, shoulder length apart; she was in her defensive position, mastered through years of fending off wild predators.

"I found it while hunting." The two circled around the room, never breaking eye contact.

"Liar!" Orvar yelled as he lunged towards his daughter. She dodged his attack and placed herself behind the table. She did not want to hurt her father unless she had to.

He kept swinging blindly at her, giving her a deep cut as his force splintered the wooden chair Katja was using as a defence. His yelling and smashing had awoken Ingenbjorn, who suddenly appeared in the doorway, her father's back to her so she couldn't see what he was holding. Katja, surprised to see her there, got distracted and didn't notice that her father had swung at her until she felt a harsh burning in her left eye, and then incredible pain as he pulled his arm back. Katja was stunned, unable to see what had happened out of her left eye, it was pitch black, but her right could see something white at the end of her father's knife. Ingenbjorn screamed as she saw what in her father's hand that was now poised well above his head. Katja used this to her advantage and slit his large stomach wide open with her dagger and eventually slit his throat as well. A large pool of blood gathered around her, and much more fell from her face. As soon as her sister saw her, she ran out of the house crying.

Katja had killed her father, and now they must leave.

Grabbing her largest pack, she filled it with clothes, her books, Ingenbjorn's clothes and some of her prized possessions, and whatever food they had in the cellar that would not spoil overnight. She filled the water canteen to the brim, rolled up their largest blanket, and took all of the family's gold with her as she left. She tore off some fabric from the bottom of her tunic and wrapped it around her head, covering her eye, chances were no one would give them a room if they saw her without it.

Ingenbjorn had run out in a fit, and clearly deep into the forest as fresh shoe indents could be seen in the ground. Katja used her excellent tracking skill and hunted her sister down.

++++++

It was around midday when Katja found her, lying by the side of a river. Ingenbjorn had followed a trail, one that extended past the other side of the river bank.

"You killed him." Ingenbjorn sobbed. "I know he was terrible, taking the family's money and constantly hitting you, but he was still our father. And you killed him!" Katja thought back to her ring, and that perhaps this was more than a little wrong.

"He took out my eye, Ingenbjorn! I had every right to send his soul to Hel. For that was where he was leading us towards!"

Ingenbjorn refused to meet her eye. "I know. I just wish that we could have left without him dying. I feel so dirty."

Katja took her hand and lead them through the river, the water barely reaching past their ankles. "Come now, let us continue this path, for I must tell you about mine yesterday. A man that I met said I must find him." Katja engaged Ingenbjorn with her stories of the night before, gushing out all of her rage and blind infatuation to her younger sister who made small comments and asked about every detail.

Soon the forest cleared to reveal a small area without trees. A large rock stood in the middle, strong and unmovable, sharp and rough. "Let's take a break here." Katja said, "You still have yet to eat something."

The two sat and Katja took out what she had packed, the food only enough for one meal, for that was all they had. As Ingenbjorn began to eat, Katja heard a noise coming from behind the rock. She gets up, and signals for Ingenbjorn to stay seated. Rounding the rock, she finds a buck, almost identical to the one from before. It had the same fur colouration with the signature crescent on its nose, similar to a sickle, yet had larger antlers and a younger tone to its body. It lowered its head and pushed its foot against the ground, stirring up some dirt. Katja attempted to calm it down, but it quickly charged at her, only skidding to a stop soon after it passed the rock.

Katja lifted her hand up, "Hey, hey, I'm not going to hurt you." She lowered herself and inched closer, the buck not moving. In fact, he trotted over and allowed for her hand to fall on his nose. She looked into his eyes, seeing his peace before he snorted and bolted away.

"Come, sister, we must keep going," Katja said.

++++++

They continued through the forest until it slowly dissipated to reveal a quaint, small town, the population not above a hundred, perched atop a small cliff. Or perhaps it was a large cliff for below was a raging waterfall whose depth could not be determined. Ingenbjorn was quite intrigued. As they trekked up the slope, they saw the smoke rising from multiple stacks and people bustling in the street. The town may have been small, but it was alive.

They passed the gate and found a young man leaning against the entryway. Not older than Katja, he had black, greasy hair that was tied behind his head and chin with a large cleft in it. His red shirt's collar stopped well after what was considered socially acceptable. "Hello, fair ladies!" He flashed the sisters a toothy grin and flexed his muscles, "I am Tormod Georgson, and the pleasure is all yours." Behind him was a short and stout man of the same age.

Katja moved Ingenbjorn behind her, wary of the man. She kept walking past him until he was out of her now limited eyesight, which apparently was not far since as soon as she could not see him, he grabbed her wrist. "Release me, you oaf!"

"My a feisty one, are we?" He growled out, leaning towards her so their faces were only a few centimetres apart.

Katja wriggled her wrist out of his grasp and left the man and his servant alone, diving into the nearest shop.

"I will have her, Teodor, for she has caught my interest!" Tormod pledged, new energy flowing through him.

"You'll get her Tormod, why all the fair maidens love you!", Tormod's goofy companion said, his large nose and teeth making him look like a jester. "Say, let's go to the pub. The men always give good advice!" Tormod nodded and they continued on their way.

++++++

Katja dropped her heavy bag onto the bed the two were staying in for the night. It was incredibly small, with only one bed and barely any room on the floor, although, luckily, the room did have its own bathroom. With what little gold Katja had made from her hunts, she could only afford one night. She hoped that she would find Prince Charming soon, for she knew that their supplies were running out, and it was dangerous outside in unknown territory.

"Sit sister, for your eye must be cleaned, lest it will rot." Katja nodded, knowing that her little sister had a point. Her eye had hurt so incredibly bad, that the pain had become one everlasting, numbing sense, which had caused a severe migraine.

Ingenbjorn took the pan that was attached to their backpack and filled it up with water from the bathroom. She dipped one of the inn's towels in it and removed Katja's makeshift eye patch, causing her to hiss from air hitting the exposed wound. "I'm sorry!" Ingenbjorn exclaimed.

"My sister, your eye looks hideous. I cannot believe father did this," she said, sobs trapped in the back of her throat from thinking of her departed father. Katja's eye did look horrible, an empty, gaping hole staring back at Ingenbjorn. What was once crimson red had dried to become a rusty brown, and large black blood clots had formed. Ingenbjorn dabbed the wet cloth at the area, Katja contorting her body to escape the pain. She started to cry from the burning sensation, tears leaking out of both eyes, yet the left ones were red.

"Sister, please. Help me help you." Ingenbjorn whispered, desperate to help her. Katja opened her eye again and flinched while the towel cleaned the area. Once she was finished, the wound was redressed with new cloth, Katja's tunic becoming shorter and shorter.

Ingenbjorn repeated this process throughout the night, as Katja's screams of terror were loud enough to wake her up. Once it was morning, Katja's tunic had become bandages. The two took turns using the bathroom, bathing and fixing their hair, and changed into the extra clothes Katja had packed, both nearly identical to their apparel from the day before. Katja cleaned off her blood from her ring while she cleaned their old clothes and admired its snake-like fashion, praying that Prince Charming was not simply acting for her, and this entire journey was made in vain. She could not but help to remember how angrily he reacted towards his mother and bitter towards his brother and wondered if he would treat her with the same malice. Katja also remembered how he held her so tenderly when they danced, how excited he became when they talked about books, and how sincere to her he was when giving the ring. Katja smiled to herself, she felt like only she had the power to make that side of him appear, although she knew that he was made of both halves and the grey area in between, yet she felt no differently about knowing his bad temper since she also knew how gentle he was.

She huffed, exited the bathroom, and left their room, her backpack slung over one shoulder and dropping a few coins along with the key off at the counter. A plump lady greeted them there and help them finish their business of signing a checkout binder and what not. Before they left, Katja asked where the two should head, seeing as to how the town's only road led to the waterfall.

"Why dear," her voice was bright, and chipper, like a finch, "travel down the waterfall! It's not a long drop. Ask Tormod and Teodor, they run the ferries. But do not travel too far along for you shall reach a dark part of the forest. Those who enter do not return, for as soon as one goes missing, the ravenous howls of wolves drown out any screams they may make."

Ingenbjorn whimpered and gripped Katja's arm. She stiffly nodded her head and said her thanks, leaving the inn and dragging Ingenbjorn towards the edge of the town, who was now terrified of the story. "Quit behaving like a child, sister," Katja whispered to her, not wanting for Ingenbjorn to make the two look like fools.

"But... the wolves..." She whispered back. Katja mentally cursed the woman who tended the inn for scaring Ingenbjorn. She made their travels much more difficult. What if Prince Charming lived in the dark wood? How is Ingenbjorn to travel there now?

Katja wondered where he lived. He mentioned an extensive library, but that could be built into any home. He is rich, judging by how he reacted to hearing her status. Perhaps he lives in a manor, or better yet, a castle! Katja must ask Tormod or Teodor if they knew any manors or castles around the area. Katja now mentally cursed herself, wondering why didn't she think of that sooner! It would have certainly saved her some time had she asked in her own village before leaving after Ingenbjorn.

The two walked onto a pier where they were to meet the two men from the day before. As much as Katja disliked Tormod, he was their only hope at the moment. Katja subtly moved Prince Charming's ring from her right hand to her left, hoping that it would discourage the man from touching the two.

Not long after the two reached the end of the pier, Tormod and Teodor rowed up in a wooden boat, similar to the famed Holmrygr, docked it, and helped them climb aboard.