The Phantom surveyed the boy with her piercing gaze which held a great power on its own; for she had this rare gift of perceiving lies; so long as she was close enough to detect the vibes emitting from them when they spoke; it was as if the very act of falsehood creates an imbalance in the magical field surrounding them, 

But this was a strange lad for certain; she had hoped the mere mention of the undead would scare away a pretty lad like him but the brat had the audacity to show amusement instead. She could feel a twinge of annoyance at this for he was but a mere boy, perhaps much younger than even her true self. She had been blessed with features that would perhaps have been the subject matter of envy for most women, however living a lone life in the forest and only dedicating her life to practicing the magical craft meant that she had never spared a thought as to her looks. 

She, however, envied the lad's naivety and youth and there was something in this boy that made her decide he was a good soul at heart; what was more fortunate -he did not appear to have recognized her at all, or seen through her disguise which made her heave a sigh filled with relief - for now. If times had been different, she would perhaps have liked to get to know this lad better and reveal her true identity to him, but alas the world had taught her not to trust people anymore than she had to. She had not even the slightest doubt that he would take her head without batting a single eyelash were he to even suspect that she might be more than what she appeared to be...

Her years have taught her to be anything but foolish, so she replied cautiously pointing towards a path leading far south-east, 'there's a village that way, sonny, all you gotta do is follow that path over there'. The lad nodded but did not seem in any hurry to leave causing her agitation to skyrocket and making her feel dizzier and fluttery. 

She stood up still leaning against the tree for support as muttered in a rush, "So I'd best be going, its almost sundown. Careful there now, the forest can be dangerous for a wee lad like yourself" she added casually in a motherly tone and then after a slight pause went on to add, "you wouldnt perchance happen to know whats happening in them villages , would you? Been hearing some batty ol' witch's been takin' children. Children! what is this world coming to, I ask you? Dont wanna live no more in a place like this!" 

She hoped the question sounded innocuous enough and complimented her 'harmless-woman' disguise and peered sideways at him awaiting his response for she longed to know what was going on in those villages now that all fingers were pointed in her direction.