Alice had her knife out, of course, and she eyed him a moment. He was not a stabber, no: she had seen her share of street urchins who had a knife at hand and knew how to use it, worse came to worse. This boy, he was just scared, and likely her appearance had done nothing to calm him.

"Back off," though? Really?

"I should be the one cautious," Alice replied, clearly ruffled. "Those objects coming from above could have killed me. You have nerve, trying to frame me as the aggressor."

Never mind that she DID still have her weapon too.