Alexi took a step into the Forbidden Forest. He had never been inside the forest in his entire life, yet now that he was part of the Hogwarts staff, he was permitted to go inside as long as he didn't sneak in any minors. There was a certain fear in Alexi as he went in the forest, partly due to his inexperience in battle. Sure, maybe he could heal a spider bite, or stop himself from bleeding after being impaled by a unicorn horn, but he didn't have the ability to do any of the above when knocked unconscious. No person really knew what was actually in the forest, unless you were one of the malicious residents, or a centaur, who could be very well malicious.
Alexi's wand was out, ready for casting any spell, but his focus wasn't completely on defending himself. Alexi came into the forest for the pure curiousity that he had instilled in him since coming to Hogwarts. There were so many things that he wanted to know about the forest, like what was actually in there. Why did some students never come out once they went inside? What did unicorns actually look like? Well... Alexi had seen unicorn horns and blood, but that was only during a St. Mungo's emergency. He didn't see the unicorn while it was breathing.
All of a sudden, Alexi heard the crack of a twig behind him and he spun around, made two quick and sharp movements, and said, "Protego." Usually, Alexi could do wandless magic, especially for a Defence Against the Dark Arts 101 spell, but being caught off guard didn't leave him time to focus his thoughts - something that was required if you were to cast a spell without speaking the incantation.