"I think you will find that was the idea, Aidan" Silverthorn replied in a weary tone as if this argument had been going on for quite awhile now. "If you remember the plan was for Mac and I to remove the guards and then open the gates for the rest of you."

"Remove doesn't mean kill" Aidan retorted.

Silverthorn's eyes met those of the male half-elf. "You're not that naive, surely?" she said quietly. The dark-haired elf was only 152 years old, young still for one of her race and that youth could be seen in the occasional exuberant gesture or unguarded comment. There was nothing of the child left in her green eyes however. The last few years had seen to that. At her companion's continued silence she gave a soft sigh, her fingers dropping to the buckle that held the sword belted around her waist.

Aidan watched as she undid the swordbelt. The first time he'd seen her he'd had an almost irresistable urge to know what that slim figure would feel like beneath his fingers. Then there's been that night about six months ago. Neither of them had been drunk but the few drinks they had had was sufficient to lower Silverthorn's guard. The other guys in the troop had warned him, he had to admit. They always joked about the way she could cut someone off at the knees with just a sharp comment. The time she'd threatened to turn someone into a eunuch had become legend. Now he realised that he hadn't believed them, not really. Perhaps he hadn't wanted to, so he had told himself it was all exaggeration. Now he found he couldn't rid himself of the image of the calm expression on her face as she'd opened the gates, despite the body at her feet. He'd had no problem with the idea of her as a soldier, indeed jus a few hours ago they were fighting back to back in the midst of a battlefield, but he'd never been able to understand assassination. Killing someone whilst you were fighting them face to face in the midst of battle was one thing, even siege warfare was comprehensible, but the silent knife during the dead of night? That he couldn't do and he wasn't sure he could cope with.

"I just don't understand how you could do that" he said.

"It was necessary" Silverthorn replied, "Its not that difficult to understand."

"Perhaps not, or perhaps you're just not the person I thought you were."

"Perhaps I'm not" she said sharply, "but if you were misled it was by yourself. I have never lied to you, and if you try to tell me you weren't warned about me by the others I won't believe you. I'm sorry if you can't cope with that but I refuse to apologise for doing me job."

This was too close to what he had been thinking for comfort. Instinctively he lashed out, his words vicious. "Then again maybe I should just congratulate you on being a good actress. Tell me, were you acting all the time?"

Silverthorn's head went back as if she had been struck, her eyes widening slightly. Already Aidan was cursing himself but words once spoken can never be unsaid, however much you might wish it.

"Maybe you were just very easy to fool" she said coldly, then turned on her heel and walked away.