AN: Thank you guys so much for the reviews on the last chapter! I would just like to say to all of you pushing me for updates: it's amazing to see that you like the story, but I work a normal 9-5 and on top of that, bartend over the weekends, so you can imagine that my time is quite limited. Also, I did give you two whole chapters in the timespan of 24 hours, that's as good as it gets in my point of view ;)

Anyways, here is the next one – the whole truth will still not be revealed, but players are finding their positions. Let me know what you think in the reviews and thx for reading :)

Sam tore her eyes from Oberyn's and looked down on her naked self. Tiny rivers of black were decorating her skin, tiny rivers that just gave away her biggest secret. She took a long, deep breath and regained herself. Quickly, she turned around and leaped out of the pool. As she reached for the robe she had discarded on the floor, Oberyn spoke up.

"I met a girl in a brothel in Skyreach some time ago. Former handmaiden of your mother. See, she had been let go of that position because she saw something she shouldn't have. Poor thing had to become a prostitute to support herself. I asked her what it was that got her sent away, and she told me," he spoke in a calm voice. Sam finished tying up the robe and turned back around, finding him in the same spot still, seemingly unfazed by what he had seen.

"And what did that poor girl tell you?" she gave back impatiently.

"You were young still, maybe only 12 or 13, and she walked in on your mother bathing you. She always found it strange that the woman dismissed everyone when it was time to clean you up. There was talk about it. That you were horribly disfigured, or even that you had a cock, and your mother just wished you were a girl. Can you imagine?" he chuckled to himself. Sam's brows furrowed. She remembered the whispers when she was little. However, as soon as her breasts began to grow and her mother insisted on her wearing revealing dresses, they stopped.

"The handmaiden said she was surprised to see that you were not disfigured at all, but that your hair was as silver as the moon on a clear night," Oberyn continued and Sam straightened her back.

"I don't know if you have ever seen my mother, Prince Oberyn, but she has silver hair herself. In fact, a lot of the Hightowers do," she replied with what she hoped was a strong, firm voice.

"That is the same thing I said to the girl. But her reply made me question that logic. She said: Then why dye it? Why hide it? She also stated that even though both yours and your mothers' hair are silver, she made out a difference in the shade. Your mother's is greyer, only silver with sunlight, but yours... I can even see it now, yours is not grey. The last time I saw hair like that was on Rhaegar Targaryen's head," the man said and started coming closer. Sam watched quietly as he got out of the water and stood in front of her again in all his naked glory. But she had no intention to look at him and his fine physique. There was no lust, no curiosity. She might be in more danger than she realised.

"I noticed that your hair is very dark, Prince Oberyn. Almost completely black. Your brothers', however, is more a shade of auburn. Does that mean you are not related? Or that you are hiding something?" she said and looked at him defiantly. He smiled at her generously.

"I like you, I really do. You are fierce and strong. You sense danger and you attack. I wish you no harm. I've been wanting to see you for quite some time. Find out if what the girl said was true. Now you are here, and it is. I hope you can trust me enough to stop lying to me at some point. For now, I will take my leave. My offer, however, still stands. I would like to teach you. Together, we could become unstoppable," he said quietly and turned away after stroking down her cheek one last time. She watched him pick up his pile of clothes before throwing them over the wall and following just moments later with an elegant leap.

Sam wrapped the robe even tighter around her body and walked back inside. She surveyed the damage the water had done to her hair and sat down at the vanity in the corner. She rummaged around in one of her bags until she found the dark paste. Carefully, she applied it to the top of her head and the few streaks in between. Her heart was pounding fiercely. Out of every one that was to discover this, the Martells should probably be one of the last to know. Had she deflected Oberyn's curiosity or was he even more interested than before? Who would he tell? What could he gain from it?

She sat there staring at herself for so long that the paste began to dry and crumble away, leaving jet black hairs. Outside, the birds had begun to sing, and dawn was on the horizon. Sam was still sitting there, feeling panicked and numb at the same time. Why had she been so careless? Did she want anyone to find out? What would her grandmother say?

Finally, after what felt like hours of contemplation, she came to a conclusion. She had to trust Oberyn. She was gonna go to him and take him up on his offer to teach her. The world she knew had been changed so rapidly in the last few weeks, it was the only thing that made sense. And if her mother or grandmother told her to return to Highgarden… she did not know if she could.

In the meantime, Doran and Oberyn were having breakfast together in a distant, quiet room of the castle. No servants or guards were around, and there was an eerie silence between the two. The older brother was watching the younger one carefully. For a man that liked to talk about anything at all times, he was unusually silent.

"What is on your mind, Oberyn?" he asked carefully. Oberyn swallowed the bite of delicious fig he had just taken and looked at him.

"I am contemplating things. What will happen next. How long the girl will stay," he answered casually.

"Any news on our suspicion?" Doran narrowed his eyes on him.

"I watched her sit on a chair and stare at the pool all night long. Other than that I am dead-tired, there is nothing new to report," his younger brother replied. Doran watched him silently for a few moments. Even though he had looked him in the eye saying that, there was more to the story. He knew his brother well enough to tell when he was not being completely honest.

"You like her. Do you fear that I would harm her in any way?" he finally asked. Oberyn chuckled.

"I do not know what you would do to fulfill your goals. You say you want to work with her, but what if she refuses? What if she wants no part in it? Would you force her? Torture her?" his tone had become sharp.

"We do not hurt little girls here in Dorne. You of all people should know that. But I will make her cooperate, one way or another," Doran said and relaxed his back. He picked at some of the food on his plate and stayed silent. Moments later, his brother left without any further discussion.

"Areo!" he called for his guard loudly. The giant man appeared from his hiding spot behind the great stone pillars.

"Yes, my Prince?"

"Follow my brother discreetly. See who he talks to, what he gets up to. Do not let him see you, do you understand?" Doran instructed and the man bowed his head before leaving as well. If Oberyn was truly having doubts about their plan, he needed to know. He would not risk all of this because his brother liked a simple girl from the Reach.

After Oberyn had left his brother's side, he went down to the small training grounds. It was still early, and besides the guards, very few people were about. As he approached the tiny, enclosed area, he heard the sound of arrows finding their mark. Stepping through the gate, he found Samaya and one of her companions at the shooting range.

"Your elbow was too high with that one," the man said as she shot an arrow just off the middle of the target. The girl sighed loudly and turned around to give him an annoyed look.

"Maybe, if you would stop talking just as I'm about to release, my elbow wouldn't slip, Ser Willam," she said with fire in her eyes. The older man just laughed loudly.

"The last time you were so short with me was when Loras beat you at wrestling. You were what, 7 years old if I remember correctly?" he teased her and Sam sagged her shoulders. She walked to him and sat down beside the man.

"I have not slept as much as I should have. Forgive me," she said quietly and took the flask he offered her. While she took a generous sip, her companion noticed Oberyn.

"Ah, Prince Oberyn! And here I thought an experienced fighter like you did not need further training," he said and bowed. Oberyn stepped out from the shadow of the gate and approached the pair.

"On the contrary, Ser Willam, one should never stop training. There is always something new to learn," he answered and looked at Sam with his last words. His simple statement was heavy with meaning.

"Ah yes, the ever-present promise of learning. I wonder when it will stop, Prince Oberyn? When I am married? When I am old and grey? When I am dead? No, I fear not even then will people stop telling me I have so much to learn still," Samaya said while taking another sip. She seemed to be in a particularly foul mood.

"Now, now, Lady Samaya, that's a bit harsh, even coming from you," Willam spoke up and pat her on the shoulder playfully. The girl shrugged and stared into the distance.

"I understand the Lady Samaya. In Dorne, we do not give much thought into the roles our children have to play by society. Boy or girl… we do not care. A girl wants to learn to fight? We will teach her. A boy wants to learn how to play an instrument? We will teach him. In your lands, however, a girl has to be a Lady. A boy has to be a knight. Knights are respected, and Ladies are foolish and dumb, always the target of ill-suited advice," Oberyn said calmly and wandered over. He held his hand out for the bow and she handed it over after a scrutinizing glance.

"This is fine work. Who made it?" he asked while stroking his fingers over the white material Her bow was not the style he had seen in the Reach and the rest of Westeros, but curved at both ends and extremely flexible and light. He could not make out its material, let alone the strange metal that adorned it.

"A family heirloom. I fear the name of whoever made it is long lost," Samaya answered and he looked at her critically.

"Leave us," he said to Ser Willam, who got up after receiving a confirming nod from Samaya. Once he was out of earshot, Oberyn sat down next to the girl and handed her back the bow.

"Do you know which material this is made of?" he pushed further and when she shook her head, he continued. "I've only ever seen it once, when I was still a boy, but I believe this is dragonbone, Samaya. Do you know how rare and valuable it is?" he said and saw genuine surprise on the girl's face.

"No, I have never even heard of it. Are you sure?" she asked him and he looked back at the weapon.

"We have a knowledgeable Master of Arms here in Dorne. He is running a formidable weaponry in Yronwood. Shall I send for him to have a look at your bow?" the Prince offered. Sam looked at him for a couple moments before she answered.

"Thank you kindly, but that will not be necessary. It has served me well, and will continue to do so. No matter where it came from," she finally said and got up with vehemence. Stepping away from him, she readied herself once more and continued with her target practice. Oberyn observed for a few quiet moments. She had exceptional control over her body. As soon as she raised the bow, all of her limbs seemed to fall into place. The perfect archer.

"Have you ever shot at a man?" he asked the question that was on his mind. He needed to know how far she was willing to go.

"I did. On our way here, when we were ambushed at the Tower of Joy," she answered after a few moments.

"Did you kill him?" he watched as she released another arrow, finding its mark effortlessly. She dropped the bow and turned around slowly.

"Yes. I shot at a rider that was trying to flee. And then I killed another with my dagger. At first, I stabbed him in the stomach, and then I cut his throat," she silently said while looking down at her bow. Oberyn got up and stopped just a few inches in front of her. Slowly, he put his finger under her chin and lifted her head. She had a sad expression on her face, but fire in her eyes.

"And how did that make you feel?" he whispered. She swallowed hard before she answered.

"It felt good."