Chapter Three

Puppeteers and Poppets

''Ils ne seront pas heureux.''

Leliana stared up into the hazel eyes of the elvish woman who stood before her, gently dabbing and stroking a wet cloth across her face trying to wipe away the dirt and dried blood. "Why?" she asked in the Orlesian tongue, the elf giving her no acknowledgment aside from a half smile. For a servant she was rather attractive, but that was the case with all who served under Marjolaine. She has exquisite tastes, surrounding herself with the finest things she could afford and that extended to the people she employed. "No one else is around, you can talk to me," again no response came. Leliana had known the elf, Ilya her name, since this place had become her home several years ago. Ilya was creeping up in age though she still bore a slender and youthful appearance; soft brown hair, odd hazel eyes, and the long, sharp ears. Other than her physical features however she knew little of the elf, they rarely spoke mostly due to the fact she was a servant and it was considered inappropriate for them to speak to their 'betters'. Leliana thought it rather silly but such was the way of the Orlesian nobles.

A deep sigh followed by a few glances around the familiar anteroom. Several plush chairs and small tables positioned in various spots along the walls which were draped with various sorts of tapestries and paintings, what parts of the wall that could be seen were covered with a bright red linen. Several oil lamps and candles placed on the tables and hanging from the walls gave the room sufficient lighting. Three doors, each one embedded into a different wall; one led outside to the streets of Val Royeaux, another led to a set of stairs which took one to the master and the attic, and the third led to a narrow hall which connected to various rooms. It was a elegant little home nestled within one of the finer areas of Val Royeaux.

Leliana jumped to her feet with her prize held tightly against her abdomen as she heard the door to the hall creak open. Ilya, taking her cloth and pale, scampered off to the shadows in one of the corners. Duralle was the first to enter, dressed elegantly in a bright blue jerkin, a smirk cracking across his stern face once he caught a glimpse of her disheveled appearance. Marjolaine followed in right after, her purple and white dress trailing on the floor behind as she walked passed Duralle. Leliana gulped and took a few steps forward with her head bowed to the floor and the book gripped tightly in her hands.

"Leliana," Marjolaine said softly. "I did not expect you to return until morning, is everything alright?" Her expression dimmed as the young lady stepped further into the light, her face streaked with dirt and bits of blood, parts of her dress blotched with red stains and smears, and her soft red hair clumped and messy. "Maker's breath what has happened to you? Are you alright? Is this your blood?"

"No," Leliana's words barely audible.

"I see," Marjolaine paused and smiled, feeling Leliana's trembling as she placed a hand on her cheek. "Do not worry Leliana, everything will be fine. Now," she slid the book from her tight grasp and signaled Ilya. "Go get yourself cleaned up and rest, I will take care of everything and then come see you." She watched a little smile crack through Leliana's bleak expression and with a nod the young lady followed Ilya through the open door. Marjolaine then turned her attention to Duralle who stood tall with his arms crossed against his chest and smug look in his face. "What?"

"Nothing," Duralle replied. "Just expected a little better from her."

"She retrieved what was asked for, that is all that matters."

"Is that so? The fact she snuck across half of Val Royeaux looking like that does nothing to upset you?"

Marjolaine gave no response and Duralle took the hint, leaving the room with a heavy sigh. She waited for the sound of his footsteps vanish and once silence came about began sifting through the various pages and studying the loose parchments, taking a few minutes to memorize what few important parts there were. After her curiosity was satisfied she made her way down the hall and turned into a large, dimly lit room. On the right a large ornate fireplace with a low fire centered as the rooms only source of light, in the middle sat a trestle table covered with a white cloth and topped with silver, a few elegant chairs positioned meticulously around it. At the head of the table on the far end a shadow of a man sat quietly and still, the light of the fire reflecting off of a silver and gold chalice that was grasped between his fingers. "Everything was done as you wished," Marjolaine said as she slowly walked along the edge of the table towards the man, a figure emerging from the shadows as she neared him. A large man wearing a burgundy colored gambeson, short black hair and a thick mustache covering his upper lip positioned himself in front of her and extended an arm commanding her to stop, snatching the book from her hands once she obeyed then quietly walked back to his master and handed him the prize before situating himself back into the shadows once more. Marjolaine took a few steps closer and eyed the man sitting in the chair, a handsome face with black hair slicked back and tied into a thick ponytail and a thin mustache. "You may wish tell your friend that if I wanted to kill you I need not be close."

Gautier looked up at her and grinned. "Oh? Perhaps he is here to protect you from me," he watched as Marjolaine glowered, obviously not taking his words with the jest that was intended. "Everything must be so professional with you." Gautier set down his chalice and looked down at the book in his hand, immediately noting a few bloody finger prints on the front and back covers. He sighed and slowly began thumbing through it; a journal detailing the dealings with various Orlesian aristocrats and merchants, contracts and promises with various seals stamped, including the ones of his family. "So did anything in here perk your interest?"

Marjolaine smiled, "I do not know what you are talking about."

"Come now, I know you better than that. Always looking for an advantage, gain a little edge to keep yourself ahead of everyone else."

"I have other ways of achieving that."

"Indeed you do, I have learned that lesson the hard way," Gautier set down the book and exchanged it for the chalice. "She returned awful quick," he muttered before taking a sip of wine.

"She saw an opportunity and took it which is exactly what she is expected to do. Would you have preferred she shared a nice breakfast with them first?"

Gautier took the book in his free hand, stood, and made his way across the room to the front of the fireplace, his eyes locked onto the glowing embers. "I heard it was quite messy."

Marjolaine eyed him curiously. "You had her followed?"

"You make it sound so sinister," Gautier answered as he glanced towards her with a grin. "I assure you it was simply a precaution."

"As you can see any fears you had were unwarranted."

"Perhaps," Gautier said, tossing the book into the fireplace and watching as the flames began dancing around, slowly engulfing and devouring it as if the fire had been starving for it. "However I am a bit disappointed on the methods your little protege employed. As I said, quite messy."

Marjolaine stood tall and folded her hands behind her back. "I do not believe that to be the case."

"Of course not," Gautier retorted with a chuckle. "The Waking Sea would have to run red with blood in order for you to consider something a mess."

"My expectations are higher than that."

Gautier stood there continuing to watch as the book continued to shrink and char. "I did not want them dead, I still had a use for them."

"You made no such request."

"If I wanted them dead I would have seen to it myself," Gautier broke his gaze away from the fires and focused it on Marjolaine. "Or are you simple assassins now? Kill on a whim, spill blood for pleasure. Must I now make special arrangements if I want one to live?"

"Of course not, but if it must be done for the sake of completing the task assigned than it must be done."

"Is that so? And it was best that they be butchered like animals?"

"It will keep them from talking."

"Talk?" Gautier asked rhetorically. "Should I be worried about two Fereldan's and a dwarf making accusations of treason and conspiring without a drop of evidence? Do you really believe any sane being here in Orlais would even give them a minute of the day?"

"Now you will not have to find out," Marjolaine retorted with a grin.

"I already knew!" Gautier shouted. "Instead your girl has gone and created a bigger mess than I had before," his voice toning down a bit as he returned his focus towards the flames.

"Does it matter? They were foreigners, it was done in the docks, who will miss them, who will care," Marjolaine replied, maintaining her calm composure.

"Fool of a woman," Gautier muttered. "Celene has been persistent about keeping her new found peace with Ferelden established. What do you think is going to happen when two of their citizens are found brutally murdered within Val Royeaux, docks or no." He took a sip of his wine, his hands beginning to tremble from a fearful thought. "That crafty woman will make this political, force this into something it is not. Someone will be blamed, someone will have their head stuck on a pike before this over. And who do you think is going to clean up this mess made by that girl of yours? I have to, I am stuck correcting your failures once again."

Marjolaine smiled as she watched Gautier once again turn his attention towards the fire. "You are taking this out of proportion. No one will shed a tear for a couple of thieves."

"Do not be so blind. This is perfect for her, she has been unrelenting with her dealings of peace and cooperation with that backwater country. She can pick out one of her enemies, deem them guilty, put them under the ax and remove a thorn from her side while simultaneously adding another small stitch to the wound that is our relationship with Ferelden." Gautier paused a moment as he stroked his chin. "I will not fall victim to that woman's game."

"You assume it would be you."

"I am not going to take that chance," Gautier asserted.

"Regardless," Marjolaine took a few steps closer to Gautier, his guard doing exactly the same. "The mission was a success and I do expect payment."

Gautier eyed her and laughed. "Success? That is what you deem a success? Three bodies piled on the floor of that disgusting inn. This is not what I want on my hands, this is not how I want business done. I am not funding cold blooded assassins."

"It was done because it needed to be done."

"Stop trying to defend her, you know her actions were sloppy and inexcusable."

"This was her first time alone, her first time put in a situation where she may have to kill. This job was unusual from the start and considering her inexperience I believe it is fair to grant her a bit of leeway."

Gautier's anger faded into shock. "You told me she was the best you have."

"And she will be. However she must start somewhere and this was the perfect opportunity, if I told you of her inexperience you never would have gone through with it."

"Really? What could have possibly given you such a thought," Gautier replied sarcastically. "This could have been a disaster for us both."

"I am well aware of that and that should tell you the level of confidence I have in her and her future."

Gautier sighed and began rubbing his temples. "Such a mess," he muttered to himself. "I will pay you half of what we agreed upon," this time directing his words to Marjolaine.

"You are going to try and cheat me?" Marjolaine asked calmly.

Gautier turned and pointed a stiff finger at her but held his tongue, he knew better then to push Marjolaine too much. "You know her actions are unacceptable," he uttered softly, not his original choice of words.

"You have what you wanted," Marjolaine proclaimed. "Could it have been handled better, perhaps. She is young, mistakes will happen."

"This mistake may cost us both a great deal before the night is over." Gautier finished off his wine and slammed his chalice on top of the fireplaces mantle. "You will receive half the payment and do not EVER forget the ones who made you what you are."

Marjolaine sneered at the comment but nodded in agreement, there was little ground for her to argue on. "Is there anything else? Or shall your grace be leaving us for the night."

Gautier leaned forward on his arm which rested on the mantle, his finger rapidly tapping against the marble as he watched the charred book crumble into ash. "Where is she?"

Marjolaine held her breath a moment, hesitating to answer. "She?"

"Do not play the fool with me, you know of whom I speak."

Again she hesitated a few moments before answering. "I sent Leliana to get cleaned and rest."

"I did not ask what she is doing, I asked where she is."

"Resting, as I said. She does not need to be disturbed."

Gautier watched as his guard drew his sword and began walking towards Marjolaine. "Sheath your weapon, you will accomplish nothing trying to scare her and she will see you dead before your blade fell," he listened as the sword quickly slid back into it's hold and then turned to face Marjolaine. "I do not care what she is doing and I do not care if she will be bothered by my presence. I will ask again, where is she?"

For a third time Marjolaine hesitated. She did not know what his exact intentions with Leliana would be but she had a good idea. It would do no good to continue vexing him though, it was simply delaying the inevitable. "The door at the end of the hall," she uttered as she took several steps towards him, glowering with anger. "Do nothing I will make you regret," she hissed softly.

Gautier laughed and sighed at the threat. "Alesax, stay here and keep Marjolaine company. I shan't be long." He gave Marjolaine a hearty grin as he passed her by, receiving a spiteful scold in return.

Gautier made his way into the hall and took his time crossing it, peeking at the various paintings and tapestries hanging along the two walls. He hesitated a bit, thinking about what he would do to fix this disaster, thinking about Marjolaine whom he had known her for many years. She was employed as a bard long before Gautier met her, their first introduction being at her wedding with one of his cousins she somehow managed to become engaged with. The marriage itself was extremely brief as her husband died a rather mysterious death a little more than a year after. The mages who attempted to treat him in his final days claimed it to be of natural causes despite the fact the symptoms were rather gruesome. Then a day or so after his death his corpse began to decompose in a strange and disturbing way, forcing them to burn his body without a proper ceremony, the mages however remained adamant that his death was natural. Of course this did nothing to quell the rumors and gossip which are passed around faster than wine and bread in Orlais. 'Marjolaine poisoned him for the dower and titles and bribed or threatened the mages to keep silent about it'; was the most common one, though there were many other tales that got quite wild.Regardless of weather the rumors were true or not her name and face became prominent amongst the aristocracy, especially after the rather dirty fight that went on over her dower and claims, this of course fueling the rumors even more. After many threats from both ends and the realization she was going to get nowhere she soon slunk back into the shadows as a bard. Her new found infamy however had prevented her from finding many contracts or employers and the few times she did it was almost impossible for her to succeed. Eventually she managed to convince his family to release her dower in exchange for the renouncing of any claims she had. Once everything was settled she again slipped back into the shadows, but this time she remained there quietly. She never speaks of her marriage or the circumstances of her husbands death and when asked she simply remains silent. Oddly enough though she still bears her band, of course there are sinister stories surrounding that as well. While she claims she wears it 'in memory of the love and admiration she had for him', the rumors state that she had a copy made and had it hollowed out, using to discreetly poison her victims food and drink and that was how she got her husband. Weather it was true or not he did not know, but knowing Marjolaine as well as he did it was best not to put anything past her.

After much thought he finally made his way to the room mentioned by Marjolaine and gently pushed open the heavy oak door and peered into the small bed chamber. Leliana; dressed in a white silk robe with her skin and hair still glistening wet from a bath, sat quietly on her bed with a bemused look. As soon as he stepped foot in the room however Leliana regained herself and stood tall with a false smile, Ilya who had been cleaning up the bath dropped what she was doing and bowed her head deeply. "Out," he ordered the elf with a point of his finger. Quickly she ducked out of the room and once she was gone he slammed the door shut and turned his attention back towards Leliana. Gautier positioned himself directly in front of her, studied her for a moment, then began slowly circling her several times before halting once more in front of her face. "Vicious, malevolent, catty," he let the words bombard her for a moment and then gave her a sly smile. "You enjoy the taste of blood?"

Leliana stared into his eyes, unsure of the nature of the question implied. "No, no my lord," she faltered in a hushed voice.

"Is that so?" Gautier inquired. "From your work tonight I would assume differently."

Suddenly she realized exactly what this was about. Was what she did wrong though? If it was wrong what words could she say, what could she do. Where was Marjolaine? Why did she leave her alone with him? "I did what I had to do my lord."

Gautier nodded at her words and smiled. "Of course you thought out and explored all other possible solutions."

"I," Leliana hesitated as she tried to come up with a suitable response. But what did he want to hear, what was he trying to break out of her. "I only did what was asked of me my lord."

"Asked of you? Did Marjolaine order you to kill them?" Gautier asked.

"Yes, I mean no. She did not say to kill them, I, that decision was my own," her words once again stammered.

"You do not need to protect her. If you were simply doing what you were told than that is that."

"She told me this might prove difficult, she told me to take advantage of the first opportunity and to be prepared to do whatever I must to see this through."

"I see," Gautier stated simply as he took another step closer. "Tell me. Did they have to die?" He waited a moment to give Leliana a chance to answer but none came. "Answer me!"

Leliana's eyes widened as she reeled back in dismay from the cacophonous order. "No," she said softly as soon as her composure returned.

"No," Gautier echoed. "Then why are they dead?"

"I. I panicked. I thought they were becoming aware of my intentions," her words once again stammered.

Gautier nodded and smiled. Gently he took the young ladies chin in his hand and began to to study her as if she were some farm animal at a fair. She was scared, he could feel her quivering in his hand and it widened his smile. "Do not act so frightened, fear will only lead you to an early grave." he whispered before leaning forward and kissing her, holding just long enough for him to garner her taste. Once satisfied he slowly pulled away, continuing to hold her chin in his hand. He stared at her; a smile breaking out across her face, a mask covering her feelings of suspicion, shock, and fear. Her icy blue eyes bouncing wildly in their sockets, trying to study him, read him, break him. She was out of her element here, everything out of her control, everything happening so fast, a paralyzing fear preventing her from making any reaction. She was weak and his to do whatever he willed. Gautier contemplated as he continued to study her face, debating about the situation at hand and what, if anything, should be done. Eventually he let her go, watching as she quickly took several small steps back to give herself some room. "You understand this is unacceptable. You do not kill unless you are ordered to kill. These people did not need to die, if anything their deaths now further complicate my situation. You are not some simple assassin bred with the sole purpose of drawing blood, understand."

"I do, forgive me," Leliana said sternly, a sigh of relief coming about once he had released her from his grip.

"And on top of it all you were seen."

Leliana held her breath and nodded her head. "Yes."

Gautier shook his head. "For your sake you should be glad it was one of my men, otherwise you would already be dead and my family left with plenty of questions to answer."

"Again, forgive me my lord."

Gautier sighed and stared at her once more; her fear appeared to have subsided a bit, no doubt from the knowledge that the witness to her deeds was an ally. "You certainly are a pupil of Marjolaine," he muttered softly. "That is partly why I expected better though I suppose it isn't entirely your fault." He took a step in her direction matched by a slight reaction on her part. Once more he gently took her chin in his hand and locked his eyes onto hers. "Aside from your rampant bloodlust you did well tonight." Gautier watched as a sigh of relief came from the young lady. "You had the man wrapped tightly around your fingers, chasing you down in the streets and offering to escort you wherever you wanted, keeping you safe in his arms, or so I am told. Tell me, do you have any regrets for his death?"

"No," Leliana replied bluntly.

"Good, good," Gautier grinned as he released her. "Just remember what you are. Subtlety and deception are the only weapons you need, not steel and iron."

"I understand."

"You need to learn to use this," he said as he taped his finger softly against her head. "And this," he said as he gently glided his hands down the frame of her body, coming to a stop when he felt a hard object against her calf. He lifted her robe just enough to reveal a small sheathed dagger tied around her leg. Gautier pulled the dagger and rose back to his feet, holding the blade close to her eyes. "And never this." A look of fear once again beamed from her eyes as Gautier held the dagger there for a minute to allow his point to come across. "Blood for blood," he whispered in her ear as he pressed the dagger against her neck. "Consider yourself fortunate this eve for it could have been much worse for us all," he said, pulling the dagger back and tossing it on her bed before slowly taking a few steps back as he gave her a warm, comforting smile. His words and wraith had no doubt established a fear of him within her mind, and that was a good thing. "I believe Marjolaine wanted you to rest, I would suggest not going against her wishes. Oh and do make sure she rewards you properly." Gautier turned and opened the door then took a step out before turning back to look upon her once more. "Enjoy the fruits of your success my dear and please try to have a pleasant night."

Gautier casually made his way back towards the main room bearing a smug grin. He wanted to take his time, continue to let Marjolaine stew and squirm as she speculated on his intentions. While he knew better than to outright challenge her he made sure to shove her and her underlings around every once in awhile. Few members of the nobility dealt with the bards in person, most would send their tasks across two dozen or so messengers and through various liaisons and proxies, doing everything in their power to conceal their identity. Similarly most bard masters refused to deal directly with the nobility and never revealed themselves to anyone aside from a few trusted people. 'Shadows playing with shadows' as his father would say. Still, there were always a few on both ends who had no qualms with maintaining more direct association as it did have it's benefits. The master had a steady client and would usually receive quite a bit of information that their competitors would not be so privy about. The noble would receive much of the same as well as the added benefit of usually not having to worry about that particular clique taking any jobs that were put out on their family, a valuable perk for one who received more pleasure and thrill from living then from sleeping with a beautiful temptress who may very well be looking to slit your throat before the dawns rise. Because of this he established himself with the few masters willing to deal with him personally, to him it was safer to be in the lions den where he could watch them skulk about rather then out in wild where they were always silently stalking their prey.

Marjolaine however was one who preferred the shadows, the limelight she so craved in her past was no longer of interest to her. Instead she sat back in the darkness and pulled the strings as the gossip and stories of her past faded away into obscurity and her relevance amongst the aristocracy dwindled down to nothingness. It was nothing like the flamboyant Marjolaine he remembered years ago and he was unsure of what to make of it. She rarely allowed herself to be seen with her two proteges and seldom interacted with the aristocracy. The only reason she tolerated him as she did was because of their past relationship.

As Gautier walked into the main room he immediately set his gaze upon Marjolaine who had not moved an inch from her spot. He watched her eyes as they shifted to his hands and over his body as she searched to see if something was amiss. Gautier smiled and walked back in front of the fireplace looking down at the book he had tossed in earlier, nothing but soot and ash remained. As he stood there he felt a pair of eyes piercing the back of his head, he didn't need to turn around know it, he could feel it. He let a few more minutes of silence linger, letting it crawl under her skin and peck away at her mind and patience. "Three quarters," he finally spoke.

"Three quarters?"

"Your payment, I will make it three quarters of what we originally agreed upon. It will be delivered here in a day or two."

"If I may be so bold, why the change of heart?"

Gautier shrugged. "I may have been a bit brash before. She is a lovely young girl, quite skillful," slowly he turned back around to face Marjolaine who looked as if a immense weight had just been lifted from her shoulders. "Though the whole hidden dagger thing is rather trite, would you not agree?"

Marjolaine smiled. "Once must always be prepared."

"Well try to ween her away from that, hopefully we can prevent another incident such as the one tonight from happening again. I do also suggest you keep a leash on her for now, she was not what one would consider discreet."

"I will have her perform some simple work for a time until you assure me she is safe," Marjolaine said.

"That will be fine. Now, we need to find whomever it was that circulated this information."

"Do you not already know?" Marjolaine asked.

Gautier shrugged. "For certain no, but I have a suspicion. If they were still breathing it would have been easier to confirm this suspicion but since this is no longer the case."

"How do you know they simply did not steal it?" Marjolaine interjected.

"It is obvious they did, going by their appearances they had been in hiding for a time. How they came about it I do not know, but it is obvious they knew who had it and what it was. The only bit of knowledge on any of the three was that one served as an agent for a Bann in Ferelden, but it was not one we had any dealings with."

"Who would have had such information?" Marjolaine asked, intrigued by the situation.

"I do not know, my father dealt with everything personally and I was not privy to who knew what or which people received certain details," Gautier paused a moment as he played out a few different scenarios in his head trying to make sense of what little there was. "Someone has conspired against my family, that I know for certain."

Marjolaine eyed him with a quizzical look. "That seems to be a rather bold assumption. They could have simply stumbled upon whomever had it, taken it, and figured it out for themselves."

"No," Gautier said. "I do not believe that to be the case. They knew far to much to have simply stumbled upon it and put it all together."

"But you said yourself it is obvious they had stolen it, one does not hide in the wilds for months on end unless they are forced to."

"They could have been contacted by whomever had it in their possession. They could have been informed of what it was, perhaps tasked with something surrounding it and decided it would be more profitable for them to just take it for themselves and blackmail me."

Marjolaine chuckled. "So you truly believe there is some plot against you rather than this being a case of some petty thieves turning into extortionists?"

"Why not?" Gautier asked. "That information was quite damning for my family as well as several others. This isn't something one just happens to stumble upon and instantly puts as all together, there are no actual names listed only seals and stamps and no Fereldan would know who's is what. It is true I do not know exactly how they got involved, they could have been hired on to deliver it somewhere, escort someone who was tasked with it, perhaps a bard stumbled upon it and they swiped it from them," he smiled at Marjolaine. "Surely you know nothing of that."

"Of course not," Marjolaine snapped. "I have nothing to gain and far to much to lose from your downfall. But you know this and you apparently already have a thought to this conspirators identity."

"A thought, yes," Gautier replied with a smile. "I will find out for myself if this thought is indeed correct and if it is," he paused a moment and leaned up against the mantle of the fireplace, staring once more into it's embers. "I want them dead. I want their family to sit there and watch them die a slow, agonizing death. I will brook no traitors amidst my graces and I want that to be known. Anyone who takes even a false step in my direction will suffer."

"I thought this was not what you wanted on your hands," Marjolaine said with a smirk.

"I hold no qualms of shedding the blood of those who deserve it," Gautier said, signaling for Alesax to follow as he walked as close to Marjolaine as he would ever allow himself to be. "It is late and I am tired so I shall take my leave. I do have a nasty little mess to clean up after all and I should attend to it before the hounds of her majesty sniff it out and start dragging the bones home," he shot Marjolaine a light smile as he started making his way out of the main hall. "I may have something for you in a couple of months and I would advocate laying low until that time comes but Maker knows it would do no good so until then adieu my fair lady."

Marjolaine watched the two men walk around the corner and disappear behind the stone walls. She let a few minutes slide by and then hurriedly made her way towards Leliana's room, curiosity catching the better of her. "Why are you still awake?"

Duralle stood near her door, his back up against the wall and a smile across his face. "My apologies. I was simply checking on Leliana. Gautier did seem rather upset and, well."

Marjolaine scolded him. "Do not concern yourself with her." The man gave her no acknowledgment, instead he simply passed her by and walked down the hall to his room. Once he was out of sight she slowly opened the door and walked in. Immediately she set her eyes on Leliana, the young lady sitting at the edge of her bed twirling a blade in her hand, a lost and bewildered look in her eyes. "What did Gautier do to you?" she asked bluntly.

Leliana looked up at her with a moiety smile. "Talked," she spoke with soft words.

"What about?"

"Tonight." Leliana paused as moment as she debated weather or not to press on. "Why did you ask me to kill them?"

Marjolaine sighed and sat besides her, snatching the blade from her hands and setting it down to the side. "It had to be done," she stated simply.

"Why though? Lord Gautier said," Leliana dropped her face into her hands as she tried to turn her thoughts into words. "You told me they had to die," her words muffled by her hands.

Marjolaine rested a hand on her back sensing her uneasiness. "I know, forgive me," she spoke quietly and she stroked her hand across Leliana's back trying to calm her. "You must understand though, there are times when we must take such drastic actions. I wanted you to experience this first hand, I wanted you to learn young so you would better understand and accept this."

Leliana raised her head and faced Marjolaine, comforted by her warm smile and empathetic expression. "Why them?"

"They were nothing but vagabonds, scoundrels of another land blackmailing and extorting our nobility. These were not righteous men Leliana, they were scum and knaves who challenged the wrong people. They took a blind step into the wolves den and for that they were punished. The punishment I chose just happened to be ideal for a lesson given their circumstances."

"I still don't understand," Leliana muttered softly. "Surely nothing they did warranted death. Lord Gautier said as much."

"Hush Leliana, you act as if you have known these people your whole life. As I said these are not righteous men, none of the people we conduct business with are righteous. They connive and conspire against one another, doing whatever they must to put themselves ahead of those who should be their friends and allies. One must reap what they sow and at times we are asked to see that come true," Marjolaine paused a moment to gauge Leliana's reaction and acceptance of her words. "I understand what you are going through, I felt lost and confused as well when I was asked to end ones life for the first time. It just seems like such a despicable and unnecessary act. But overtime you come to learn it is simply done out of necessity and you come to accept the fact that as misguided as it may seem, it is the right thing to do."

Leliana nodded her head. "And Lord Gautier?"

"Do not worry about him, he is my problem not yours." Marjolaine put her arm around Leliana's shoulder and pulled her close. "I know there is more to this then you originally thought, but know it is people like us who keep Orlais from crumbling beneath the arrogance and pettiness of the aristocracy. We use our services and skills to serve and assist the nobility but we also keep them in check, doing what must be done for the greater good, for ourselves, and for others. Do you understand?"

Again Leliana nodded and smiled. "I understand."

"Good. You are a beautiful and talented young lady Leliana, and more importantly you enjoy what you do. I see you, I can tell by the way you smile and laugh when in the company of lord or lady, the thrill you feel and the look in your eyes when you realize they are yours to do as you wish, oh how you love it. You have just learned so much in our years together and I am so proud of you Leliana," Marjolaine released her and slowly rose off the bed. "Now get some rest and put this night behind you. Tomorrow I will give you some coin and the day will be yours to do as you wish."

"Thank you." Leliana watched Marjolaine walk out and close the door behind her. She rose from her bed and put out the candles lighting the room and removed her robe before laying down in her bed and wrapping herself in the covers, turning her head on the pillow towards the small window where a faint glow could vaguely be seen. Day was breaking, light slowly ebbing away at the darkness engulfing the world around her. A smile crossed her face, a real smile, the first since she had taken the lives of three men she knew nothing about. But this night was finally coming to an end and everything seemed as if it would be alright. Perhaps Marjolaine was right; no of course she was right she had never steered her wrong before. Still, she found it difficult to drift off to sleep. This had been the longest night she could remember and as exhausted as she was she could not force herself to sleep. Faces and words continued to haunt her mind, images clear as a picture coming about whenever she closed her eyes. Leliana laid their still and silent, staring out the window and admiring the coming dawn.

Eventually her exhaustion enervated her enough that she drifted off to sleep, a night of sin and blood dying away with the last of the evening stars.