The Royalty gets a Bodyguard.

Taryn nodded, although Alice couldn't see it because of the door. They looked around the room, trying to spot where the person, or whatever went. However, they became distracted when Alice enters the room.

However, the person took this moment to make their move, unaware of Alice's entrance, running at Taryn, wielding a knife.

Alice sighs and darts forward, in front of Taryn. She shoves them back a little and grabs hold of the assassin's wrist, crushing it in her grip and twisting it behind the incompetent's back.

"Not too bright, are you? And here I thought there might be some actual effort put in for once. You've dashed all my hopes and dreams. Not very considerate of you, is it?" Her knife presses up against the assassin's throat, sharp and stinging.

Taryn starts, and allows the shove, continuing to back up themselves until a wall meets their back. They had never really seen someone this up close and personal fight, if you could call it that because the assassin clearly didn't know what he was doing.

The man grunted in pain. "Fuck the royal family, I'll kill them all." he replies, well aware of the knife to his throat.

Alice rolled her eyes, pressed the knife harder into his throat until a thin line of blood beaded up against the edge of the blade.

"Really. You're going to kill them all." She said, raising an eyebrow. "You." The distaste in her voice was apparent and she held his wrist tightly enough to crush the bones together, make them creak.

Taryn pushed themselves harder against the wall, hands covering their eyes a little, although in reality they were seeing through their fingers.

The man grunted again in pain in a combination of the bones and the blood. "If not me, someone else. Fuck the royal family." He spat at Alice with the little bit of strength he could, although whether that landed or not he couldn't tell.

She moved her head an inch to the right and the glob of spit flew right past her. The look on her face was distinctly unimpressed. She added a little more pressure to his wrist, twisted, and nodded in approval when she heard a faint snap and felt the bone give underneath her fingers.

"So original. If I ask who hire you, will I get an informative answer or will you spout more trite and cliche catchphrases?"

The man yells at the break of his bones causing Taryn to flinch at the noise, and move into the furthest corner from the scene. "No one hired me, I did it for me." He said through ragged breathes, refusing to give any information.

Taryn is still shakily watching the two interact, for lack of a better word, their own fear not allowing them to think at all really. Their hands now were clutching each other rather than over their eyes.

Alice kept her knife where it was and glanced over at Taryn. Her voice softened, just a touch. "Your Majesty, I suggest you close your eyes and cover your ears. Alternately, leave the room. What happens next is not going to be pleasant." For you to see, anyway. I hardly mind killing him.

Taryn looked at her when they were addressed. They couldn't remember how to work their feet so just nodded, hands moving towards their ears. Part of them desperately wanted to leave the room, while a small part of them was incredibly curious, in some sick twisted way.

The man's gasps were just as ragged although it was very clear his pain tolerance was slipping. "Fuck the royal family" he repeated, although it seemed it was all he could maintain to say.

She rolled her eyes heavenward for a brief moment. "I didn't realize I'd ordered a one trick pony." Shoving him away from her, Alice sucker punched him in the kidney, grabbed his face between her hands, and slammed his head into the castle wall.

Hand tight around the assassin's throat she towed him over to the open window. "You came in through the window, you can go out the same way."

And she pushed him over the ledge.

Taryn looked away, covering their ears with their hands, not that that did a lot. They are shaking due to actually witnessing a death and fear even though the would be assassin is entirely incompetent.

The man yelled again at the hit to the kidneys, unable to really fight Alice off as he was dragged to the window. He tried to fight her off and failed before being tossed out the window; one arm being useless made fighting back a little difficult.

Alice peered over the windowsill, a precaution only to make sure the little guttersnipe hadn't managed to grab onto to something on his way down. The body broken on the ground informed her that no, indeed, he was very much dead. She wiped the edge of her knife on her breeches and slid it back inside her boot. "You can uncover your ears now, Majesty. It's safe."

Taryn looked over at Alice and nodded, removing her hands, which then went around themselves like a hug. At the yell of the man several servants had come by which caused Taryn to straighten up and immediately act much more proper and upright.

"Could someone dispose of the body outside my window and prep some tea for me?" They instructed immediately at two servants, who nodded quickly and scurried off after they added "I will be taking tea in my other bed chamber."

Once the servants had dispersed, their posture went back to its more terrified position, and they put a hand on the wall to steady themselves a little.

You're having feelings... I am not equipped to deal with feelings. I barely acknowledge my own, let alone the emotions of others.

"If he was telling the truth and working for himself, there's now nothing left to worry about. If he was lying and someone hired him, there still won't be anything to worry about. Firstly, because clearly if it was an organization, it was not a particularly clever one. Secondly, because I'm here and I won't let them get close enough to kill you." She said. It was an attempt at reassurance, although not a very good one.

Taryn jumps, forgetting that Alice was there. "Oh...yes, of course." They drew their bathrobe tighter around themselves, setting down the brush, realizing they were still sort of holding it. They glance at her before heading out the room, down the hall to the other room, expecting, but unsure if Alice will be following them.

'You won't let them get close enough until someone pays you enough'they thought, frowning, their fears unable to really be kept out of the forefront of their mind.

Alice followed them out the door and down the hallway, constantly vigilant in case the assassination attempt just now was a cursory run to tire her out before sending someone else even vaguely competent to finish the job. She keeps close to the shadows still clinging to stone walls, does her best to be an invisible, silent threat against intruders.

Tayrn opened the door, looking around, afraid that were might be a part two to today's already frustrating events. They entered the room, knowing Alice could probably handle anything that might happen, although it looked like no one had been in this room since the last time they had been. They moved to sit down on the bed, wondering if Alice was going to come inside or stay out, although they preferred to be around someone.

Alice slipped inside behind them, stationing herself so that she had a perfect view of the bedroom and all the potential entryways after checking underneath the bed and behind the furniture. She ran a thumb absently over the warmed metal of her brass knuckles. There didn't seem to be anyone in the room, but that didn't always mean nobody was hiding out somewhere. Still, Alice couldn't hear anyone- not that that meant much either. A competent assassin- someone on par with her- would know how to hide well enough to not be found until they wanted to be found.

Taryn sat down at the make up table, looking over at Alice. "So, can I ask you something?" they said, surprising even themselves. The situation however was beginning to nag at them. They waited for a response, a little bit frightened of the assassin who was technically their bodyguard.

They stopped looking at Alice, looking into the mirror, absently picking up a gold plated hair brush and brushing the messy hair that perched itself on their head.

Alice raised an eyebrow, but nodded, braid slipping over her shoulder. "You can. I cannot guarantee I'll answer though, Your Majesty."

Taryn sighed, "To be honest I don't expect an answer," they replied, continueing to brush their hair.

"If someone were to pay you more, would you kill us?"Taryn glanced over at Alice very quickly, worried that that was a stupid and dangerous question to ask.

Alice blinked once in surprise, pursing her lips. She didn't answer right away, mulled it over. The silence probably wasn't at all reassuring, but Alice wanted to give them as honest an answer as she could manage. Considered the amount someone would be willing to pay for the death of one of the royals, what she was paid now, and how fond she was, not of the king and queen, but of Taryn, whom she'd shadowed for some time now.

After a long, drawn out moment of tense silence she shook her head, keeping her eyes fixed on a point just above their head. "No, Your Majesty. I don't think I would."

Taryn bit their lip, waiting anxiously for an answer. They continued to brush their hair, letting the silence drag on, using the mirror to check on Alice. When she finally answered, Taryn smiled a little.

"Even if you're lying, that's sweet. But remember something,"They started. "My parents will always pay more." Taryn frowned after that, the brushing stopping for a moment 'And soon my husband.'

That startled Alice into a laugh, mouth tripping into a brief smile. "I have no doubt of that, Your Majesty."

Taryn jumped in surprise and looked over at Alice. "I don't think I've ever heard you laugh before." They set the brush down as the servant knocked for tea.

"Come in!" They called and the servant did, setting the tea down, before curtseying and hurrying away. They took the kettle, pouring two cups, offering one to Alice.