"You're pretty certain about me failing, aren't you? There aren't many who'd take you on that bet in the city," she reminded.<br/><br/>Shanna was having a not insignificant amount of difficulty keeping the annoyance out of her voice. Here she was, about to kick tail and crack skull, on a journey to murder a Sorcerer-King for goodness sakes, and this person was going on and on about her clothing and her safety like an old grandmother. As<em>if </em>she was some virginal maid who had to be escorted to and from the market by a small army lest the butcher got handsy or the spice merchant peek under her skirt. Hah! And on the subject of skirts, "Why tug this down? Because I look stupid with it bunched up about my hips, silly," Shanna added with an eyeroll of such epic proportions she was in danger of spraining her eyes.<br/><br/>She demonstrated, pulling it down such that the fabric lay flat against her silky-smooth thighs, left bare above her stocking-tops, such that only at the apex of her stride did a viewer at eye level catch a glimpse of the white-clad, scandalous sights beneath. Somehow, the effect was more compelling than if she had been completely nude.<br/><br/>Her attention turned to the twins, or brothers, or uncannily similar strangers. She could not help noting their equipment: good mail, well-oiled, the links free of dents or kinks, fresh paint naturally, to cover up any previous owner's heraldry. They were also healthy and well-muscled, uncommon in this age but not enough to deter her. She had fought plenty of wretched souls in the arena: some starved to desperation to make them fight harder, others plump and well-fed from the larders of their masters, and killed them all.<br/><br/>In response to their ribald offer Shanna pointed at the two of them with both hands, then pumped the index finger of one into a circle of a finger and thumb, communicating in no uncertain terms that they could go fuck each other instead. She almost<em>wanted </em>them to do something overtly threatening. Were they mad? Did they really expect her to believe two strangers would obey the Trade Law in the middle of the desolate desert? If they had her disarmed and lying on the ground, they could very well just take their pleasure and leave her staked out in the sand, naked, bound and helpless. Shanna had no intention of even entertaining any attempt at deception from them.