Sam smiled, a genuine one instead of a smirk when he said she was fishing for compliments. He was grinning, too. It was the first time she'd seen him really smile beyond his smirking and wicked grins. It was sort of handsome. If you liked that sort of thing. "Yeah. Maybe I am. I don't know, sometimes I like a good lie. They can be a nice confidence booster, and I think I'm going to need as much of it as I can get." The smile slipped a bit as he continued speaking and she thought about the ragtag group behind her. She knew that they couldn't convince anyone of anything on their own. But would they really follow her? Would the people of this world really listen to her? He was right about her having fear. She had a lot of it. But despite the fear she couldn't stop herself from letting out a small laugh when he spoke about his sword. "Me? Wielding a sword? That's a scary thought."

For the first time since she had left the fire Dorothea called out to her. And Sam turned away from the Marshal to look back at her. "Yeah, in a minute!" She looked back at August and was quiet for a moment. "You know you're not half bad when you aren't acting like an evil asshole. I want to believe you. But I don't know if I can." Sam glanced down, the corner of her mouth twitching up into a half smile. "I won't tell Dorothea, though. About you secretly working against the queen. Even if it is a lie." She nodded down at the cloth hanging around his neck. "I'm going to have to put that gag back on you." Sam hesitated, searching his face again for any sign of deception but not seeing any. She just didn't know. "Goodnight August." 

She reached forward and regagged him before rising to her feet and turning around back towards the fire. Her expression was troubled for a moment but when she got closer to the cat and the dwarves she wore a smile. "Pretty sure he was playing me the whole time," she told them with a shrug, reassuring them that everything was fine. But she discreetly glanced back to look at where August was tied up when the dwarves weren't looking, curiosity in her gaze. "It's been a long and trying day," Sam said, brushed her hair back behind her ear when she looked back at the four of them, smiling tiredly. Her exhaustion was completely genuine. "Where can Dorothea and I sleep?"