Tyaethe was brought out of her confused stupor by the half-dwarf's ribald comment. In the general scheme of things, she wasn't actually opposed to such observations. Given their surroundings it went from 'amusing but blunt' to 'when did she start drinking?' Of course dwarves were stubborn and hard-headed, so any reprimand would require a little more emphasis than normal.

Hence stretching and cuffing the girl round the back of the head. "We're knights and [i]not allowed to say that at balls.[/i]"

Draining the rest of her beer in a move completely counter to her reprimand, Tyaethe's eyes fixed once again on the princess. Gillian was currently holding her attention but it would be a poor idea for someone so mercenary to report on the knights' actions, particularly as he had no reason ti display the necessary loyalty to the captain. Resolved to prevent any miscommunication, the undead paladin used her small size to slip through the crowd, gain another beer, and squeeze to the princess's size. There was some elbowing involved and the threat of being poked 'by accident' with a sword but overall, nothing disruptive.

[h3]"The Captain had a highly successful first mission, surrounding and exterminating the bandits, and getting the better of the Three Hundred-Man Slayer in her first experience of real combat. The lone casualty was to the hands of that vile fiend,"[/h3] Tyaethe proclaimed, nodding authoritatively, [h3]"The only time any knights were placed in jeopardy were those who thought to act [I]outside of their ranks[/I]."[/h3]

Speech over, the paladin hoped that the princess would recognise her despite the odd size. Her sword [I]had[/I] to be quite well known...