[IC] Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow sat tensely as Elizabeth spoke with Penelope, keeping his gaze lowered to his plate as if the food was suddenly interesting. It felt strange that someone from such a distant part of his life had reappeared and was now conversing with the woman he was currently in love with. He wasn’t sure what to think about it. In a way, he supposed the situation wasn’t so different from when the knight had met Hazel, since they had a history too, but he and the herbalist had already moved on from that part of their lives. Meanwhile, Liz was an unclosed book. They hadn’t even been able to part ways properly seven years ago, since they had been interrupted by her father. He had no idea where they stood with each other now.

It won’t ever be the same though, he reassured himself, glancing up at Penelope across the table. Whether Elizabeth thought so or not, he was never going to be with her again. He just wished she had stayed put in Colchester instead of seeking him out now, so he could have avoided the discomfort of explaining it to her.

As he looked at the knight, he paused, noticing that she seemed unhappy about Liz’s presence at the table. He bit the inside of his lip. Knowing how difficult her morning had already been, he wished he could convince the noblewoman to leave, so Penelope wouldn’t be stressed by her. Unfortunately, it seemed like Elizabeth wasn’t going anywhere.

“The princess?” she mused, looking between Crow and Penelope with interest. “Sounds like you’ve got friends in high places, huh?” Turning to Crow she flashed another smile. “Although, I suppose it’s only natural since you’ve got such a high rank, yourself.” When the viceroy just shrugged in response, she went on. “You know, I was surprised to hear you even took a noble title in the first place. Last time I saw you, you were going on and on about how great it was to be a criminal with no rules. What changed your mind?”

Crow shifted his weight again. “I guess I just got my priorities straightened out,” he answered vaguely with another subtle glance at Penelope.

“Mhm,” Liz studied him. “Well, I’m glad you did, since it means we’ll be able to see each other again.” Her grin broadened. “I got a room in the castle, so I’ll be able to stay in the citadel for a while.”

“Did you now?” Crow forced a smile in return, though inwardly, he cursed whichever knight had given her permission to be a guest in the palace.

The noblewoman nodded, “I want to catch up with you, and that couldn’t happen if I didn’t get a room. Now, we can spend as much time together as we want.” Leaning a little closer to him, she reached beneath the table to rest her hand on his leg. “Of course, we don’t have to talk if you prefer,” she added in a lowered voice, casting him a coy wink.

Crow fought the urge to flinch at her touch, wishing again that she would have chosen a different time to approach him. It was difficult not to push her away when Penelope was sitting so close by. “I hate to bring down your expectations, love, but I don’t have much free time these days,” he offered her an apologetic look, discreetly pulling back from her to put some distance between them. “It might be better if you just go back home rather than waste your time here.”

“We’re talking now, aren’t we?” Liz pointed out slyly. “I’m sure we can make time if we try hard enough.”

Gods, she’s stubborn. “Perhaps,” he admitted, taking a bite of food. “I just wouldn’t get my hopes up if I were you.”

“When did you become such a downer?” she rolled her eyes, nudging him teasingly with her shoulder. “I’m starting to think I should have followed you when you left my bedchamber. You sound like you need someone to brighten your perspective.”

“I’m just being realistic,” Crow shook his head. He ate another large bite of bread, suddenly eager to finish his breakfast so he could get away from the persistent woman.

Liz pursed her lips, her blue eyes dancing to Penelope for a brief moment before returning to the viceroy’s face. “Alright then, how about after supper tonight?” her sultry smile reappeared. “If we finish our meals fast enough, I’m sure we’ll have plenty of time to catch up with each other later.”

Crow hurriedly took a drink of his water to conceal his surprise at her brazen remark. Elizabeth had been bold when he’d known her years ago, and it seemed that quality hadn’t faded at all since then. “I just remembered I have plans with Naida after supper already,” he lied, shooting her a helpless look. “Sorry, darling. It’ll have to be another time.”

“Oh,” Liz frowned and then leaned into his side playfully again. “Well, it can’t be helped. Just don’t keep me waiting too much longer, okay, thief?”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Crow said, cringing at his own words. He quickly finished off the rest of his plate and stood up. As much as he wanted to spend more time with Penelope, he was far more eager to get away from the noblewoman. He supposed they would just have to find time to meet up again later. “I’ve got another lesson this afternoon, so I should get going.” He casted the knight one more apologetic glance before stepping away from the two. “I’ll see you later.”

“Bye, Collin,” Liz said perkily, following him with her eyes as he hurried out of the Great Hall. Once the viceroy was gone, she turned to Penelope with an upturned nose. “For your sake, I hope you meant it when you said you just share a mutual friend. You may have been his guard, but I was his lover. It’s only a matter of time before he comes back to me.” She rose from her seat and smiled arrogantly. “You don’t stand a chance.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope took another bite of her food, while subtly keeping Elizabeth in the corner of her eye. This woman was already beginning to rub her the wrong way, first with how close she was getting to Crow and whatever intentions she had by trying to do so. Regardless of what they were, she simply didn't like it. Her tenseness only eased up slightly as she caught Crow's subtle glance at her as he gave Elizabeth a vague answer. Reminded of something a bit more heart warming, the knight lowered her gaze to her food as she hid a faint smile.

However the moment didn't last long as Liz pressed closer to him. The knight glanced up at the two but quickly looked away again, restraining herself from glaring at the other noblewoman. She felt a heavy flash of annoyance as the woman insisted on spending time alone with Crow, despite the viceroy's attempts to deny her. Penelope gripped the silverware in her hand a bit tighter as Liz made a rather bold comment about 'catching up' after supper. The knight narrowed her eyes at the woman but quickly looked away. The whole situation would have been a lot less frustrating if she didn't have to hold her tongue so much.

As Crow responded to her again before hurriedly finishing his meal, Penelope felt herself cringe at his words. She knew he was just saying it to keep Liz from getting any sort of suspicion but she'd be lying to say that it'd didn't leave her feeling a bit bitter. Once he announced he was leaving, she dared to look over at him, catching his apologetic look. Penelope glanced away before forcing a small smile. "See ya." she mumbled quietly.

Now alone with Liz, she turned her attention back to her food, intent on finishing it so she could hurry off to her room to sleep and avoid spending anymore time in the woman's company. However, she didn't even get another bite in when Elizabeth turned to her with a less than friendly attitude. Penelope narrowed her eyes at her as she claimed it was only a matter of time before he went back to her and that she didn't stand a chance. The knight wanted to snort at the confident words and set the record straight that the one who didn't stand a chance wasn't her. The fact that she couldn't only made her annoyance grow.

It also reminded her of Rikki, though she had a feeling Elizabeth's motives were quite different than the female thief's were. Aside from that there was also quite the big time gap. Regardless though, having yet another woman claim it was only a matter of time before he left her for them did leave a small feeling of unease. Rikki had once nearly tempted him before when they had gone quite a while without being intimate. Now that they were at the castle, they barely even got the chance to kiss let alone do anything more. Having Liz around, a woman he had a past with and who was eagerly throwing herself at him, was a bit more unnerving than Penelope wanted to admit. She did trust Crow but there was always that nagging little voice in the back of her head saying 'what if'.

She didn't want Liz to know she felt even slightly threatened though so she met the woman's gaze with annoyed look in her gaze. "Don't misunderstand, we're friends at most so do what you'd like." she snorted giving the woman a dismissive wave before narrowing her gaze on her. Even if she couldn't tell her outright that Crow and her were together or that she was even 'interested' in him, she didn't want Elizabeth to think she was just rolling over to her. "I don't appreciate the down talk though. You'd be wise to be a little more careful about how you talk to people around here."

"I was merely giving you a warning. If what you say is true then I'm sure we'll have no problems." Elizabeth smirked. "Anyways, enjoy the rest of your meal." With that, she turned and walked off, with her head raised high in an arrogant manner.

Penelope curled her lip slightly and lowered her gaze to her food. Irritated and tired, the knight no longer had the appetite to finish her food so she pushed the plate to the side and slowly rose to her feet. She hung back a bit, waiting for Elizabeth to disappear out the door before beginning to make her way out of the Great Hall as well.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow walked quickly down the corridor that led away from the Great Hall, hoping that if he moved fast enough, Elizabeth wouldn’t be able to catch up with him again. He was still thrown off from seeing her again so suddenly. He’d never expected her to remember him and even hunt him down after seven years apart. Of course, he wasn’t gullible. He knew she was most likely here because she just wanted the benefits of his new status, not because of some long awaited romance like she claimed. It was just frustrating not to be able to turn her away. Liz hadn’t known him for long, but she knew him well enough to find it suspicious if he turned down her offer for a fling. The last thing he needed was for someone else to start watching him more closely.

The viceroy sighed and ran a hand through his hair as he made his way up the stairs that led to his father’s bedchamber, slowing his pace slightly now that he’d traveled far away from the Great Hall. Though Elizabeth had proven to be stubborn that morning, he hoped she wouldn’t be determined enough to hang around him for too long. He didn’t want to dodge around her until he and Penelope could start courting. The thought of staving off the noblewoman’s attempts to flirt with him for weeks made him cringe.

She’s going to make it harder for Penelope and I to spend time together too, he realized, letting out a quiet groan of annoyance. It was already difficult enough for them to sneak around William and keep a distance when Naida was around. He wasn’t excited to add yet another person to that list and hoped it wouldn’t be much longer before they could start courting, so power-hungry noblewomen would stop trying to win him over.

By the time he reached his father’s bedchamber, Crow’s mood had waned quite a bit. He hesitated outside the door, wishing he could go back to his own room to take a nap instead of endure a lesson in a language he couldn’t even read. Between his lack of sleep and Elizabeth’s unexpected arrival, he was in no mood to learn. However, ditching the king sounded much worse, so he took a steeling breath and knocked.

There was a brief moment of silence before the door opened, revealing a familiar face on the other side.

“Ah, come in,” Hunter bowed respectfully and stepped aside to let the viceroy pass.

Crow nodded wordlessly and entered the room, taking a moment to look over the enormous space. Like last time, his father sat at the long table in the center, but to his surprise, they weren’t alone. The viceroy’s gaze wandered to the left side of the room, where a number of female servants bustled about, preparing the queen’s dress and hair. They worked on countless fabric fastenings and a complicated looking braid. It seemed like a lot of work for just one person.

The queen turned in his direction, and the viceroy reddened slightly, realizing he was staring. It was hard not to when he found the intricacy of her routine so unusual, but he forced himself to look away so she wouldn’t think his behavior was strange.

“Collin, you’re finally here,” Albin spoke up with his usual warm smile and gestured to an open chair beside him. “Have a seat.”

Eager to get away from the queen’s unnerving gaze, Crow was quick to comply with the command. He stepped over to the table and sat down, looking over the collection of papers and scrolls his father had laid out for him. Just a glimpse was enough to tell him that written Gorman was completely different from written Missenar. He didn’t recognize a single character on any of the pages. The letters were all made up mostly of lines and dots with few curves of any sort. He swallowed nervously, unsure if he was prepared to handle learning such a complex looking language.

“Just relax.”

The viceroy looked up to see that his father was watching him with an amused smirk. Albin seemed to have picked up on his nervousness and reached out to rest a hand on his shoulder. “It’s intimidating at first, but you’ll get the hang of it,” the king went on confidently. “Just don’t let yourself be overwhelmed.”

“You say that like it’s easy,” Crow muttered, looking over the mass of foreign characters in front of him again.

“I only brought all of these out to show you what you’ll be able to read by the time we’re finished,” Albin explained, turning to the papers as well. “This is what you’ll be starting with today.” Pushing aside the majority of the scrolls, the king gestured to a smaller paper with four rows of characters on it, not too unlike the one Udolf had used to teach him the basics of Missenar.

“Those are the letters and numbers, right?” Crow guessed, looking up to meet his father’s gaze.

“See? You’re understanding already,” Albin grinned. He pointed to the first and longest row, “These are all the characters used in Gorman speech.” Moving his hand, he pointed next to the shorter second and third rows. “These are special symbols to indicate tense, when you’re talking about something that happened in the past or that hasn’t happened yet at all; and these indicate spiritual sentience.”

“Spiritual what?” Crow blinked confusedly.

“The Gorman people are incredibly religious,” Albin answered. “Their writing and speech is reflective of their beliefs. You may not know this, since you learned the language orally, but the people of Gorm have syllables that they use to identify something as living, nonliving, or a spirit. To them, it is important to identify every creature and object correctly, because they believe that the gods, good and evil, can manifest themselves in human form. According to their legends, evil beings are incapable of understanding the difference between living and nonliving things, so the language itself protects them from being tricked by a malicious spirit.”

“That’s… complicated,” Crow knitted his brow as he examined the third row of characters more closely. “I think I know what you’re talking about though. I didn’t know that’s what they meant, but I noticed a long time ago that Gorman has the same syllables for words that describe creatures or objects.”

“This will be easy for you then,” his father smiled approvingly. “If you already speak the language correctly, you’ll just need to memorize the characters themselves. Now then, let’s start with the basics, so you’ll have a proper foundation to build upon.”

“Alright,” Crow nodded, feeling a little more sure of himself after the king’s words of praise. He picked up a quill from the table and followed along, paying close attention as Albin taught him about the Gorman alphabet.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope made her way to her room and hurried inside. Now alone and in the comfort of her room, the knight finally relaxed, not realizing how tense she must have been until her muscles relaxed. She wasted no time and kicked off her boots before lying down on her bed. The knight didn't even bother trying to get more comfortable before she closed her eyes. Sleep came quickly to her and she was out like a light in no time.

---

A knock came at her door, waking the knight from her slumber. It had actually been a couple hours but to a sleep deprived Penelope it felt like much less. She groaned into her pillow, clutching it tightly in her arms as if it would keep her from getting up. As the knock sounded again, she sighed and pushed herself up. She took a moment to straighten her appearance before going to answer the door. Opening it, she blinked in surprise to find Cedric waiting patiently on the other side.

He shot her an apologetic smile. "Sorry. I just came to get you for your guard shift. We're both stationed at the front today." he explained to her with a shrug.

"Oh right... Thanks." she said rubbing her eyes for a moment before stepping out of the room. She was in fact grateful for the reminder. Chances were she would have slept right through her shift if he hadn't stopped by to accompany her to the gates.

"Of course. Figured you'd be sleeping since I heard you had a night shift last night." Cedric grinned. He turned and began to lead the way towards the front gates. Penelope trailed after him. Her nap had helped some like she had suspected but she felt far from refreshed. She rubbed her eyes again, as if it could make her eyelids less heavy. It did help her feel a bit more awake though as she focused her gaze ahead. However, as she did, she noticed Cedric eying her with a look of concern.

"Still having trouble sleeping?" he asked softly.

"You could say that." Penelope responded quietly, shifting her gaze away from him, hoping he would take the hint that she didn't want to talk about it.

His gaze lingered on her for a moment longer but he eventually let out a sigh and looked back ahead without asking anymore. Instead he struck up a more casual conversation as they made their way to the front gates.

---

Her shift went by rather painlessly despite her weariness. The front gates weren't too busy aside from a couple nobles coming and going so she spent more time speaking with Cedric than anything. It was mainly casual talk about what was going on both at the castle and the warfront. Cedric seemed to be on good terms with most of the guards in the castle so apparently they often relaid news and rumors to him. Occasionally they caught up a bit on each other's lives as well. Penelope was cautious about the information she told him, often dancing around her past that involved Crow.

After having a bit of a stressful morning, Penelope had to admit that his company was a bit enjoyable. She knew she still had to be careful around him but it was nice having another friendly face to speak too. Although, it did make her wish she could have spent the shift with someone she was actually close to, such as Crow or Naida. Still, despite their history, Penelope was beginning to believe him a bit more about just looking to kindle a friendship. The way he approached her now was far different from how he had done in the past after all.

As the next guards came to relieve them, Cedric stretched his arms and then looked down at Penelope. "We're finally free." he said with a grin.

"Looks like it." Penelope agreed with a small smirk of amusement.

"So, shall we go get supper? They're probably about to start serving it right now." Cedric said as they began to make their way back into the castle.

Penelope hesitated before shaking her head. "You can go ahead. I need to stop by the Lenz's room to see if they need me for anything today."

Cedric frowned a little, seeming disappointed, momentarily before letting out a sigh and smiling once more. "Alright, well I guess I'll catch you later then. Good luck Penelope." he said as they reached the staircase.

"Thanks." Penelope gave him a small smile before turning and heading off to go to the Lenz's room.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow spent the entirety of his lesson memorizing Gorman characters and writing them in conjunction with the special symbols that changed their meanings. Like Udolf, Albin was a patient teacher who didn’t get short with him whenever he mixed up the characters. He found that he appreciated being taught by someone who had held the same position he was training for now. His father knew just the right way to explain everything about Gorman to him so that it all made sense. He supposed he shouldn’t have expected anything less though. After all, the king used to have an apprentice two years ago. He had probably already taught Abraxas everything he was introducing to his son now.

The lesson itself went better than Crow had hoped, but he didn’t enjoy every aspect of being in his father’s bedchamber. The queen also remained in the room for the entirety of the afternoon. Her presence unsettled him, partly because he didn’t know much about her but also because he caught her staring in his direction more often than he felt comfortable with. It was hard to say why she was so interested in him—perhaps she had noticed he looked quite a bit like her husband—but whatever the case, he didn’t like the attention.

By the time Preston came to get him for supper, the viceroy was eager to leave. He felt exhausted from the effort of learning another new language and couldn’t wait to get away from Albin’s staring wife. However, he didn’t get far from the table before his father stopped him.

“At the rate you’re progressing, I wonder if you’ll even need a whole month to prepare,” the king mused, eyeing over the paper his son had written on. “You’ve already covered quite a lot of ground for just one day.”

Crow stiffened. He’d been so caught up in the lesson that he’d completely forgotten what it was for. “I don’t know,” he shrugged, trying to discourage his father from accelerating his trip even more than he already had. “I might find this easy, but I still have a lot of other skills to develop before I can go anywhere. I can’t even ride a horse.”

“I suppose so,” Albin said thoughtfully, keeping his gaze fixed on the paper. He fell quiet for a moment longer before speaking up again, “Continue to plan for one month, but be prepared to leave sooner. If you’re ready to leave for the trip at any time before then, I’m going to send you north.”

Crow wavered. “Okay,” he nodded after a pause. It seemed he’d said enough to keep Albin from pushing the journey forward right away, but the king was still considering the possibility of doing so in the future. He hoped Penelope would be able to get her plan moving faster than his father could send him to Gorm, or else the war was going to end in quite a lot of bloodshed.

With nothing left to say, he dipped his head in a curt goodbye and headed to the Great Hall with Preston. When they arrived, he looked for Penelope as usual, but didn’t see her in the crowd. He frowned, hoping she would show up soon. Since their breakfast had been interrupted by Elizabeth, he wanted to spend some time with her at supper. His eyes wandered to an empty table as he considered waiting for her. However, in the next moment, he cringed as he imagined being spotted by Liz first. The woman had been unbearable enough with a third party around. He dreaded to think what she would do if she managed to catch him alone at a meal.

Looking over the room once more, Crow caught sight of Naida eating at a different table with a couple of knights he didn’t recognize. He chewed on the inside of his lip, disliking the idea of joining nobles he’d never met before but hating the thought of eating with Liz even more. With no better option, he made his way over to the knights’ table.

Naida saw him right away.

“Hey, Collin!” she greeted cheerily, gesturing for him to sit beside her on the bench. “Nice of you to join us.” Across the table, the other knights exchanged a nervous glance, and the princess rolled her eyes at them. “Oh, don’t. If you’d just talk to him instead of muttering behind his back, you’d see he’s a good person.”

Crow smiled faintly in amusement as he reclined at the table. It was oddly nice to have someone whose voice carried weight genuinely vouch for him. Her effort was certainly enough to get the two men on the other side of them to keep their mouths shut. He wondered if her support would be enough to get more of the nobles in the castle to start accepting him.

“So,” his sister went on, ignoring her comrades’ discomfort. “What have you been up to today?”

“More of the same,” the viceroy answered simply, looking up as Preston arrived with his supper. “What about you?”

“I had to guard the second floor today,” Naida made a face. “Day shifts are the worst around here. Nothing exciting ever happens.”

“Would you prefer to be attacked?” Crow shot her a teasing smirk.

“I don’t know,” she shrugged. “At least then I wouldn’t have to stand in a boring, empty hallway for hours.”

Suddenly, the siblings’ attention was drawn by movement as the other knights rose simultaneously from the table. Naida knitted her brow, “Where are you two going?”

The men exchanged another glance. “Audric beckoned us to join him at his table,” the one on the right said, casting her a helpless look.

“Yeah, we’ll catch up with you later, Naida,” the man on the left added uncomfortably before they hurried off to sit with the other knights.

The princess watched them go with a disappointed expression. “I don’t get it,” she sighed, resting her chin in her palm. “It’s not like you were wanted for murder or anything. Why is it so hard for them to be around you?”

“Well, I did steal from a lot of families in the inner kingdom,” Crow admitted, lifting a bite of food to his mouth. “They’re probably still angry about it.”

“I guess,” she exhaled again. “I just think it’s petty of them to hold your past over your head like this.”

“I don’t regret my past,” Crow casted her a lopsided smile and then nudged her arm. “Don’t worry about it, alright? They’ll get used to me eventually. I mean, they have to since I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.”

“If you say so,” Naida returned his smile.

With lifted spirits, the two continued to speak casually to one another, working slowly on their meals as they talked.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope reached the Lenz's room rather quickly and the couple allowed her inside to discuss a few matters. Apparently some progress had been made over the day and they were eager to share the news. Though, Penelope had a guess that it was more about certain details rather than pinning down a date for the event or other major aspects as Dimia seemed to brimming with excitement. As she sat down across from the couple, she nodded for Dimia to say whatever she was clearly eager to talk about.

"Today I reached out to a few musicians as well as some chefs from some of the more well known inns in the inner kingdom. They're very interested in catering to this party." she explained with pride. "We'll be meeting them all at the Wolfpine Inn in Bexley tomorrow!"

"Bexley?" Penelope echoed with a small frown. "Between travel and interviewing these people, it'll take all day if not more. Shouldn't we have it closer?"

"Well we can't have it in the castle." Dimia snorted and folded her arms over her chest. "The reason we're going to have it at an inn is so we can get rooms there for the night and travel back here in the morning."

"I don't know if I can make that though. I have duties that I have to tend to here at the castle." Penelope admitted.

Dimia gave her an exasperated look. "Just have someone else take care of them for the day then. It's only a day and half. Besides that, isn't this party supposed to be the most important thing for you right now? You've only got a month!"

Penelope cringed at the reminder. It was true but she still had work at the castle as a guard. Ending the war's got to come first though.. she thought with a sigh. It would be last minute but hopefully she could find someone to cover her day shift for the next two days, since she doubted she'd be back in time to perform either of them. "Alright, alright. I'll figure it out."

"Good." Dimia grumbled with a glance at Oliver, who gave a pleased nod. "We'll head right after breakfast tomorrow just meet us at the front gate." Dimia rose to her feet after Penelope nodded her head. "Well, I think that's all so we'll be heading off to supper now."

Penelope rose to her feet as well. "I'll see you tomorrow then." she mused before turning and heading out the door. The knight yawned as she made her way to the Great Hall. As she stepped inside, she swept her gaze over the faces eying for either Crow or Naida. Her gaze landed on Crow and the knight smiled faintly to herself. She was about to walk over to join him when she hesitated as she spotted someone with him.

She was quickly reminded about Liz that morning, making her tense up at the memory. However, as the figure peered around him, her worries were put to rest as she realized it was Nadia. The princess grinned and waved her over so the knight wasted no time in trotting over to join them. Nadia smirked and pulled her usual trick of leaning on the palms of her hands to block Penelope from sitting besides her. While Penelope usually felt a bit annoyed by it, she was actually glad for the excuse to sit next to him this time. The knight slid onto the bench besides him and offered the two a friendly smile, trying to hide her weariness that hadn’t improved much since the morning.

“Hey.” She greeted them with a nod as she leaned her elbows on the table.

[Rogue Sloth]

Halfway through his conversation with Naida, Crow could tell he was running out of energy. It grew harder for him to focus on what his sister was saying, and at times he missed entire portions of the discussion by zoning out. He leaned heavily on the edge of the table, absently swirling the remains of the glass of wine he’d been working on as he wondered if he had the strength left to keep waiting for Penelope. The longer he sat in the Great Hall, the more tempted he was to go back to his bedchamber and try to sleep.

It’s not like it would matter anyway, he reminded himself dully. Even if he tried to sleep, he knew he would wake up tomorrow feeling just as exhausted as he did today. The nightmares that appeared to him every night prevented him from getting anything more restful than that. He eyed the nearly empty glass in his hand. It was his second drink that supper, and he was starting to contemplate if he should have one or two more. Penelope had told him that Eldon had his patients drink to get rid of the dreams before. Though he wasn’t fond of the idea, he couldn’t help but feel a little drawn to trying it, if only to get one night of good sleep.

“Collin.”

Crow startled and looked up to see that Naida was watching him with a frown. “Sorry,” he muttered, taking a quick sip of his wine and setting the glass down again. “I didn’t hear the last thing you said.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” the princess crossed her arms. “You’ve barely been listening to a word I’ve said. Are you feeling alright?”

Crow shook his head, “I’m just tired.”

“Mhm,” his sister cracked a knowing smirk. “Lightweight?”

“Hardly,” the viceroy scoffed, finishing off the rest of his drink to prove his point. “I can barely feel it.”

“Then why are you so tired?” she tipped her head slightly, as if trying to examine him to find an answer.

“It’s just been a long day,” Crow lied, covering his mouth as a broad yawn escaped his lips.

“I thought you said you just had another lesson though.”

“I did,” he shifted slightly as he wracked his weary brain to think of an excuse. “It was the morning that was long.”

“Why?” Naida leaned forward, seeming interested in getting a story out of him.

Crow rolled his eyes, “I just ran into someone I didn’t want to see. That’s all.”

“Gods, it’s like pulling teeth to get you to tell me anything,” the princess groaned. “Details, Collin. Details.”

“Such a rumormonger,” he laughed, glancing up to give a curt nod of gratitude to Preston, who had appeared to refill his empty glass. “But fine. If you really must know, she was an old flame of mine from my youth. She approached me with interest to pick up where we left off, and I didn’t want to have an unpleasant conversation so early in the day.”

“Not another one,” Naida ran a hand through her dark hair in exasperation. “You should just be with Penelope already. Those harlots will leave you alone if they see that you’re taken.”

Crow snorted, biting his lip to keep from laughing aloud at her surprisingly vicious comment. “I think you’ve had too much wine,” he remarked, lifting his own drink to his lips.

“Maybe, but they deserve it,” she muttered sourly before breaking out in a giggle. In the next moment, she sat up a bit straighter and peered over Crow’s shoulder, grinning excitedly. “Look who it is.”

Crow craned his neck to see that Penelope had finally arrived in the Great Hall and was heading to their table. He smiled to himself, happy to see that he would have some time with her after all. “Hey,” he greeted her in return when she sat down next to him.

“Took you long enough,” Naida smirked at her friend teasingly. “Where have you been all evening?”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope chuckled a little bit at Naida's teasing attitude. "Sorry, I didn't realize I was on a timer." she said amusedly. As Naida rolled her eyes playfully, the knight went on to give her shoulders a shrug before answering her friend properly. "I had the midday shift today and after it, I went to go speak with the Lenzs to see how things for the party were coming along."

"Oh right! How's that going? Any developments?" Naida asked curiously.

"A couple... Mainly just with the planning." Penelope admitted. The knight paused as she recalled that she needed to get her two shifts covered for the next two days. She glanced at Naida and shifted a bit. In truth, she really didn't want to ask her for yet another favor since it already felt like the princess was doing quite a bit for her. Between trying to arrange for them to have the party in the castle to already planning to use her power to help convince other nobles, Naida was doing plenty and to ask for more made Penelope feel a bit bothersome. However, it was late and she was unlikely to find someone to cover her in time. She would just have to ask for one more favor.

"Speaking of which," the knight began shifting a bit uncomfortably. "I'm going to be traveling with them to Bexley tomorrow. Dimia has arranged some interviews for us at the Wolfpine Inn to figure out music and food. It's going to be a long day so we're staying the night there and coming back the next morning."

"Ooooh! Sounds fun!" Naida grinned before eagerly asking, "Can I go?"

"Well.. I was actually going to ask you if you could cover my guard shifts for the next two days." Penelope admitted with a sheepish smile.

Naida blinked and then pouted. "I guuueessss." the princess drawled then smirked mischievously. "But you owe me, Vermillion!"

Penelope laughed a little and nodded her head gratefully. "I'll pay you back somehow I promise." she smiled and then let out a small yawn. A servant returned with her food and placed the plate down in front of her. She gave a word of thanks before moving to grab a bite to eat. "So how did your days go?" she asked before taking a bit of her food as she glanced between Crow and Naida.

[Rogue Sloth]

Try as he might, Crow found it difficult to keep up with Penelope and Naida’s conversation as the two began to speak. He wanted to find out how her meeting with the Lenz’s had gone as well, but between his fatigue and the three glasses of wine he’d been drinking—despite his earlier claim, the alcohol was beginning to hit him a little harder than he’d anticipated—he felt ready to pass out for the night. His eyelids drooped slightly as he leaned more heavily into the table. Perhaps he could take a nap for a little while. If it was short enough, the others wouldn’t notice, right?

It seemed like a good idea to him, but before he got the chance to lay his head down, Penelope drew his attention with a question. Turning back to her, he paused to think before answering, “My day was fine. I had my first lesson in Gorman with father in the afternoon. Not much else happened though.”

“That’s not true,” Naida rolled her eyes. “You forgot to tell her about that woman you mentioned earlier: The one you called an ‘old flame.’”

“That’s because she was there when it happened,” Crow waved his hand.

“Seriously?” Naida’s eyes widened. “So this woman walked up to you while you were with another woman? That’s bold.”

“Liz has always been like that,” the viceroy sighed. “She’s determined to get what she wants and won’t let anyone stand in her way.”

“But you turned her down, right?” his sister pressed.

“Well… not exactly,” Crow averted his gaze, fidgeting uncomfortably. “Like I said before, I wasn’t in the mood to have that conversation so early, so I didn’t answer her one way or the other.” He quickly held up his hands as the princess opened her mouth to chide him. “I did turn her down when she said she wanted to catch up tonight though.”

“Tonight?” Naida practically squeaked. “Who on earth suggests meeting in the dark to catch up? She was obviously planning to—”

“I know, I know,” Crow interrupted her with a shake of his head. “But there’s nothing to worry about. I told her I had made plans with you already, so I couldn’t see her. Nothing’s going to happen, isn’t that right?” He casted Penelope a subtle, pleading look, hoping she would vouch for him so his sister would let the subject go.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope eyed Crow for a moment as he paused to answer her. The viceroy was looking like he wasn't faring much better than her as she silently took note of how heavily he was beginning to lean onto the table. She really hoped that he would be able to sleep properly soon. As he went on to answer her question, she gave a small nod and was about to turn back to her food when Naida spoke up. She couldn't help but flinch as Liz was brought up by her friend. The knight certainly didn't want to talk about it as the woman had put her in a foul mood that morning.

It only got worse as Crow admitted that her didn't directly turn Liz down. She lowered her gaze to her food, poking at it a bit absently as her mind recalled how the morning had gone. A bitter taste began to develop in her mouth as the 'what ifs' began to make their return into her mind. She shifted uncomfortably, struggling to stifle a frown from crossing her lips. The knight nearly missed Crow's look, only catching it from the corner of her eye. Penelope blinked, coming out of her thoughts a bit as she glanced between the two siblings.

"He did say that." she mused with a shrug as she looked across the table at Naida.

Naida pursed her lips together, seeming unsatisfied by Penelope's rather lack luster response. "I guess..but I still don't like it!"

Well I suppose that makes two of us. Penelope added silently as she pushed around the food on her plate. Averting her gaze to her food, the knight missed the mischievous glint that entered the princess's eyes.

"You know what, I think you do have plans with me." Naida's lips widened into a broad grin. "In fact, I think you both do."

Her words caught the knight's attention and she glanced up from her food to raise a suspicious eyebrow at Naida, disliking the look on her face. She was up to something, but Penelope couldn't figure it out. "What do you mean by that?"

"A dance lesson!" Naida squeaked excitedly, catching the knight off guard.

[Rogue Sloth]

Having come to read Penelope pretty well, Crow noticed right away that she seemed upset about something. He watched her quietly for a moment, noting the way it took her some time to answer his question. It was hard to tell what had made her unhappy—perhaps something else had happened to her that day that she just wasn’t telling them about—but without any additional information, he could only assume it had been Liz. He looked away uncomfortably, wishing again that the noblewoman hadn’t approached him while she was there. Whenever her ex suitors were around, he always got upset. She had to have been feeling similarly after running into someone he’d been with in the past.

Again, he added to himself with a wince. With a small circle of friends and a history of sleeping with any woman he found attractive, he knew he had a bit of a habit of keeping certain women he’d been intimate with close to him. While Liz definitely wasn’t on that list, she was the third former lover Penelope had been introduced to now. The realization made him cringe faintly. At this rate, she’s going to think I’ve got a past with every pretty face in the kingdom.

“He did say that.”

Crow turned back to the knight with a frown, surprised by how noncommittal her response was. Even though they were trying to hide their relationship from Naida, he had expected her to be a little more supportive than that. He glanced briefly at his sister when she spoke up before studying Penelope again. She was definitely upset about what had happened with Elizabeth, he felt sure of that now. What caught him off guard was the fact that it nearly seemed like she didn’t trust him either. He dropped his gaze, fighting the urge to be hurt by the assumption. After all, he didn’t really know if she felt that way. If he was wrong, he didn’t want to let his own feelings cause another rift between them.

Fortunately, Naida provided a welcomed distraction. As the princess announced that they both did have plans with her, Crow looked up at her quizzically. “A dance lesson?” he echoed bemusedly when she explained her idea.

“Exactly!” Naida grinned. She pointed at the viceroy and the knight in turn. “It’s perfect! You still need to learn to dance, and you can help him, since we’re related so it would be weird if I taught him.”

“I don’t know,” Crow said uneasily. “I think I’d prefer to go back to my bedchamber and just hope she doesn’t spot me on my way.”

“No, no,” his sister shook her head. “You said you’ve got plans with me, and now you do. Besides, if this Liz is really as persistent as you said she is, I wouldn’t be surprised if she showed up to your room looking for you. You have to come with me now.”

Crow shrank slightly in his seat, casting a furtive glance at Penelope. While he doubted Elizabeth was brazen enough to locate his bedchamber just to steal some time alone with him, he also didn’t want to leave the knight worrying that something had happened all night. He sighed, “Fine, you win. We can go with you.”

“Great!” Naida giggled. She stood up excitedly from the table and gestured for them to follow. “Come on then, let’s go to my room.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope looked at Naida with a confused expression as she declared they'd be involved in a dance lesson. As the princess went on to explain her reasoning, the knight gave a small shake of her head, already disliking the idea. Normally, she wouldn't have minded it as much—it'd likely be quite fun actually—but she was tired and she knew Crow was too. So as the viceroy tried to dissuade her from the idea, Penelope offered a murmur of agreement.

However, her resolve to avoid the late night plans wavered at Naida's next words. The knight stiffened for a moment. Surely Liz wasn't that bold though... Right? Unable to give herself a certain answer, Penelope averted her gaze from the two. Even if she did, it's not like he'd accept the offer. she told herself, feeling a bit frustrated with herself for getting overly worked up. She was pulled out of her thoughts as Crow reluctantly agreed to Naida's plans. Penelope blinked in surprise and turned to look back over at the two siblings. Despite her momentary uncertainty about the situation, she knew it was probably best for both of them to just go to bed.

"Hold on I didn't agree to this yet." Penelope said crossing her arms over her chest as she looked across at Naida.

Naida looked over at her and gave a devilish grin. "Actually you have." As Penelope gave her a confused look, the princess went on, "I told you that you owe me for taking those guard shifts so this is how you're going to repay me!" She clapped her hands together, beaming happily.

Penelope blinked as Naida pointed out that she owed her. The knight hesitated and then let out a sigh before reluctantly rising to her feet since she was unable to argue any further. Naida grinned and began to lead the way back to her room. Penelope began to follow casting a quick glance at Crow and shrugging her shoulders haplessly.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow glanced at Penelope when she objected to Naida’s plan. He was a bit surprised to hear her continue to argue, especially after the last comment the princess had made. Considering everything that had happened at breakfast that morning, he would have thought she’d jump at the chance to ensure that Elizabeth wouldn’t be able to confront him alone. Her new resolve made him second guess himself though. Perhaps there was another reason she was upset after all? He drummed his fingers against his leg contemplatively. He was so used to being the one to cause her to be upset lately that he might have made the assumption too quickly.

Naida’s response confused him as well. He looked up at her with a frown as she reminded the knight that she “owed her.” Having missed most of their conversation earlier, he wasn’t quite sure what his sister was talking about, but Penelope seemed to understand it. He exchanged a brief look with her as she reluctantly got up from the table but, too tired to question what had just happened, followed her lead without a word.

As they walked with the princess to her bedchamber, Crow had to bite his tongue to stifle a yawn. Though he’d agreed to the idea for Penelope’s sake, he still wished he could have just gone back to his own room to try and get some sleep. It was unlikely that he would actually feel well rested in the morning, but at the moment, he was too exhausted to think about it logically. All he wanted was to give in to the impulse to pass out so he would stop feeling so tired, if only for a few hours.

“Here we are,” Naida turned to them with a broad smile when they arrived at the door to her bedchamber. The princess reached out to grab the handle, letting the Crow and Penelope in first before she followed.

As soon as he was inside the room, Crow’s eyes wandered to the large bed that sat in the center. The thought of abandoning the dance lesson and laying down to sleep instead was tempting, but he knew he couldn’t do it. For one thing, this wasn’t his bedchamber. For another, he didn’t want the others to know just how tired he really was. He was sure Penelope would just worry, and he didn’t want Naida to know what was going on at all. So, pushing back against the impulse, he stepped over to lean against the footboard instead, crossing his arms over his chest in an attempt to wake up a little more.

“So,” he mused, absently letting his eyes wander over the rest of the room. “What do I need to learn?”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope followed them into the bedroom, stifling another yawn as she eyed the bed for a moment. She really wished the princess could have waited for a different time to do this lesson but she hadn't been given much room to protest. Plus she already felt bad for how many favors she had been asking from Naida lately. Fighting off her weariness for one more night would be a small price to pay for all the help she was receiving currently. Trying to wake herself up a bit more, she stretched out her back and then glanced over at Crow as he spoke up.

"Well.. I'm not sure how much you know or how people in the outer villages dance so I guess we'll just have to start with the basics?" Penelope mused with a shrug, glancing over at Naida for confirmation.

Naida nodded in agreement. "Yep! Probably start with posture and then go onto the steps." she advice before grinning and waving dismissively to Penelope. "Go ahead and start, I'll move the table so we have a bit more room."

Penelope gave a small nod and then stepped over to Crow offering him a small smile. "Posture is pretty easy. Just stand up straight and try not to look at your feet too much. It'll be difficult not to at first but it'll get easier with practice." she explained with a shrug. "So first raise your left hand and put your right arm behind your back slightly." As she instructed him, she raised her left hand, bending it at the elbow and discreetly putting her right arm behind her back for example. "When we dance, we'll press our hands together and sort of rotate in a circle. Normally there'd be music to set the pace but since we don't have that we'll just have to try and match each other's pace."

The knight looked up to meet his gaze. "Any questions so far?"

[Rogue Sloth]

When Penelope answered his question, Crow turned to her with a shrug. From what he remembered, dancing in the outer villages was quite informal, so he would have been surprised if it was even remotely similar to the way nobles danced in the castle. Additionally, he didn’t know much to begin with. When he’d been living on his own, he’d found it fun to join in the local festivities whenever dances were put on in the villages, but he didn’t consider himself skilled at the practice by any means. Then again, is anyone really “good” at peasant dancing? He smirked to himself. Usually, everyone was drunk during the dances anyway, so he was probably no worse than the rest of the villagers.

As the knight went on to tell him about the proper posture for the dance, Crow took a couple steps away from the bed. He watched her curiously while she demonstrated the stance, finding the rigidity of it interesting. It seemed like everything nobles did had to be performed in an elegant and well-ordered fashion, even when they were having fun. The thought made him want to snort but, being mindful of the room, he kept his opinion to himself.

“I think I’ve got it,” Crow said when Penelope asked if he had any questions. He casted her a lopsided grin, “It’s definitely not like the dancing I’m familiar with though. In the outer villages, the music is fast paced and everyone has a mug in their hands. This is a lot more orderly.”

“Sounds like fun,” Naida spoke up from where she was sitting by the table she’d moved for them. “But this sort of dance has its own charm too, and it’s a great way to get men and women to mingle at a party.” She shot him a wry wink.

Crow rolled his eyes and turned back to Penelope, looking over her posture once more before he moved to copy it. He held his left arm up and rested his right arm behind his back in the same manner that she did. Stepping closer to press his hand against hers, he blinked as it occurred to him that they were now facing opposite directions.

“This is weird,” he mused, turning his head to meet her gaze. “How do we dance together if we’re facing the wrong way?”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smiled amusedly as Crow told her how it wasn't the dancing he was used to. She supposed that made sense though. Nobles were a lot more strict than peasants to begin with so of course their dancing would have a few more rules. As Naida spoke up, Penelope nodded her head in agreement, missing the wry wink. A lot of the time dancing was usually a way for young nobles to meet potential suitors. Her attention shifted back to Crow as he copied her posture and then stepped forward to press his hand against hers.

"Nobles don't tend to dance closely together right away." Penelope explained with small shrug. "This is just how the dance will start. It's a formality of sorts. So imagine we're meeting for the first time. This is the beginning of our dance and we have to get a feel for each other before we go onto more complicated steps." The knight noticed Naida watching them with an eager grin. Biting back a snort, she met Crow's gaze as she focused in on him.

"So for this part we're going to go around in a small circle. However, when you walk, take a step and then bend your knees slightly." Penelope explained, demonstrating by dipping down just slightly to give him a reference. "Once we complete the circle, we'll stop and then lift our right hands and join them slightly above our heads."

"And don't forget to keep your eyes on her!" Naida piped in. "A lot of women like to dance and converse."

Penelope gave her eyes a small roll then met Crow's gaze again, smiling tiredly. Despite being dragged into this late night plan, she had to admit that she was a bit excited at by the thought of dancing with him. Though, she just wished it could have started this at a time when they weren't both tired. She let out a long sigh, suppressing a yawn. "Alright, let's try this. Usually the guy leads, but since it's your first time, I'll lead instead. This first part is pretty simple but I'll go slow just incase." she told him. She shifted to stand up a bit straighter and prepared to begin moving in a clockwise circle. "Ready?" she asked.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow blinked when Penelope said that the posture she had taught him was only the beginning of the dance. Already, he was starting to wonder if he had gotten in over his head by agreeing to learn how to dance with her in the first place. The way she spoke, it sounded like there was still quite a bit left that he didn’t know. With the addition of how exhausted he was from the long day, he could tell it was going to be difficult for him to keep up with the rest of the lesson. Regardless, he didn’t voice his concerns. It might have turned out to be harder than he expected, but he was still fairly sure he could follow along if he focused enough.

His eyes flicked toward Naida when he saw Penelope look in her direction. The sight of the grin on her face made him roll his eyes again. His sister was clearly excited to watch them dance together. He suspected she believed it would encourage them to get together if they proved to be a good match during a dance.

As Penelope went on to explain the next part of the dance, Crow turned back to her, trying to keep up with the instructions she was giving him. It was tough to do, when his attention kept wandering back to the soft looking bed behind him, but he thought he understood the directions well enough. He looked down at her legs when she bent her knees, only to be immediately corrected by Naida, who told him to keep eye contact with her at all times.

There’s a rule about everything, he thought dryly as he lifted his gaze to meet the knight’s eyes again. Despite the mild annoyance, he found that he didn’t really mind this particular instruction as much. At least it gave him an excuse to stare at her without coming off as suspicious. A faint smile tugged at his lip as he held Penelope’s gaze, enjoying the luxury of being at least a little closer to her than he was usually able to get when his sister was around.

Crow nodded when Penelope said they could try the first part of the dance together while she led. That was something else that was new to him. In the outer villages, everyone danced together a bit haphazardly, so there wasn’t a “leader.” At least, not that he was aware of. He never attended village dances regularly enough to really figure them out though.

“As I’ll ever be,” Crow grinned. Though he wasn’t sure if he would do well on his first try, he enjoyed a good challenge, so he felt ready to take it on with some amount of confidence. “Lead the way.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smiled as Crow replied, finding a small bit of her remaining energy encourage her to continue the lesson. While the dance may have had a few different rules, the knight actually quite enjoyed the elegance to it. It was one of the few things during her time under Beth's training to be a 'proper' noblewoman that she actually hadn't minded learning. Plus having Crow as a partner was certainly a large bonus.

Eager to give it a try, she began to lead them in a small circle. As promised, she went slower than a normal dance, allowing him time to get used to the first steps. She believed them to be rather simple so she didn't worry too much about keeping an eye on him. The most she did was reevaluate his posture to make sure he hadn't hunched down slightly. As they completed the circle, she began to move onto the next steps of the dance, taking a moment to curve her arm up over her head to take his hand in hers. Once they met she gave him an encouraging smile.

"Alright, now that we're here, we're going onto the next part. It's going to be a bit more steps than the last though." Penelope explained with a shrug. The knight was trying to go slow but she knew the viceroy was quite the fast learner as well as rather quick on his feet. She assumed that he could handle going onto the more complicated steps. "We're going to keep our hands together like this for now. You're going to take a step back while I step towards you. Then you'll step towards me and I'll step back. Once I step back, we're going to go in another circle but holding this position."

Penelope paused for a moment, debating how much further to go into the dance before stopping them again to explain. Deciding the next steps were more involved for her rather than him, she figured it was alright to try for a little further into the dance. "After that, we'll lower our right hands again and then I'll step back slightly to do a spin. Oh and we're still bending slightly after our steps throughout this so don't forget to keep that up." she told him. "Think you got all of that?"

[Rogue Sloth]

As Penelope began to walk him through the steps of the dance, Crow did his best to follow along without breaking the rules that she and Naida had taught him. Early on, he realized it was going to be difficult to keep his gaze fixed on her face instead of her feet. He wanted to look down at the floor to make sure he was matching her steps. However, he managed to avoid the impulse for most of it, his green eyes only flicking downward every once in a while as he focused on holding her gaze.

It turned out that the steps to the dance—the very first ones, at least—were as easy as Penelope had told him they would be. He was glad to find out that he could keep up with her easily, if only slightly behind her since she was leading. The slight bounce in their movements was new to him too, but even that wasn’t hard to do as long as he didn’t forget about it.

His gaze briefly wandered to her right hand as he caught sight of her raising it on the other side of her body, and he mirrored the motion to meet hers above their heads. The posture felt strange, but when the knight smiled at him, he returned the expression, reassured that he’d done the move correctly. Even though he had been hesitant to learn noble dancing before, he was starting to like it a bit more. It was probably just because he was able to dance with Penelope though, if he was honest. He doubted he would enjoy dancing with a woman he didn’t know nearly as much as he did with her.

As Penelope went on to tell him how to do the next part of the dance, Crow listened carefully, trying to keep up. Fortunately for him, the next part didn’t sound too difficult either. That is, until he felt the sudden urge to yawn. He lightly bit his tongue to stifle the feeling. Though he was usually quick on his feet when taking on something new, he could tell his exhaustion was catching up to him fast. He hoped there wasn’t much more to learn, because he wasn’t sure how much more information his tired mind could absorb that night.

“I think so,” he nodded, casting her another smile that was a bit less energetic than before. “I’m ready to try it when you are.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope gave a small nod in return as Crow said he was ready to try it. She pressed against his hand slightly, trying to silently indicate to step back right before she took her step towards him. As she did, the knight couldn't help but notice how heavy her feet were feeling. She had to resist the urge to drag them, knowing it would be rather sloppy form if she did. Distracted by her own weariness, she nearly missed the step back.

The knight blinked with realization and guided them backwards again to their original spot. Now more concerned about making sure she was leading correctly, Penelope barely paid any attention to making sure Crow was doing the steps right and keeping up with his posture. She found it difficult to keep a slow pace, subconsciously wanting to speed up so they would be done sooner. However, she fought against the urge for Crow's sake and kept the slow pace going.

As they completed the circle, she let go of his right hand and lowered her own back down to her side. "Just keep your left hand connected to mine and turn slightly when I move so we'll still be facing each other." she instructed, stifling another yawn. Since this part was pretty much just her moving, she went ahead and sped up the pace a bit. She moved to walk around him, giving a small hop with her steps. She gripped his hand lightly and guided it up as she spun in a circle. As she came back to face him, the knight felt herself sway on her feet. Normally going in a circular motion didn't bother, however she suspected it had to do greatly with how tired she was.

It took a moment for the knight to realize Crow was probably waiting for further instruction, but she dreaded going any further. Not because of the dance itself but rather just because of how tired she felt. Plus it wouldn't be fair to teach Crow something and not even be doing it right herself. Having made her decision, she removed her hand from his and let out a breath. "Lets take a break before we go onto the next part." she said.

"What! But the next part is the best part!" Naida whined.

Penelope rolled her eyes, knowing the princess thought that since it was the part where they would get close to each other. "We'll get to it in a moment, it's just a break." she muttered. The knight moved over to sit on the bed of the bed and let out a breath of relief at the feeling of getting off of her feet. Tired and tempted, she flopped back onto the soft bed as she tired to recover from her weariness. We'll just relax for a minute... or two She though as her eyelids slowly began to close.