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

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow walked back around to the front of the inn and stepped inside to find Penelope waiting for him in the lobby. He smiled tiredly as he approached her, glad to have a moment alone with her before they rejoined William in the room. After she spoke up, he nodded, “Seems that way.” He leaned in to meet her lips as she kissed him. Wrapping his arms around her back, he pulled her close to himself, although, being conscious of his wound, he made sure not to bring her close enough to brush against his chest. It felt good to be able to kiss her like that after everything they had just gone through. He pressed into her passionately despite his weariness.

When they parted again, he laced his fingers with hers and planted a kiss on her cheek. “He better be,” he snorted. “I took a knife for him today. I think that deserves at least grudging tolerance.”

Crow walked with Penelope down the hall that led to their room. When they reached it, he opened the door and was amused to see that William had taken up the bed closest to the exit, leaving the two remaining beds that were next to each other for the others. While he knew it probably had more to do with the fact that the older knight seemed to prefer to sleep near the door than it did with him promoting his comrade’s relationship with a thief, Crow was glad he wasn’t going out of his way to keep them apart.

He let go of Penelope’s hand and stepped over to claim the bed by the window. Sitting down on the edge of the mattress, he bent forward to take off his boots, wincing as the movement caused the wound in his side to strain. He was quick to remove the shoes so he could get out of the uncomfortable position. Once he was done with that, he laid back on the bed and let out his breath in a long exhale. He could feel the various aches in his body subsiding a bit as he relaxed against the soft mattress.

Crow pulled the warm blanket over himself and closed his eyes, already beginning to feel himself slipping out of consciousness before he even finished settling down for the night.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope nodded her head in agreement before turning to head down the hall to the room. As they stepped inside and he let go of her hand, she walked off towards the remaining bed and sat down, proceeding to take off her boots as well before settling down for the night. She laid back on the bed and closed her eyes peacefully. After the day they had gone through, the knight was tired and the softness of the bed soon had her drifting off to sleep.

--

The next morning seemed to come all too soon. Penelope began to stir as faint morning light filtered in from the window. She opened her eyes and let out a sigh, reluctant to get out of bed. Finally summoning the energy, she sat up, wincing slightly as the movement stirred a dull ache in her body, reminding her of all that had happened the day before. Letting out a small grunt, she got up to her feet and glanced around the room at the other two. She debated waking Crow up for a moment, thinking about trying to give him more time to sleep but then heard William beginning to stir as well and decided he wouldn't get much of a chance now that William was waking up.

She turned and stepped over to Crow's bed lightly tapping his shoulder to wake him up. "Time to get up." She murmured.

[Rogue Sloth]

For Crow, the rest was very much needed. He slept soundly throughout the night, drifting into a little deeper of a sleep than he normally did since his body was recovering from the battle the day before. So, when Penelope came over to wake him, he just stirred slightly and rolled over. “Not yet…” he murmured, burying his face against the pillow. The bed was so warm and inviting, and he was still sore from his injuries. He didn’t want to leave the comfort of the mattress until he absolutely had to.

“Get up, Lockton,” William’s now-awake voice spoke up from the other end of the room. The knight had already put on his boots and was currently inspecting the bandages on his arm to make sure they had held up overnight. “The sooner we get out of here, the sooner we get back to the king.” He stood up and walked over to stand next to Penelope at the thief’s bedside, crossing his arms impatiently. “Besides that, I want to take a look at your chest again before we go. I’m sure you don’t want to die of infection the moment you get back to your cell, hm?”

“Fine,” Crow grumbled irritably, caving at the thought of leaving such a serious wound unchecked and getting worse in the outer villages, where there were no skilled healers. He forced himself to sit up and shifted to lean back against the headboard of the bed. With a bit of effort, he removed his tunic so the knight could have access to the bandages that were wrapped around his chest.

William worked efficiently, unraveling the bandages just enough that he could take a quick look at the thief’s suturing. Curious to see the extent of the wound for himself—he had kept his eyes closed during and after the removal of the dagger—Crow glanced down at his chest. A wide laceration ornamented his right side, sewn closed with catgut strands. Even though it looked like the knight had done a good job treating him, the sight of a fresh, gaping wound in his own body made him feel sick, and he had to look away again.

“Looks like you’re healing fine,” William said brusquely as he rewrapped the bandages around the thief’s chest. “I don’t think I’ll need to check it again before we get back. As long as you don’t mess with it, you’ll live.”

“Good to know,” Crow rolled his eyes and put his tunic back on after the knight had finished redressing his wound. Now wide awake after seeing the stitching in his side, he twisted at the waist to sit on the edge of the bed and bent down to put on his boots, grimacing slightly as the motion pained him yet again.

Once he was ready to go, he stood up and turned to Penelope, “I’ll go get the horses and meet you at the front.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope sighed a little as Crow tried to avoid getting up and turned her head to look over at William as the older knight stepped up besides her. She took a small step back to give William space to inspect Crow's injury. From a distant, she eyed it as well, feeling a bit uneasy at the sight of it. Penelope had had many wounds but never anything as bad as Crow's so even she felt a bit unsettled by it.

She was relieved to hear he was healing fine though and relaxed a little at William's words. She looked over at Crow as he stood up and nodded her head. "Alright." She agreed then leaned over to press a quick kiss to his cheek before he left to get the horses. She turned and grabbed her things before moving to join William as the two knights headed out of the room. "How's your arm?" Penelope asked her comrade as they walked down the hall.

William shrugged. "Nothing to be concerned about." He answered gruffly.

Penelope gave a small nod. "Well at least we'll be back in Brerra soon." She mumbled, side glancing over at the older knight.

William gave a small grunt of agreement as they reached the innkeeper. He handed over the keys and then the two knights headed outside to wait for Crow to get the horses. "Exactly what is your plan for when we get back, Penelope?" He asked, narrowing his gaze at the female knight.

"Finish the mission and hope for the best." She responded casually, clearly picking up that he was trying to figure out what she was planning with Crow. While William was more tolerable now, she definitely didn't want him learning about their actual plans.

"Even if the king had poor judgement, surely he wouldn't allow him to rise all the way to the status of nobility." He scoffed.

Penelope paused before letting out a soft sigh. "Maybe not... But we have to at least try." She said, lowering her voice with quiet determination. It was all an act of course, one William luckily seemed to buy. He snorted at her words and shook his head still disappointed in her decision. Luckily, William didn't seem to even consider that Penelope would be willing to leave behind her noble life for Crow. She shrugged her shoulders and looked ahead as they waited for Crow to reappear with the horses.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow ran his hand down Penelope’s arm and gave her hand a swift squeeze before he headed out of the room to retrieve their horses and supplies. As he walked down the hallway, he was able to take notice of his other injuries. His lower back still hurt from falling off of the horse and being landed on by Penelope, and he wondered if he had thrown it out somehow. It wouldn’t have been surprising if he had, since it had been a pretty harsh fall. Additionally, the arrow wound in his thigh that had been healing well until now had started to hurt again after all of the running he had done during the battle. Along with the various bruises he had acquired, he was going to need some time to heal from it all.

Maybe it wouldn’t hurt to pay a visit to Hazel when I get back, he thought, wincing as he arched his back to press a hand to the spot that ached. Evelyn’s daughter was the closest thing to a physician that the people of the outer villages had. If anyone could help him get better fast, it would be her. He just hoped she would be willing to treat him after everything that had happened between them in the past—She had wanted something serious while he had only been looking for a fling at the time. Ultimately, the miscommunication had caused for some hurt feelings on her end when he had moved on to the next village and left her behind.

…Or maybe I’ll just see how I’m feeling first and hope I won’t need to bother her, he changed his mind as he imagined the discomfort of facing Hazel again after years of silence.

When he finally reached the stables, Crow waited until the other travelers that were already there left with their horses before he quickly retrieved the staff and bow from their hiding place behind the hay. He stowed the stolen items beneath the saddlebags on the stallion and led both of the animals out of the shelter by the reins. He brought them back around to the front of the inn, where Penelope and William were already outside waiting for him.

“About time,” William grumbled with his usual oh-so-pleasant demeanor.

“I had to wait out the other men who were getting their horses first,” Crow shrugged nonchalantly.

William just grunted in response and stepped forward to climb onto his mare’s back.

Crow shook his head and turned to Penelope, “Ready to go, love?”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope looked over as Crow returned to them. She gave a small nod of her head and began to step up to the stallion before she suddenly paused, an thought clearly passing through her mind. She turned back to Crow and took a step back. "Go ahead and get on the horse first. I'll sit behind you today." She insisted. "This way if we have to ride fast, you won't have to worry about your wound brushing against anything and reopening it." The knight figured it would be easier for him to simply hold onto the saddle rather than her at the moment. Plus after the attack from the day before, Penelope wanted them to be prepared to flee if they had to.

Once he was up on the horse, she climbed up behind. The one trouble was their height differences which made it a bit difficult for her to see around him and also direct the horse. It led her to pressing against his back as she reached around him to take the reins in her hand and peered over his shoulder so that she was able to see ahead. Though she did enjoy their closeness, it wasn't the most comfortable of positions for her but the knight preferred the discomfort over the risk of Crow's injury getting worse.

She gave the stallion a small kick and began to follow William as they set back out on the rode again. She pulled away one hand from the reins to adjust the hood of her cloak, making sure her face was hidden as they headed back down the road. At least Crow gave her more of an opportunity to hide her face away should they come across any nosy people or knights. She let out a soft sigh and rested her chin lightly on his shoulder as she looked out at the street ahead, finding the position a bit more comfortable. "Well I see why you're always tempted to fall asleep like this." She mused quietly.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow blinked in surprise when Penelope told him to climb onto the horse first this time. However, as she went on to explain her reasoning, it made sense to him. There was no telling if or when they were going to get ambushed again—there had been no signs of the mercenary who had retreated, so he could have just been biding his time to strike again—and he definitely didn’t want to risk aggravating such a serious injury if they needed to move quickly. So, instead of protesting, he simply nodded and went along with the idea, lifting himself onto the saddle first and waiting for her to join him behind.

It felt strange to be the one sitting in front, and he wondered how Penelope intended to guide the horse while he blocked her view of the road. She seemed determined to make the awkward position work, however, as she reached around him to hold onto the reins. When she did this, he couldn’t help but notice the way she leaned into him, her chest pressed against his back, and he flushed slightly. I guess this isn’t too bad, he mused, smiling to himself as she drove the stallion to move.

As they rode down the street, he looked at the buildings around them, taking in scenery that he hadn’t paid much attention to when he had been riding behind Penelope. Now sitting in front of her, he wasn’t nearly as tempted to doze off as he had been before, and he could keep a more alert watch of their surroundings. He paid especially close attention to the side streets they passed, since those were what the mercenaries had used to catch them by surprise the last time.

Crow glanced back over his shoulder as he felt Penelope lean into him and say that she understood why he had always been tempted to sleep like that. “And you made fun of me before,” he pointed out with a soft laugh, nudging her teasingly with his elbow. “See? It’s harder than it looks to stay awake when you have someone to lean against.” He rested his left hand on her thigh and winked at her mischievously. “If you need me to help you stay awake though, just say the word.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope laughed a little at his teasing words. She smirked as he winked at her mischievously and shook her head. "I appreciate the offer but I think I'm good. I've got enough willpower to stay awake on my own.. Unlike some." She added teasingly. Her smirk faded slightly as she let out a soft exhale, becoming a bit more serious as her green gaze swept over their surroundings. "Besides, I don't think any of us can risk having our guard down right now." She told him in a more serious tone.

Looking ahead towards William, she noticed that the other knight was also more alert than before. Which was likely a good thing considering how quick he had been to dismiss the mercenaries when they had first passed them. She hoped it meant he would be more willing to listen to any words of warning now. As they rode on, Penelope found her eyelids growing a bit heavy against her will. She sat up a bit straighter, shifting her shoulders as she tried to fight off the drowsiness that she felt. Though she could keep from falling asleep, she feared the drowsiness would make her less alert than she needed to be.

"Crow," She mumbled, glancing ahead towards William to make sure the knight was far enough away, "can you tell me a bit about the outer villages? About your favorite places there."

Though she partly brought it up so she would have something else to focus on rather than the warmth of leaning against him or the sway of the horse beneath her, she also generally wanted to hear about it. She had only been to the outer villages a few times in her life and usually wasn't there long enough to remember anything significant about it. Most talk of the outer villages she heard was negative and made the entire area seem uninviting. However, that wasn't the case when Crow mentioned it. Though he acknowledge the negative parts, he also viewed them as home and Penelope could see his fondness for them and its people. It made her curious and a bit eager to learn about what would be her future home.

[Rogue Sloth]

“What are you talking about?” Crow rolled his eyes. “I stayed awake. Barely, but it still counts.” As Penelope’s tone turned serious, he nodded and looked forward again, performing another quick sweep of his surroundings. She was right. After what had happened yesterday, they needed to keep a closer watch for mercenaries. He absently brought a hand to his chest where he had gotten stabbed by the dagger. The last attack had been bad enough. If they got caught by surprise again, he wasn’t sure they could survive, let alone fight the ambushers off without adding to their injuries. They needed to be prepared to run if anyone came at them today.

After a while of riding in silence, Crow heard Penelope murmur his name from behind. “Hm?” he glanced back over his shoulder again to see that she seemed to be having trouble staying awake. Her eyes weren’t as wide as before, and she appeared to be forcing herself to sit up straight. He bit back a smile. Even though he knew it was risky for any of them to be so tired, he couldn’t help noticing how cute she looked when she was drowsy.

As she went on to ask him about the outer villages, he drummed his fingers on his leg, taking a moment to think about how to answer her question. “There’s a lot I could tell you about,” he said, peering back at her again after casting a quick look towards William to make sure the knight was too far away to eavesdrop on their conversation. “Let’s see… The outer villages as a whole make up a large portion of the kingdom, based on the maps I’ve seen. I’m most familiar with the villages in the north though, since that’s where I lived most of my life.

“Growing up there was quite the experience. Every village has a unique culture and type of people that live there. Because resources are scarce, most of the people travel a lot between neighboring villages to trade goods, but even in the midst of all of the trading, everyone retains a sense of pride in their own home village and carries on its traditions.

“Honestly, most people take so much pride in their homes that they never move from the houses they were born in. It isn’t uncommon to see three generations of a family living in the same place, assuming the oldest generation lives long enough to see their grandchildren. This is partly because it takes too much time and money to build new houses, but it’s mostly due to the fact that family is held highly by the villagers. With no money or material possessions, family is the most important thing in most of their lives.” He shrugged. “Of course, my experience was very different.

“Since my mother had been shunned from her home village because of the rumors my father had started about her, she was forced to uproot her life and move to Myrefall, where no one knew her name. As you can probably guess, doing something like this is no easy task in the outer villages. She left behind everything she knew—her friends, her culture, and even what remained of her family—to find a fresh start somewhere else.

“Long story short, she managed to find a family that took her in until she had me. She was accepted by them for a while, but eventually, they found out she had been stealing from the knights in the village—she had been a thief ever since she left her home village—and they kicked her out for fear of drawing attention to themselves. That’s why I didn’t grow up with any other family besides her. We were on our own as far back as I can remember.

“I don’t feel like I missed out on anything though,” Crow smiled to himself as he thought about his childhood experiences. “I may not have had a large, close family, but I had more adventures than most peasant children could boast of. Since I had to take care of my mother in her illness, I traveled around quite a bit to steal and barter for the things we needed to get by. I also had a lot more time to use however I pleased, since I had no familial responsibilities aside from bringing my mother basic necessities. I met many travelers from other kingdoms, which was how I learned their languages, and I got to know a lot of the people who lived in Myrefall while I was out exploring on my own.” He chuckled softly. “You know, looking back on it, I think a lot of them were trying to help take care of me in their own way, since they all knew I was the son of a sick, single mother.

“Anyway, I didn’t really start moving around to different villages until after my mother passed. With no one left in Myrefall to tie me down, I went on to live in a lot of different places throughout the rest of my youth. Although, I think a couple of my favorite villages outside of my home town would have to be Farhill and Silverpool.

“Silverpool was the place we stayed near the border, where Evelyn runs her tavern. That village was a great place for me to live, because the people there are the most accepting of thieves that I’ve come across. Incidentally, that was also where I met Eligius, because we were being harbored by the same family. Whenever I was on the run and needed somewhere to hide, that was my go-to village.” He glanced back at Penelope and smirked devilishly. “The knights in the outer villages never found out I was hiding right under their noses the whole time!”

He turned back around in the saddle and leaned a little closer to Penelope as he went on, enjoying the fact that he was able to share his past with her so freely. “Aside from that, Silverpool is a fun place to live because of the local culture. The taverns are always lively, and the villagers host dances every season. It’s nothing like the ballroom dances that nobles put on, from what I’ve heard about those. In Silverpool, there’s a lot more drinking and a lot less formality. Everyone just shows up to have fun and forget about their responsibilities for a day.

“Farhill is one of my favorite villages for completely different reasons. The people there are just as friendly, but they’re more reserved than the villagers of Silverpool. They’ve taken me in on a number of occasions, but only under the condition that I keep my head down while I stay with them. Like the family my mother stayed with all those years ago, they don’t want to risk drawing attention to themselves and having issues with the local knights. It makes sense, because they aren’t far from the town I told you about that got ravaged by the tax collectors.

“Anyway, the reason why I love Farhill is because it’s located in the middle of the woods, next to a lake. It’s absolutely gorgeous during every season. I used to stop there whenever I wanted some peace and quiet in between large heists. I also enjoyed the culture, even though the people aren’t nearly as rowdy as they are in Silverpool. They’re a more down-to-earth bunch who can enjoy a good dance and drink, but prefer to put on community dinners, where everyone contributes the few ingredients they have in order to feed the whole village. They also serve some of the best fish I’ve ever had.”

He looked back at Penelope once more with a bashful grin. “I was thinking… When you come to the outer villages, we should stay there for a while. I think you’d really like it. Farhill is beautiful, and I’m sure the villagers would love you.” He shifted slightly, feeling a bit sheepish about sharing the plans he had been making out loud, though he wasn’t quite sure why. “What do you think?”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope listened quietly as Crow began to tell her more about the outer villages. Most of what he told her was rather new information and came as a bit of a surprise to her. Especially the part of how different the cultures were in each town. Even though she had occasionally traveled to the outer villages during her time as a knight, she usually was never there long enough to really notice the changes in the various towns.

She had assumed that they were like the inner towns of the kingdom. The inner villages of Brerra were virtually all the same. Nobles didn't change from one spot to another and neither did the culture they had. It gave a sense of unity among nobles that Penelope was beginning to think also took away from the unity of family that Crow described the outer villages to have. Though nobles didn't completely disregard the value of family, she doubted it was as highly valued, partly from her own experiences with less than accepting family members.

She looked over at Crow and smiled to herself. The knight found it rather cute how he seemed to really enjoy speaking about his experiences and the outer villages. It actually made her feel a bit bad for not questioning him about it sooner. She supposed she was usually reluctant to ask him about such things since she had grown used to not pushing to learn more about him, even despite how much he had told her and how open he was now. I shouldn't hesitate about that anymore... His secrets have become mine anyways. Penelope thought.

Her gaze swept over their surroundings again as they rode before looking back over at Crow, catching his bashful look. She was a little confused as to why he was giving that expression at first until he went on to talk about their future plans. Penelope looked at him affectionately. She wasn't sure why speaking about the ideas he had been making for their future made him bashful but she found it rather endearing. "I think it sounds lovely." she murmured, pressing a kiss to his cheek. "I'm looking forward to seeing it for myself. It sounds very different than what I'm used but I don't think that's a bad thing."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow’s heart fluttered with excitement as Penelope said she was looking forward to seeing the outer villages. A small wave of relief washed over him, and in that moment, he realized that he had been nervous to speak to her about his plans because he hadn’t been sure if she would be find his description of the outer villages appealing. After all, she had grown up around wealth and prestige. He found his home charming in its own humble way, but it was hard to compete with the golden manors of the inner kingdom. He was glad she was looking forward to going to Farhill with him in spite of the luxurious environment she had grown up around.

“You’re going to love it,” he promised, turning a bit more in the saddle to return her kiss and grinning eagerly. “I’ll show you my favorite places by the lake. I found a few especially beautiful ones that I don’t think anyone else in Farhill knows about.” He could feel his excitement bubbling up at the thought of sharing his world with her, and he forced himself to reign back the sudden burst of emotions. With William riding only a short distance away from them, he didn’t want to give away their plans and give the older knight a reason to keep a close eye on them again. So, even though he was more than happy to talk about the outer villages with Penelope, he went on to change the subject.

“I think I’ve spoken enough about myself,” Crow leaned back against Penelope and rested his head against her collarbone, smiling up at her playfully. “Why don’t you tell me more about life in the inner kingdom? I don’t know much aside from the few things that have been told to me, and some of the details I’ve overheard from knights.”

While he wasn’t overly fascinated by noble life in general—from what he knew already, it seemed dull—he did want to learn more about the background Penelope was coming from. He wanted to know what her childhood had been like, what interested her, what she did for fun, and other such things. In learning more about her, he hoped to be able to better meet her needs when she came to join him in the outer villages.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope returned his grin with a smile and nodded her head. "I can't wait to see them." She said with a soft chuckle at his eagerness. His excitement rubbed off on her, making her feel rather eager to finish the mission and return back to Crow after. Though the outer villages wouldn't be the home she was used to, she was hopeful of finding her place there alongside Crow. She glanced down at him as he leaned back against her. "Alright." She mused with a nod. The knight paused as she considered where to begin about the inner kingdom, the place she knew as home. "I guess I haven't really spoken much about what my life is like aside from my job, huh?" Penelope mumbled with some amusement at the realization.

"Well, I'm more familiar with the towns closest to the castle on the north side but I've been to a few towns on the west and south sides as well. They're all basically the same. Different place but same culture. Families tend to pretty big in size and usually they all live on what's called the family manor. It's usually a large plot of land with an estate where the family members all live. Grandparents, parents, aunts, uncles, children. It's huge so it can usually fit everyone. Though it's not unheard of for people to move out to get their own space of land. Plus when marriage happens, women tend to leave their family homes to join their husband's or the couple gets a separate home.

"My hometown is Bellmare. It's the town right beyond the castle walls so it makes it easy to travel to and from. The Vermillions are a pretty wealthy family, the head of my family is a baron. Every family has a head of the family. He's the one who runs the estate and basically oversees family business. For my family, it's my father's younger brother. It would have been my father since he was the first born but well, after what happened with my mother and being banished from the family for a short time, he was just lucky that my uncle still cared about him and Layth enough to let us back in. He just focuses his anger about the past on me since it's easier than him getting angry at someone he cares about." Penelope paused before giving a sigh as she thought about her uncle. "Family for us is a bit complicated... Nobles are powerful but their status, be it socially or economically, is fragile so sometimes people get scared about losing what they have and it can cause them to turn on the people they care about if it means preserving the life they know."

The knight gave a small shrug. "I know that sounds a bit... harsh but it's really not that bad. It's not too hard to make a decent name for yourself so long as you know how to act properly. Nearly all nobles are born into their status so it's rare for situations like that to happen anyway. My father happened to step out of line and didn't intend to back down." Penelope smiled a little to herself as she looked down at Crow and added in half-hearted amusement, "Guess I'm a chip off the old block." Though, she hoped she'd have far better luck with her decision than her father had.

"Anyways, life in the inner towns can be pretty enjoyable too. I know that might be hard for you to believe," She teased. "but it's true. People there tend to celebrate a lot, there's always parties or balls held for various things going on. Weddings, births, successes, sometimes they just throw something together to show off their wealth. Though there's also a bit of politics and business moves made at these, it's still pretty enjoyable. Good food, some drinking, even some games. Oh! And dancing. I'm not sure what that's like in the outer villages but the dancing for nobles is usually slow and elegant.. I haven't really participated in it since well, I never learned but those that can dance properly nearly look like they're floating.

"But what I did learn is how to joust." She grinned proudly. "Along with parties, knight families also hold tournaments during free time. It's a chance to show off your skills, whether they lie in archery, swordsmanship or jousting. It's fun to compete and test your skills. It often helps with getting recognition as a skilled fighter too." As she spoke more about her life, Penelope felt a small hint of sorrow at the thought of leaving it all behind. It wasn't perfect but it was still what she knew and even enjoyed. However what made her feel more sad was the thought that she'd never be able to share her world with Crow. Though, even if by some miracle he was able to be a noble alongside her, Penelope had her doubts that he even would be able to enjoy the life that she had.

Trying not to focus on the negative feelings that erupted from her speaking about her soon to be old life, Penelope focused her gaze back on Crow, her grin fading into a small smile. "I know it's probably not a place you'd find very enjoyable, especially with how some of the people act, but I do like the inner kingdom despite it's issues. It's lively and elegant."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow continued to lean against Penelope, making himself comfortable as she began to tell him about her life in the inner kingdom. It was interesting to him how some aspects of noble life were similar to that of peasants in the outer villages, such as the large, communal housing many of them shared. However, as she went on, it sounded to him like nobles cared more about having impressive family clans than they did about living together simply to be close. Of course, he couldn’t say for sure without seeing how they interacted, and he knew he was biased, so he didn’t say anything on the matter.

He was interested to hear the history of her family specifically, since it seemed like they were powerful even when compared with other nobles. He was surprised to learn that her own father had been first in line to be the next head of the family and wondered if that would have any influence on the Vermillions’ interest in keeping Penelope from leaving to be with a thief. If their wealth brought them as much power as he imagined, it was going to be difficult to get away from their influence for a while.

As she went on to describe how nobles had to act in certain ways to keep their statuses, he frowned slightly. This was one subject he knew at least a little bit about. It was one of the least appealing parts of nobility, in his opinion. Generally, peasants could do and say as they pleased without too much fear of rejection. Even as a thief, he had met plenty of people who didn’t look down on him because of his life choices. Everyone in the outer villages knew that life was too short to outcast someone just because they disagreed with them. It was a very live-and-let-live type of culture, and it was the type of culture he preferred.

Crow smirked at Penelope when she said she took after her father. “I’m glad you did,” he said, planting a swift kiss on her cheek. Aside from the fact that the journey had been much more enjoyable to him with her for company, he was excited to have found an unlikely companion in the knight. It was curious to think how much his life and plans had changed after meeting and falling in love with her. For one thing, he never expected to ever want to settle down, but now the desire felt almost natural. He also never thought in a million years that he would end up with a noblewoman. He had always thought of them as arrogant and snobby, but Penelope was neither of those things. She was different in the best of ways, and he was overjoyed that she had fallen for him too.

He listened again as she continued to tell him about the parts of noble life that she found to be fun. She was right that he didn’t understand a lot of it—formal celebrations and fighting for fun didn’t sound very appealing in his mind—but he tried his best to empathize with her excitement for it all.

After listening to her go on about noble life with such enthusiasm, he felt a little guilty for taking it all away from her. Even though he didn’t get why she liked it so much, it was clear to him that she did. He just hoped she would enjoy being with him in the outer villages even if it wasn’t nearly as extravagant as the place in which she had grown up.

“It sounds like you had a lot of fun there,” Crow said once she had finished speaking. “I’m happy to hear that you enjoyed it so much.” He took note of the way her smile had faded a bit and rested his hand on her leg, offering her a comforting smile. “I know I can’t appreciate it the same way that you do, but I do appreciate that you shared your experiences with me. Truly. I love you, darling, and I like to learn about what makes you happy.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smiled at Crow's words as he tried to comfort her. She appreciated his effort, even if wasn't quite the exact reason for her feeling a bit sad from talking about her life. It still worked a little though as it reminded her that despite what she would be losing, she would be gaining Crow and to her, that would be enough. She was hopeful that she would eventually come to view the outer villages with the same fondness that he had for them.

"I love you too. And I'm glad. I like hearing you talk about the things that make you happy too." She mused. She gave him an affectionate smirk before leaning her head in closer to his. "You light up, it's cute." She murmured against his ear, letting her lips lightly brush against his ear. She then moved to press a kiss to his lips. However, since they were still on horseback and needed to keep alert, she kept the kiss short, despite wanting to make the moment last longer.

She sighed softly and leaned her head against his as she looked back ahead. It was slowly growing late in the day as they traveled. "Guess we'll be looking for an inn soon." She said as she eyed the sky. "And from what I can tell, we might just reach the border by the end of tomorrow." Penelope thought over the journey they had made. It was strange to think about how much had changed from the beginning, how much she had changed and all the danger they had gone through together.

The knight smiled to herself as she thought back on their time together. "You know.. I think this has simultaneously been the best and worst mission I've ever had to do."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow blushed when Penelope said he lit up when he spoke of his home, both out of embarrassment at her words and the feeling of her warm breath on his ear. “I can’t help it,” he shrugged, eyeing her lips desirously as she got closer to him. “The outer villages are a great place to live. The only thing missing was you.” He winked at her as she moved in to kiss him and then met her lips with equal passion. Even though he knew they couldn’t let themselves get distracted for too long, he found it difficult not to chase after her when she pulled back again.

He contented himself by shifting to lean against her chest more comfortably as they rode on, his eyes roving absently over the side streets that they passed by. As she spoke up again, he nodded and followed her gaze to look up at the darkening sky, “We probably should, since it’s getting so late.” Lowering his gaze again to look at the town they were in, he vaguely recalled that this road was close to the marketplace where he they had first met Hartley. It wouldn’t be much longer now until they returned to Brerra.

Crow felt a mixture of emotions stir in his chest at the thought. He was excited to be so close to his homeland, but he was also sad to be leaving Penelope behind at the border. He wished there was some way that they could both leave together at the same time, but he knew she cared deeply about finishing the mission. He couldn’t ask her to go with him when she hadn’t achieved her goal yet.

“You know,” Penelope’s soft voice drew his attention. “I think this has simultaneously been the best and worst mission I’ve ever had to do.”

“The same goes for me,” Crow said with a yawn. “Although, this has technically been the only mission I’ve ever been on.” He smiled up at her tiredly as his weariness began to set in from the long day of traveling. “I can say with absolute certainty that this mission would have been much worse for me if you weren’t here, love.” The thought of going through everything with a third, strict guard rather than Penelope made him shudder. He was glad she was the one the king had chosen over any of his other knights.

“There’s an inn up ahead,” William called back to them suddenly. The older knight turned around in his saddle to look back at the others. He paused for a moment at the sight of them being so close, but then went on: “We’ll stop here for the night and continue to the border tomorrow.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope returned his smile and she gave a small chuckle. "Yeah, even I can't imagine how you dealing with a different knight would have worked out. Especially if they were anything like William." She said with amusement. The only reason they had even began to build any sort of trust or friendship in the first place was due to the promise they had made after falling into the river. She doubted there were many knights that would be willing to bend the rules of the mission or even find sympathy for Crow's situation like she had, especially due to his history of stealing from nobles.

Her attention shifted over to William as he suddenly addressed them. She noticed the knight hesitate as he caught sight of their closeness. The female knight readied herself to return any glare or unwanted opinion he sent their way but instead, she was surprised as he continued on with what he was originally saying. It seemed his begrudging tolerance of Crow also extended to their relationship.

She gave William a small nod and followed him to the inn ahead. Penelope stopped and climbed off the horse before turning to offer help to Crow, knowing it was probably a bit more difficult for him now with the wound in his chest. "Meet you inside." Penelope told him once he was off the stallion, having grown used to the routine of him hiding the staff and bow while her and William got the room. She turned and walked into the inn with William, getting a room with three beds as she was still cautious about Crow's injury.

"So this will be our last night before we reach the border huh?" Penelope mused to William.

"Yes. And tomorrow night we'll be camping." He grunted, taking the key to the room from Penelope. "So be sure to enjoy a full night's rest because tomorrow we'll have to take turns keeping guard. I'm not letting those bastards catch us off guard again."

With that said, he turned and stalked off to the room while Penelope stayed back, waiting for Crow to return.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow found it pleasant to be able to relax with Penelope even with William nearby. He was a bit surprised that the older knight was allowing them to be together, but he supposed it made sense, since he had saved William’s life, after all. The knight owed him a debt greater than simply tolerating their unusual relationship. However, Crow wanted nothing more from him, so he was content with the way things were between them now.

Even though he was comfortable lying against Penelope, he sat up before they reached the inn, stretching his still-sore back. He was relieved that they would be spending at least one more night at an inn, since he wanted to recover a little more before trying to sleep on the ground again. If he had thrown out his back as he suspected, a soft mattress would be much better for him than grass and dirt.

When they arrived at the front of the building, he slid off of the horse’s back with some help from Penelope. He stood up straight and twisted at the waist to stretch a little more before turning to Penelope with a nod at her words. As the knights headed into the inn to purchase a room, the thief took the horses around to the stables in the back as per usual. Fortunately, no one else was inside at the time, so he had no trouble hiding the staff and bow behind some bales of hay.

Once that was done, Crow turned to go back to the inn, where Penelope was waiting for him once again. He stepped inside and smiled upon seeing her. Making his way over to where she stood, he reached to take her hand in his and leaned down to kiss her briefly.

“So,” he said after pulling back to meet her gaze. “Am I sleeping in my own bed again?” He ran a hand through her long hair as he looked at her. Even though he was still recovering, part of him wanted to risk his injury and sleep next to her anyways.

[BuzzingBee]

As Crow stepped into the inn, Penelope met him halfway and leaned in as he kissed her, meeting his lips briefly. She looked up at him and nodded her head. "Yes. You still need to recover a bit more." She insisted giving his hand a small squeeze. In truth, she was rather tempted at the idea of sleeping next to him again despite the risk since they would only have one more night together before they had to split it up. It would only be for a week but she would still miss him.

"Come on, we should go to the room." She said, feeling a bit tired. The drowsiness she had been fighting off during the day was now coming back and much stronger than before after a full day of traveling yet again. She let out a small yawn and then turned to lead the way down the hall to where their room was located and stepped inside. William had once again taken the bed near the door and left the two remaining ones open for them.

She stepped further inside before turning to kiss Crow on the cheek. "Good night." She mumbled to him before letting go of his hand and walking over to the middle bed. The female knight stretched, feeling stiff from all the riding they had done. She sat down on the edge of her bed and proceeded to take off her boots before laying back on the bed. She closed her eyes, tempted to just fall asleep where she landed on the bed. A bit hesitantly she moved to curl up on the bed and throw the blanket over herself. More comfortable now, the knight began to drift off to sleep.

[Rogue Sloth]

“Alright,” Crow sighed in exaggerated disappointment when Penelope told him he would be sleeping in his own bed that night. He knew it was for the best, though. It wouldn’t be long before he needed to make his escape to the outer villages, and if he reopened his wound now, that was going to be a lot harder to do. As much as he wanted to sleep next to her again, it was more important for him to be recovering from his injuries at this time.

At least we’ll only be apart for one week, he thought as he followed her down the hallway that led to their room. It won’t be too bad.

When they stepped inside, he said a quick goodnight to her and made his way over to the bed on the far side of the room. Sitting down on the edge of the bed, he managed to take his boots off without quite as much trouble as the night before. His chest still pained him when he bent over, but it was more bearable this time. He hoped that was a good sign that his wound was healing quickly.

Once his shoes were off, he laid down on the mattress and drew the blanket to his chin, exhaling slowly as he relaxed his tense muscles from the long ride. It didn’t take long before he drifted off to sleep.

--

The next morning, William was the first one to wake up. The knight got up and went to rouse Penelope first before heading over to the thief’s bed. “Get up, Lockton,” he grunted. “We need to reach the border before nightfall.”

“I’m up,” Crow groaned, sitting up on his bed and rubbing his eyes with the heel of his palm. He was still tired, but not nearly as sore as he had been the previous day. If all went well, it was going to be a more tolerable trip to the border.

The border, he blinked as the realization of the words hit him suddenly. Tonight would be the last night before he left to go back to his home—before he left Penelope for a week. It felt so surreal. After spending a year in prison and close to a month with the knights, he could hardly believe he was finally going back to the outer villages.

I’m almost home.

With a fresh surge of energy, he swung his legs over the side of the mattress and got ready to leave, then stood by the doorway as he waited for the others.

William eyed him suspiciously, “You’re moving faster than usual. What’s the hurry, thief?”

“I’m just done with this ridiculous mission,” Crow lied with a shake of his head. “I almost died two days ago. Do you know how terrible that feels? I’m done running around in this kingdom and risking my life for a stupid, golden walking stick.”

William stared at him for a moment longer before turning away again, seeming to accept his words, and Crow let out his breath quietly. It helped that the knight still seemed to think he was just a selfish criminal. He didn’t seem to have the faintest clue about the thief’s plans with his comrade.

I might even miss his stubborn face when I go, Crow thought with an amused smirk as he crossed his arms over his chest and watched the others get ready to leave.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope forced herself up as William stirred her awake. The knight stretched and then moved to get out of bed. She glanced over at William and Crow as the two spoke, noticing Crow's sudden energy. Despite what he told William, she figured the real reason for his sudden eagerness was the approaching border. He's going home soon and also officially getting his freedom back. Of course he's excited.. She thought with some amusement.

The female knight picked up her pace and got ready to leave with the others. She walked over to Crow as the three headed out of the inn for the day. Though she didn't share his same excitement, Penelope was still eager to get out of Younis and return to Brerra. She longed for the dangerous mission to finally reach its end. The day she could relax without having to keep an eye out for mercenaries was something she was rather excited for.

She turned in the key to the innkeeper and then stepped outside with William to wait for Crow as they had done for the past few days. Penelope looked over at William and offered the older knight a small smile. "I bet guarding the castle is going to feel like a vacation after this." She mused.

"I can't argue with that." William grumbled. "The king better reward us well for all of this."

Penelope just gave a mumble of agreement before looking back ahead. Once Crow returned with the horses, she stepped over and let him get on first again before climbing up behind him. She let out a small sigh. "I wish William would let us keep the horses for the rest of the journey back.. It'd sure make it a little bit faster." She mused quietly, knowing that the older knight would likely insist on getting rid of the horses once they crossed back into Brerra.