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

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow was glad that Penelope said midday would work for her. He didn’t want to wait too long before they would see each other again, and now that they were able to meet daily, he felt a bit spoiled. He also liked the time of their meeting tomorrow because he had some things he wanted to get done in the morning as well. There was a marketplace in Whitebridge, so he intended to stock up on some extra food for their journey to Aramoor as well as try to sell off some of the medicines he had stolen from the knights’ camp. After all, it would be suspicious if he returned to his own camp at the end of the week without having sold off a single one. It would be a more believable lie if he told his companions that there weren’t as many buyers as they had been expecting in Wheldrake.

As she slowed to a stop again, he followed her lead more eagerly now that he wasn’t worried that she was mad at him. He leaned in to meet her as she kissed him, relishing the feeling of her soft lips against his. Even though they were able to see each other more often, they still didn’t have many opportunities to be alone, so he intended to enjoy every moment they had to themselves. When she pulled back again, he grinned back at her, finding her enthusiasm infectious. “I can’t wait for that,” he said in agreement, touching another swift kiss to her lips. The thought of traveling with her again—even if they were joined by Olivia and Gavin—excited him. The company of the other knights was worth it to him as long as it meant he didn’t have to part with her for a few days.

“I love you too,” he smiled at her affectionately. “See you then.” As she pulled away from him to rejoin her comrades, he lingered on the edge of the road to watch her go. He was happy that even though their end to the day hadn’t been the smoothest, they had still found a way to move forward without letting his mistake hurt their relationship. He sighed contentedly, turning to head off the street into the surrounding forest as the time grew near for him to settle down for the night.

It didn’t take long for him to find a good spot to make his camp. Not far from the southwestern edge of the village, he came across a small clearing that was just far enough from Whitebridge that the local knights wouldn’t see him. Immediately, he got to work setting up his bedroll and building a small fire. Having not eaten since lunch, he was famished and wanted to prepare a quick supper for himself before he went to sleep.

He pulled a small pot from his bag and filled it with water from one of the flasks he had brought, propping it over the fire to cook some vegetables. While he waited for the water to come to a boil, he sat down by the edge of the fire and leaned back on the palms of his hands, stretching out his legs contentedly. Camping alone like this reminded him of his life before he had met Simon, Rikki, and Alistair. Even though he found it lonely in the long term, he still enjoyed the peacefulness of sitting alone by a fire at night on occasion. It gave him a chance to clear his head.

Crow lifted his gaze to the stars overhead, watching them flicker against the blackened sky. Spending time by himself also tended to make him a little more philosophical. He found that his mind often wandered to questions for which he had no answer, such as what his purpose was or whether his mother’s spirit really was watching him from the afterlife. Such thoughts tended to make him melancholic, so he put them aside, instead focusing on his excitement at seeing Penelope again the next day.

Once the food in the pot had finished cooking, he enjoyed a decent supper of vegetables and dark bread. It wasn’t the most filling meal, but it was enough to make his hunger subside for now, so he had no complaints. Standing up from the ground, he set his pot aside and tossed dirt over the fire until it went out. After that was done, he finally made his way over to his bed and laid down for the night, yawning broadly as he slowly drifted off to sleep.

[BuzzingBee]

The three knights traveled back to their camp without much issue. Though Gavin obviously wasn't thrilled that they'd still be working with Crow, he didn't protest against the plans Penelope had made and merely offered to grab the supplies while she spoke with Mia. Olivia, of course, seemed willing to go along with it and had little interest in the details. After catching the other two up on the plans, a comfortable silence fell over the three knights as they returned to their camp.

Penelope and Gavin made sure to help Olivia to her tent first. Once the other female knight was out of sight, the two parted as well and headed off to their own tents to settle down for the night.

---

The next morning, Penelope woke up early, mainly due to her growling stomach rather than anything else. The last she had eaten was the small portion she had for lunch and had ignored her hunger once they had returned to camp due to how tired she had felt from the long day. The knight got up and headed off to grab breakfast before she planned to speak with Mia. The camp was already bustling with activity. Ever since the raid, it seemed that most knights got a head start on the day, still scrambling to try and recover.

She grabbed a quick meal alone, since she didn't plan to meet up with Olivia and Gavin until later. The knight finished two bowls of the porridge that had been made—she usually didn't take more than one serving but hunger got the best of her this time— then set out to speak with Mia. She hoped that she would be able to convince her baroness to let her leave camp for a few days. The thought of it again made her heart flutter with the excitement of being with Crow for so long. Feeling renewed determination, she stepped into the baroness' tent.

Mia was speaking with Tomas when Penelope entered. Their conversation died down as Mia looked over to see Penelope. "Ah there you are. I was wondering where you've been.. You must have had a long patrol."

"I did." Penelope nodded.

"I bet. Layth mentioned something about you chasing a lead up in Whitebridge. Did you find anything?" Tomas asked eagerly.

Penelope shifted a bit and met Mia's gaze. "That's actually what I'm here to speak with you about... Yesterday, in Whitebridge, a peasant had some information about spotting the thieves down in Aramoor before he left to travel up to Whitebridge. I know that was a while ago considering how far apart the two villages are but I think there's still a good chance they're down there or that we can find a better sense of where they went if we talk to the villagers in Aramoor."

Mia paused, exchanging a glance with Tomas before looking back at Penelope. "That's the most information we've gotten from a patrol so I agree that it would be worth to check it out. We'll have to send a patrol down there."

"About that.." Penelope gave a sheepish smile. "I'd like to take the patrol I took yesterday down there."

"You?" Mia frowned. "Penelope, I'm glad you had an effective patrol but you're still a lieutenant and the camp needs you to help us recover around here too.. That's a long time for you to be gone."

"I know but can we really trust anyone else?" Penelope countered. "All of the patrols the other day failed to find any lead whatsoever and my mine did. Olivia, Gavin and I know how to work with peasants so that we can catch these thieves. If we let someone else handle it, there's a good chance they'll let this lead slip through their hands."

Mia pursed her lips together, still looking reluctant to agree. Penelope grew a bit tense with worry as she held Mia's uncertain gaze. It seemed that the baroness was still against sending her even despite the argument she had given. Tomas glanced at the two women before turning to Mia. "I can deal with a bit more work for a few days." he said offering a kind smile. "I say let her go. She's probably right in guessing most can't handle this very well if they have to work with peasants.. Layth and few others were already making a big fuss about her getting information from them."

The baroness look over at Tomas and then shifted her gaze back to Penelope before giving a long sigh. "I suppose you might be right.... Alright, Penelope. You can go. Make sure you're well prepared for the trip and most importantly, be careful."

"Thank you, Mia." Penelope said gratefully as a wave of relief washed over her as the baroness finally agreed. She dipped her head to the two before quickly slipping out of the tent. Now that she had gotten the approval, it was time to meet up with Gavin and Olivia so they could leave soon.

[Rogue Sloth]

The following morning, Crow woke up early with the first light of the sun. Since he had been sleeping outside and had nothing to block out the light to keep resting, he decided he might as well get up and make some use of the extra time he’d been granted. Sitting up on his bed, he stretched tiredly in an attempt to loosen his muscles that had grown stiff from sleeping on the rough ground. He was feeling especially sore today, as he had wanted to travel light, so he hadn’t brought a mat or anything else to put beneath his bedroll for cushioning.

Accepting the fact that he was just going to have to put up with the faint ache in his back, he stood up and began clearing out his campsite. He rolled up his bed and destroyed the remains of the fire he had built to remove any sign that he had been there. Once he was satisfied that anyone who passed through wouldn’t notice that someone had made camp in the area, he shouldered his bag and headed back to Whitebridge to visit the market.

It seemed that even though there had been battles recently, the villagers were intent on keeping up with their usual routines, just like the ones he had seen in Silverpool when he had been visiting Evelyn. He looked over the bustling crowds that were buying and selling various products at stands that had been set up along the edges of a wide road. If he didn’t know better, he never would have guessed they had just endured two battles. Their hardiness was inspiring.

He walked along the outside of the crowd, eyeing different merchants as he looked for the ones who were selling food. It didn’t take long before he spotted a woman with loaves of leavened bread. Weaving between the villagers, he made his way over to her, purchasing some of the bread from her as well as a few other food products from the other vendors near her stand. Once he had bought everything he needed, he stepped aside to get out of the way of the other peasants who were trying to buy food.

He frowned as he peered into his nearly empty coin purse. It hadn’t taken much to exhaust the money he had brought from his camp. Sighing to himself, he shoved the pouch back into his pocket and folded him arms over his chest as he looked out over the bustling market. Since he had woken up early, he still had a bit of time left before he was supposed to meet with the knights. Perhaps he could get lucky and sell off enough of the medicines to bring back some gold for his companions.

Having come to a decision, he walked along the row of merchants until he found an empty spot where he could set up his own makeshift station. He slipped his bag from his shoulders and pulled out his bedroll, unfurling it and laying it out on the ground. It would have to suffice, since he didn’t have a wooden stand like the other vendors who set up in Whitebridge regularly. Once he had flattened the blanket, he began pulling the containers of medicine out of his bag and setting them out on top of it where they would be visible to the villagers who walked by. It wasn’t the most visually appealing merchant stand in the market, but he hoped that would just attract more people who would be curious to see what he was selling.

With everything set up and ready, he stood behind the blanket and glanced around the area to make sure there were no guards before he lowered the hood of his cloak. In addition to having an unusual station, he intended to use his reputation to draw people in, since it was known amongst the outer villages that whatever he stole came from nobles and was therefore of high quality.

As expected, it didn’t take long before peasants began to gather to see what he had to offer.

--

By midday, Crow had managed to sell off half of the medicines he had brought. He had hoped to sell more, but most of the villagers of Whitebridge couldn’t afford the price he’d needed to set in order to bring back enough money for himself and his companions to make it until the fall season. Wanting to be generous, he hadn’t made his wares too costly, but most of the peasants only had copper coins to spare, which was simply too little for him to accept, even though he wished he could.

He exhaled sadly as he made his way back to the road where he was going to meet with the knights. After seeing the desperation on the villagers’ faces for noble medicine, he was tempted to go back to raid the knights’ camp for more, just to give it to them without asking for gold in return. Unfortunately, he couldn’t do that, especially after the knights had lost more than half of their supplies to Jaxon’s thieves. They needed what they had left to make it through the war, and he couldn’t justify sabotaging his own kingdom to give the peasants of Whitebridge free medicine. All care for the outcome of the war aside, he wanted to make sure Penelope was safe, and tampering with the nobles’ remaining supplies would put her at risk if Younis attacked.

When he reached the edge of the village, he leaned against a tree and watched the road that led into the southern part of the forest. His heart beat a little quicker with excitement at the thought of seeing Penelope again and finding out if her baroness had agreed to let her travel to Aramoor with him. Now that the prospect of traveling with her had been put on the table, his hopes had risen that they wouldn’t have to part for the next few days, and he couldn’t wait to find out if she had convinced her leader to let her go.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he tapped his index finger against his bicep, fidgeting with nervous energy as he waited for the knights to reach him.

[BuzzingBee]

"Are you ready?" Penelope asked as she reached Gavin and Olivia. The other two knights were standing together waiting for her. Gavin was weighed down quite a bit with a couple bags of supplies while Olivia gazed tiredly ahead, likely still recovering from the amount she had to drink the night before.

Gavin nodded his head. "Yeah. Did you manage to get Mia's permission?" He asked.

"Yep! She wasn't thrilled about it but Tomas helped me convince her." Penelope informed him with a small shrug. "Here let me help you carry all that." She stepped over to the male knight and took one of the bags from him despite him being a bit reluctant to give it to her.

"Thanks." Gavin mumbled with a grateful nod.

"Do we have to leave so early?" Olivia groaned.

Penelope smirked. "It's not even that early. You just made the mistake of drinking last night." She shook her head.

Gavin sighed. "I guess we should head out now.. It's going to be a long trip."

Penelope eyed the male knight. Though he was being a bit quiet about it, she could tell he was dreading working with Crow again and for so long. She hoped that he would continue to keep it to himself though and made no comment on it. Instead, she nodded her head in agreement and followed behind him as the three knights began to make their way towards Whitebridge to meet up with Crow again.

---

It was a fairly quiet and quick walk. They didn't have to worry about patrols this time since Crow wasn't with them so the group was rather relaxed as they walked. Penelope spent most of the time chatting idly with Olivia to pass the time a bit faster. Gavin remained quiet for most of the walk, only occasionally jumpig into the conversation.

As they drew closer, Penelope felt her heart begin to race excitedly as she would soon be able to tell Crow that she was able to travel with him. She picked up her pace a bit, moving to walk a little ahead of Gavin now rather than following behind him. The thief soon came into view as the group reached the meeting spot and Penelope grinned as she approached him. "Well, looks like you're going to be stuck with us for the next few days." She announced as she stepped up to him.

[Rogue Sloth]

After a while of waiting, Crow finally spotted movement at the far side of the road. He watched the approaching figures cautiously, since he couldn’t yet tell if it was the knights he was looking for or another patrol that just happened to be searching around near Whitebridge. Fortunately, as the group came closer, he recognized Penelope walking at the front. He grinned eagerly and leaned away from the tree, taking a few steps towards her as she came over to greet him.

As she confirmed that she had managed to get permission for their trip to Aramoor, he slipped his arms around her back and looked down at her with a teasing smirk. “Well, I got stuck with the most beautiful knight in Brerra, so I’ve got no complaints,” he winked at her flirtatiously and touched a playful kiss to her lips. It was exciting to know that they were going to be able to spend the next four or more days together. He missed having her by his side all the time, and this was the closest they would get to returning to that lifestyle.

Behind Penelope, Gavin cleared his throat, “We should keep moving. It’s a long way to Aramoor.”

Crow rolled his eyes and took a step back from Penelope, although he stayed close enough to intertwine his fingers with hers. He would keep his word to her about not starting fights with the knight, but that didn’t mean he was going to let him get between them. “By the way,” he said as they began walking into the forest that led towards the village. “When we cross the river, we should make sure to refill our flasks. There isn’t another water source between Whitebridge and Aramoor besides that one.”

“My map says we’ll be crossing two rivers,” Gavin said with a frown.

“Sometimes,” Crow shrugged. “But we’ve had a dry season, so the smaller river dried up. Right now, there’s only one flowing, so we’ll need to take advantage of it when we get there.”

“I see,” Gavin muttered, seeming annoyed that there was something he hadn’t been prepared for.

Crow bit back a smirk, proud that his knowledge of the outer villages had trumped the knight’s. However, not wanting to upset Penelope again, he held himself back from prodding the other man about it and turned to her instead. “Have you ever been to Aramoor?” he asked, changing the subject to something that probably wouldn’t ruffle any feathers. “It’s a small village, but it’s got a lot of character. I think you’ll like it.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope gave a small chuckle at Crow's words and leaned into him as he touched a kiss to her lips. Caught up in her excitement, the knight had nearly forgotten about Gavin so as the male knight cleared his throat, she blinked and took a step back from Crow. She nodded her head in agreement, avoiding meeting Gavin's gaze out of mild embarrassment for getting a bit caught up in the moment, one she had wished would have lasted just a little longer. However, she settled for walking at Crow's side with his hand in hers.

She listened as the two discussed the river. She was glad to see that neither of them seemed to be prodding each other. There was still a bit of tension, mainly from Gavin, but if things continued as they were, it wouldn't be much to worry about. She felt a bit relieved to know that Crow was keeping his word to her. Penelope looked over at the thief as he changed the subject.

"No I haven't." She replied with a small shake of her head. She smiled up at him. "I look forward to seeing it then.. Even if it'll only really be a passing glance." The knight doubted they'd have much free time once they reached the village. They'd be busy trying to find out what they could about the band of thieves after all. However, she was still looking forward to seeing another part of the outer villages with Crow just like she had back when they had first made plans to be together.

Penelope shifted a little closer to him as they walked. "WHat's it like there anyways? I haven't heard much about Aramoor before."

[Rogue Sloth]

As they walked through the forest, Crow felt a rush of excitement to be sharing this part of his life with her again. Aside from the lake in Farhill and his hometown of Myrefall, he hadn’t had the chance to show her around his favorite places since they had gotten back together. Of course, he knew they wouldn’t have time to really explore the outer villages together until after the war, but he enjoyed the few opportunities he had to share some things with her in the meantime.

“In a word, it’s quaint,” he said when she asked him what Aramoor was like. “It’s one of the southernmost villages, and it’s right on the border with Younis, so there aren’t very many people who live there. Because of the location, it’s also a popular stop for travelers heading to or from the other kingdom, so the villagers who do live there are quite friendly and welcoming of strangers. They can’t afford to put up an inn, so they often offer shelter and food in their homes.

“The village itself sits on the top of a wide hill that’s visible to anyone in the surrounding area,” he smiled as the image of the town’s warm lights at night passed through his mind. “It’s kind of like a beacon for weary travelers, letting them know that it’s a safe place to rest.” Suddenly, he thought about the last time he had been to Aramoor, and his smile faltered slightly.

“Although… now that I think about it, it might not be quite as nice as I described anymore,” he sighed. “The people of Aramoor have had a difficult time in this war. There’s another battalion of knights stationed a little farther south of them, and since they’re so close to Younis, there have been quite a few battles in their village already. It’s been a while since the last time I’ve visited, so I’m not sure what’s become of them since.”

He squeezed her hand, shifting to walk a little closer to her so that their arms brushed as they walked. “I’m honestly glad that we’re going here,” he said under his breath, not wanting to be overheard by the others as he opened up to Penelope more personally. “I want to find out if they need any help in the war, since my companions and I have been focusing on the northern villages lately.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope listened as Crow talked about the village. She smiled as he described Aramoor to be quite the welcoming place by the sound of it. However, her smiled died down a bit as he went on to speak about how the war might have been affecting the village. The female knight shifted her gaze down for a moment as she thought about how much destruction the village must have been seeing. She had heard of the other battalion being stationed there and could already guess that the knights there didn't have a rule against fighting recklessly with the peasants around.

It was a rather gloomy reminder that, even though she had tried to help the villages, her high rank didn't extend very far and didn't do as much as she would have liked. She sympathized with Crow as he went on to quietly voice his concern about the villagers. Penelope gave him a half-hearted smile. His care for the outer villages had always been something that she greatly admired in him and she guessed that not being able to defend them all all the time was likely hard for the thief.

"Hopefully they're doing alright." she told him softly. Penelope doubted the war had been easy on the village but she wanted to ease his worry a bit. Besides, she was beginning to notice how hardy the peasants were despite the danger they and their homes were in because of the war. The people of Whitebridge were lively despite having gone through a few battles so perhaps Aramoor wasn't much different.

Penelope focused her gaze back ahead as they walked and let out a soft sigh. "I can't imagine how long it's going to take for the villages closest to the border to fully recover after this war."

"With any luck not too long.." Gavin mumbled, jumping in as he heard Penelope speak up. he glanced over his shoulder at her before quickly looking back ahead as he walked. "They should be offered some type of aid after this."

"That would be nice.. But we both know that's a bit unlikely." Penelope frowned.

Gavin shrugged his shoulders. "Unlikely but not impossible. Perhaps the king will see reason and help the villages recover." he paused before adding, "He just might need someone to help him see that reason."

He briefly met her gaze and Penelope quickly shifted her eyes away from his, already picking up what he was hinting at. Gavin thought it should be her. Part of her guessed that the male knight was trying to hint at one of the reasons why she should stay rather than leave with Crow. She hated to admit that a bit of what he was saying did still tempt her, especially when she thought about how what she would do once she left behind her life as a knight. However, she knew she wouldn't be happy if she left Crow again. Perhaps it was a bit selfish but he was what she wanted. Besides, Crow helped the villages despite his status, so she was certain she could do the same.

"Perhaps you should speak with him then." Penelope replied, with a bit of edge to her voice so Gavin wouldn't push the subject.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow gave a halfhearted nod when Penelope said she hoped the villagers would be alright. He hoped so too, but based on what he had seen th last time he had been to Aramoor, it wasn’t likely. He and his companions had stayed there for quite a while, trying to defend the people during the battles that were happening at the time. Back then, none of them had been nearly as skilled in fighting—he hadn’t even overcome his fear of blood yet—so even though they tried hard to defend the village, their efforts hadn’t made much of a difference. In the end, they had been forced to pull out and take refuge in Silverpool after sustaining a number of serious injuries that had left them all in no condition to fight.

He glanced at Penelope as she spoke about the border villages’ recovery after the war. The thought was a depressing one for the thief. All of the villages were going to have a repairing after the war was over, but there was no doubt that the bordering villages were going to come off the worst of everyone. If they all even managed to survive, he would have been shocked. While he had never seen another war in his lifetime, he had heard plenty of stories from elders in the outer villages about the ones in the past. Apparently, the outer villages as a whole used to have quite a few more towns along the border with Waithen.

He opened his mouth to respond to her comment, but Gavin spoke first. He looked up at the knight as he said the villagers should be offered aid after the war. He rolled his eyes at the ridiculousness of it. The king would never spare his gold nor any men for such an assignment. The people of the outer villages were just another source of revenue for him. The quality of their lives mattered little as long as they continued to funnel their tax money to the inner kingdom.

Fortunately, he didn’t need to say anything on the matter because Penelope spoke first, seeming to understand the unlikelihood as well. Crow glanced towards Gavin as the knight added something that made him bristle. It sounded like he was trying to hint to Penelope that she could change the king’s mind if she didn’t leave her life as a noble. He narrowed his eyes. What a dirty trick. The knight was clearly using her desire for justice to sway her to his side, and he wasn’t even bothering to do so when the thief wasn’t around.

Arrogant noble, he thought scathingly, clenching his jaw to keep from spitting the words out loud.

“It all sounds like a waste of time to me,” Crow finally spoke up with a bitter edge to his voice. “The king is a selfish man with no care for the peasants in his kingdom. I’d be shocked if he even sent one knight to help them repair their homes after this war is over.” He averted his gaze, suddenly a bit self-conscious of the hatred in his tone. Of course, he doubted that any of the knights knew his relationship with the current king, except, perhaps, for Penelope if she remembered who he had told her his father was years ago.

During the beginning of the war, the former king had been killed by the nobles who had been planning to assassinate him and take over the throne. However, their plan had only been successful in part. They had managed to off the king, but the knights in the palace had prevented them from usurping the throne. After that, his father—only the gods knew how—had jumped from his role of viceroy to king. As far as the thief knew, he had been ruling ever since.

“I would just forget about it, if I were you,” Crow muttered. “The people of the outer villages will figure out a way to pull through on their own, just like they always have.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope glanced over at Crow as he began to speak about the king. The female knight frowned slightly, quick to recall exactly who the king was to him. It had been a bit of a shock to see the viceroy take over the throne after the old king's death, especially when she knew about what he had done in the past. She hadn't been the only one to dislike the new king either. Her father had also seemed rather displeased to learn who had become their new ruler. However, like him, they didn't voice their opinions and merely went about their work as usual.

After having just faced a failed noble rebellion, neither wanted word of their disapproval of the new king to get out. Luckily, Penelope didn't have to interact with him much at the time since most of her time back at the inner kingdom had been spent working with Mia and preparing for war. She let out a small sigh and glanced up at Crow, giving his hand a comforting squeeze.

"There's only so much the villagers can do on their own." Gavin pointed out with a glance at Crow. "And it's not like they were thriving before either. The king is new and might be different from the last. He could just need a bit of a push before he'd be willing to help the outer villages."

Penelope shook her head. "I doubt it. Especially after a war when he's spent a good deal of gold funding it." she paused and gave a small shrug. "I know you want him to help the outer villages, Gavin, but you should know how tightly the king holds onto his money and power."

"If you believe that then why did you want to rise in status before?" Gavin asked her with a frown. "I thought you wanted to use it to help them too. Like I did."

Penelope flinched slightly at his words. There was a hint of hurt in them that was genuine that made her feel a bit guilty. They had had similar goals of helping the peasants, it was part of the reason she had grown so close to Gavin during her time apart from Crow, so she didn't doubt that her less than optimistic words stung a bit to the male knight.

"I did.." she mumbled averting her gaze. "I'm still trying to... But I just doubt it'll work with the king. If anything, I had plans to try and build a group of nobles that were willing to use a bit of their personal wealth and time to help the peasants after the war. I figure it would be the best way of approaching.. I mean, there's clearly nobles that care like us. Mia was willing to listen to me and try to protect the villagers with the new rule. Tomas is kind enough. All we would need is to get the king's permission to leave, which I figured would have been easier than asking for both time and money."

Before getting back together with Crow, it had been her plan for after the war. She had pictured her life after the war much differently than she did now. She would have married Gavin and then worked with him on the idea to help the outer villages. The male knight was rather charismatic when he wanted to be so she didn't doubt they could have worked together to convince a few nobles to pitch in. However, those plans were gone now. She only spoke of them now in hopes that Gavin might still use them after the war.

Gavin looked back ahead. "It's not a bad idea." he mused. "It might work."

"Well, after the war you should give it a try. I can help you develop it more before then." Penelope commented as she shifted closer to Crow, making it clear that she was firm in her decision.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow glanced down at Penelope as he felt her squeeze his hand. He let out the breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding, forcing himself to relax. Even though he had never met his father, he had quite a bit of pent up emotions about the man. He despised him for abandoning his mother and ruining her reputation in her home village, and he loathed the fact that the consequences of his actions never seemed to catch up with him. Albin hadn’t lost his noble status over the affair, and now he had even advanced to Brerratic royalty. It felt unfair that a man as twisted as his father would be rewarded with his own kingdom after he had wronged his mother so terribly.

He looked up at Gavin as the knight spoke up again and scoffed. The thought of Albin lifting so much as his little finger to help someone else was ludicrous to the thief. Gavin could try all he liked to convince the king to help, but Crow knew his efforts would be wasted. It would take nothing short of a miracle to convince a man that greedy to care about the state of the outer villages. He doubted the king would have cared if half of the villages had been wiped out in the war—well, unless he noticed a shortage in the taxes at the end of the season.

As Penelope flinched at her former suitor’s words, Crow turned to her with a sympathetic frown before shooting the other knight a glare. Gavin had no right to question her methods of helping the outer villages. Using status wasn’t the only way to evoke change. She could still do quite a bit for the peasants without money or titleship, such as helping them rebuild their damaged property or treating the villagers who had been injured in the battles. It was what he planned to do when the war was over, since they were going to need all the help they could get. The king may not have been willing to do anything, but the two of them could do quite a bit on their own.

He studied Penelope curiously as she explained what her plan had been for after the war. The idea actually wasn’t bad, especially if she was right about there being other nobles in the kingdom who shared her desire to help the peasants of the outer villages. He felt a small pang of guilt for taking her away from the opportunity to put together a group with so much potential, but she seemed determined in her intent to be with him in spite of it all. Besides, it was also true that Gavin could take over the plans for her. She may have been the one to think of the idea, but she didn’t have to see it through to the end.

Feeling a burst of affection for the knight, Crow pressed a kiss to her head. “And while he’s doing that, we can work from inside the villages and use the money they receive to rebuild their homes,” he said with a grin. “Who needs the help of a king when we’ve already got your clever mind coming up with solutions?”

“A mind that we could really use in the king’s court,” Gavin muttered with a shake of his head. It was clear that he felt like Penelope was wasting her potential by giving up her status.

Crow rolled his eyes. “I’m sure you nobles will do just fine without her,” he said, slipping his arm around her waist.

Gavin ignored him, turning instead to speak to Penelope directly, “You could do so much more if you stay, not only after this war, but for years to come. Just think of it, Penelope.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smiled up at Crow as he pressed a kiss to her head. She gave a small nod of agreement as he spoke about working from inside the village. She liked the sound of working with Crow to repair the villages while Gavin took charge of her previous plan. It sounded like it had the potential to be quite effective so the knight perked up a bit despite Gavin's comment afterwards. She glanced over at the male knight as he mentioned they could use her in the king's court and gave a small shrug.

However, she faltered slightly as he turned to her and insisted she'd be able to accomplish much more if she stuck around. The knight's smile faded and she shifted her gaze to the ground. "Don't think I haven't." she muttered with an edge in her voice. She was getting frustrated by his determination to try and make her see the possibilities she would be giving up. Though his words did stirr a bit of guilt in her, she had taken three days to figure out what she wanted for her future and she had already determined that it was Crow.

"Call me selfish but it isn't what I want." she stated, lifting her gaze to meet Gavin's sternly. "I didn't make my choice lightly, Gavin. I thought about it and took into consideration what I would be giving up and I still choose him." Penelope glanced up at Crow and gave the thief a small smile. "I'll still help the outer villages.. Just in a slightly different way."

Gavin frowned and looked back ahead. "The kingdom will lose a good knight then.."

"You'll just have to figure out a way to make up for my absence then. Surely it won't be that difficult." Penelope responded with a shrug.

Olivia suddenly let out a long groan. "You guys are so dull today." she sighed, clearly getting bored with the topic.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow really didn’t like how bold Gavin was getting in his pursuit of winning Penelope back. It was already hard enough for him to know that the knight could offer her much more than he ever could. He didn’t need that fact shoved in his face. Besides, he had already made up his mind that he was going to do anything in his power to give her the life she deserved. It may not look the same as what Gavin could give her as a nobleman, but he hoped it would be enough to make her happy.

As the two knights continued to debate the subject, he remained quiet, unable to speak much into the conversation since he had little knowledge of the affairs of the inner kingdom. He didn’t agree that Penelope was being selfish in her decision to be with him. It seemed like it would be easy enough for Gavin to take over her plans, and, as he had told her, there was still plenty that she could do for the peasants from within the outer villages. She didn’t have to give up being with him to make a difference.

The thief glanced at Olivia as she complained that they were boring today. He rolled his eyes. It seemed like she was still hoping for some squabbling between the two men to entertain her. Unfortunately for the knight, he had no intention of breaking his word to Penelope. So, as much as he wanted to tell Gavin off for openly trying to win her back, he kept his mouth shut and contented himself with listening to her refuse the knight’s advances instead.

For a while after Olivia’s interruption, the group fell quiet. The female knight appeared to still be nursing a slight hangover, Gavin had given up on trying to convince Penelope to come back to him for now, and Crow couldn’t think of any other topics to bring up that wouldn’t start a fight with the male knight.

The silence was eventually broken when the thief detected the faint sound of rushing water up ahead. “The river is right past this hillside,” he announced to the others in case they hadn’t noticed it yet. Turning to Penelope, he offered her a smile. “We should stop and rest for a bit. We still have quite a long walk ahead of us, and the forest on the other side of the river can be tough to navigate because of all the hills. What do you think?”

[BuzzingBee]

As a silence fell over the group, Penelope let out a quiet sigh, glad that Gavin had finally stopped pushing the subject. Though she was firm in her decision to be with Crow, it did cause for her a feeling of unease to build in her when she thought about the job that she was leaving behind as well as how much she might have been able to do if she stayed. Even as the conversation ended, her thoughts about her plan and helping the outer villages lingered. The knight hoped Gavin would be willing to take over the idea she had, still believing it would be the best way to help all of the villages recover from the war.

As Crow spoke up, she finally broke away from her thoughts and welcomed the distraction quickly. She looked up at Crow and returned his smile. "Sounds good to me." she agreed. "Let's stop over there." Penelope nodded her head towards a clearing ahead of them. Gavin gave a small nod of acknowledgement to her words as he headed over to the small clearing. Once they reached it, the female knight placed her bag on the ground and rolled her shoulders.

She watched as the others got settled in. Olivia was quick to sit down and lean back against a nearby tree, still clearly dealing with her hangover. Gavin glanced over at her before moving to dig into his bag, pulling out an apple for himself to eat. Penelope moved to sit down in a grassy spot that was located in the shade of nearby tree. Glancing over at Crow, she patted the ground next to her, gesturing for him to join her.

"If you're hungry there should be some food in my bag here." she offered him as she leaned back on the palms of her hands. The knight had had a rather large breakfast so she wasn't feeling particularly hungry and decided that she could wait until they camped for the night before eating again.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow nodded when Penelope pointed out a small clearing near the river where they could stop and rest. He followed her lead as she made her way over to it and then set down his bag to stretch his arms and shoulders. There was still a slight twinge in his back from when he had slept wrong the night before, and he wanted to loosen up to make sure it wouldn’t get worse after a full day of hiking through the woods. Since he’d been living outdoors and sleeping on the ground for so long, he’d had other bad experiences with letting such a mild injury go unchecked and suffering the consequences after a long day of activity. He wasn’t keen to do it again.

He glanced at Penelope as she stepped over to a grassy spot to sit down and then moved to join her as she gestured for him to sit at her side. Settling down in the grass, he stretched out his legs and leaned contentedly against the knight’s side. He was glad that they were able to travel together like this again. It reminded him of their short time together before the war. Even though they were back in the company of other knights, he enjoyed being able to spend every moment with her without parting ways.

As she mentioned that he could take some of the food in her bag if he was hungry, he turned to her with a grin. “Well you know I never turn down an offer for free food,” he leaned in and kissed her on the cheek. “Thanks, love.”

Reaching across to her bag, he dragged it across the grass to search through the contents. Earlier that day, he’d stopped for a quick lunch in the marketplace in Whitebridge, and there was still quite a bit of time left before supper, but he always had at least a bit of an appetite that needed sating. He wasn’t sure why—perhaps it was because of how much energy he spent during the day—but whatever the case was, having extra meals was a luxury he never passed up.

After a bit of digging, Crow found a couple of apples and set Penelope’s bag aside again. He laid back in the grass in a relaxed manner as he ate, looking up at the sky and noting that the sun was only about a third of the way down the western horizon. It looked like they were making good time to Aramoor.

When he finished the apples, he tossed the cores into the bushes and propped his head on one arm. Glancing up at Penelope, he reached for her hand and gave it a tug. “Lay down with me,” he smiled at her. “The grass is really comfortable right here, and we still have some time left before we need to keep moving.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smiled at Crow as he kissed her cheek. "I figured." she chuckled with a small nod. The knight glanced over at the bag as he pulled it closer. She was rather certain they had enough food for the three knights as well as the thief. She hadn't said anything to Gavin about it but she did notice that he seemed to pack a little extra after the day before. Though she was glad he was willing to accommodate Crow, the knight guessed it was more so she wouldn't be giving up her meals to the thief like the day before rather than just out of kindness.

As Crow ate, she watched the sky quietly. The knight was admittedly quite happy about the trip they were going on. After having to usually be separated from Crow for days in between meeting with him, spending so much time together felt like quite the luxury. She felt a little guilty about enjoying it so much, especially since they were traveling for a serious reason, but she couldn't help it. There was no telling how long it would be for them to have such an opportunity again, likely not until they left together after the war.

The knight blinked as she felt him give her hand a tug. Penelope looked over at Crow as he spoke and gave a small nod. "Alright." she said with a soft smile as she moved to lay down besides him. She figured he was right in assuming they still had some time to spare before they had to continue on. Olivia was still nursing her hangover and Gavin wasn't pushing for them to leave yet so she was rather quick to lay down besides the thief. "You know.. As far as dangerous missions go, this one has been pretty nice so far." she mumbled to him with a small smirk.

[Rogue Sloth]

As Penelope laid down next to him, Crow shifted to make room for her in the grass and wrapped his free arm around her. He met her gaze and laughed softly as she commented on their “dangerous” mission. “I’d have to agree,” he nodded. “As long as things stay the same, this may be my favorite one yet.” Despite the lightheartedness of his tone, he knew it was unlikely that the rest of their mission would be this peaceful, especially if they found Jaxon. It was partly why he wanted to take advantage of any opportunities they had to relax and enjoy each other’s company now. There was no telling how many more days they would have before the mission really did turn dangerous.

He frowned as he thought about who they were facing once more. Jaxon and his thieves weren’t afraid to kill anyone. If he and the knights couldn’t come up with a plan to outsmart them, or if something went wrong, it was almost a guarantee that they would all die. The leader of the rogue thieves never left survivors. He gave a faint shudder at the thought of something happening to Penelope. He cared little about what happened to Gavin or Olivia, but he couldn’t bear the idea of losing her.

Feeling an unexpected burst of protectiveness for the knight, Crow rolled onto his side and wrapped his other arm around her middle, pulling her close in a sudden embrace. The feeling of her slender frame pressed against him comforted him. However, the moment didn’t last long before he heard the sound of approaching footsteps. Glancing up, he saw Gavin standing nearby with his arms crossed as he looked down at them.

“We need to keep moving,” the knight muttered, seeming displeased with how close the two were.

“We’ve still got time,” Crow rolled his eyes, not moving from where he laid beside Penelope. “There’s no reason to rush.”

“The sooner we get to Aramoor, the sooner we can start questioning the locals,” Gavin contended curtly. “We can’t waste time on a mission.”

You just want to leave so we’ll be forced to separate, Crow thought dryly, though he held himself back from making the comment out loud. “If you’re in such a hurry to leave, then go refill the water flasks for us,” he said dismissively, turning away from the knight to rest his head against Penelope’s. “We can leave when you’ve finished.”

“I already refilled them,” Gavin said with a hint of pride in his voice at having thought ahead of the thief for once. “Get up so we can go.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope nodded her head as she laid besides Crow. It wasn't long before the thief suddenly wrapped her up in an embrace. She smiled closed her eyes for a moment as she pressed closer to him. Being in his arms, the knight found herself rather comfortable and nearly tempted to try and get in a short nap before the group had to continue traveling. However, she didn't get a chance to as the sound of someone approaching them caught her attention.

Opening her eyes, she turned to see Gavin standing nearby and she let out a small sigh as the male knight insisted they keep moving. She felt a small stab of annoyance, noticing the displeasure in his expression as he looked at them. It was easy for her to guess that one of the main reasons he wanted to get them moving was to separate her and Crow again.

As Crow's attempt to buy them more time failed, she shrugged her shoulders and turned her head slightly to press a kiss to Crow's cheek. "I guess we should get moving then." She mumbled and reluctantly pulled away from Crow to get up.

Glancing at Gavin, she noticed that the male knight was trying to suppress a satisfied expression from taking over his face. Penelope pursed her lips together, not liking that he thought he had succeeded in getting between them. Though she didn't want anymore fighting, she also didn't want the male knight thinking he was able to separate them so easily. She'd have to make sure he understood that.

Standing up, she offered her hand to Crow and flashed him a reassuring smile. "It's not too big of a deal.. We have all of tonight and the ones that follow on this trip to lay next to each other." She told him, speaking just loud enough to make sure Gavin caught it too. Not bothering to check for a reaction, she picked up her bag and slung it over her shoulder as they prepared to leave.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow shot Gavin a glare, annoyed that the knight was being so persistent in keeping him away from Penelope. He wished the man would just stay out of their business and let them have some time to themselves during the trip. But of course, Gavin was still too hung up on Penelope to let it go so easily. As long as he still had hope that she would eventually leave the thief and come back to him, it looked like he wasn’t going to give up. It was going to be a nuisance to get away from him throughout the rest of their journey to Aramoor.

Crow blinked as he felt Penelope kiss him on the cheek and turned to her with a frown. He didn’t want to get up so soon, especially since they still had some extra time left before they really needed to keep moving. However, he guessed she was trying to avoid starting a fight with her former suitor by following his command. With a reluctant sigh, he took her hand to get up as well, although he made a point to give the male knight one more cold look as he did so.

When Penelope spoke again, he met her gaze with an amused smile, picking up right away on what she was trying to do. While she collected her bag, he glanced furtively at Gavin, noticing the smug look fall off the knight’s face as he seemed to realize there wasn’t much he could do to separate them during the night. The look of defeat on his face was pleasing enough to the thief, so he said nothing more as he retrieved his own bag and slung it over his shoulder.

Once Crow and Penelope were ready, Gavin walked over to get Olivia up as well.

“We’re leaving already?” she groaned exaggeratedly.

“We need to keep moving,” Gavin explained. “We need to catch these thieves before they get away from us again.”

Olivia protested for a little while longer, but eventually gave in and climbed to her feet as well. Once everyone was prepared to keep moving, Gavin took the lead again. He eyed the river at the edge of the clearing for a moment before turning back to the others. “This part looks shallow enough. We should cross here.”

At his words, Crow stiffened. However, he recovered quickly enough that Gavin didn’t seem to notice his reaction. “There’s a better point to cross upstream,” he said, gesturing towards the southern side of the water. “The river is narrower, and there’s a fallen tree that spans the whole length of it. I’ve used it many times.”

“It’ll be faster if we just cross here,” Gavin shook his head, eyeing him suspiciously as if he believed the thief was trying to throw them off course somehow. “Not afraid to get your feet wet, are you?”

“No,” Crow lied. “But I’d rather not if I can avoid it.”

“It’s still early enough in the day that you’ll dry off before we set up camp for the night,” Gavin shrugged, clearly intent on ignoring his advice. He turned towards the water, “Come on, let’s keep moving.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope waited besides Crow as Gavin went to get Olivia. The other female knight's reluctance to get up made her smirk a little in amusement. Once everyone was prepared, she fell in step besides Crow as Gavin lead the way to the river. As Gavin suggested they cross there at the shallow part, she noticed Crow stifen up besides her.

For a moment, she wondered why the thief was so hesitant to cross the river. It seemed shallow enough. She pondered it for a moment longer until Gavin's words made her recall the theif's inability to swim. She blinked and glanced over at Crow as Gavin continued to insist they cross the river. "Maybe we should go the other way. It sounds like a better crossing point." she said, hoping Gavin would listen to her.

Unfortunately the male knight seemed far too suspicious of Crow to listen to her. He frowned at her words and shook his head. "Maybe but this is closer and faster. Let's just go through here... Then there won't be any chances of us getting lost either." He mumbled the last part, casting a distrusting glance at Crow. He turned and began to step into the water, not bothering to wait any longer.

Penelope frowned a little as she watched him step out into the river. She couldn't argue with him much since crossing the river now was the faster and more obvious choice, so long as you were comfortable with the water at least. She looked up at Crow and linked her arm with his. "Sorry.." she mumbled to him softly. It didn't seem like there was a way out unless the thief was willing to admit he was unable to swim.

"I'll be right by you though." She assured him with a small smile. "And I promise I'll be more steady than last time." Penelope recalled them having to cross a river together before. Though they had made it across, she had accidentally gotten tripped by the current. She was pretty certain it was due to how tired she had been at the time so she was rather confident they wouldn't face a similar fate crossing now.