For Crow, the rest of the journey was painfully dull. He drifted in and out of sleep, attempting to stave off his boredom with fleeting dreams and wishing William would bring the horses to a canter so they could reach their destination quicker. Unfortunately, since the knights were still expecting a long journey, they weren’t willing to push the animals so hard on the very first day, and thief couldn’t object to their steady pace, since he was keeping his early departure a secret from the others. They would find out soon enough that they were all wasting their time on the king’s senseless assignment.

During the times when he was awake, he would peer out the window to check their progress but, being unfamiliar with the area, the scenery provided him with no clues. All he saw were trees that with little variation and the occasional passerby traveling between the citadel and whatever town they were on their way to next. Naturally, his next inclination was to pester William with the incessant question: “Are we there yet?” To which the knight would threaten to cut out his tongue, and he would shut his mouth and go back to sleep. The cycle was repeated throughout the rest of the trip.

When the carriage finally rolled to a stop, Crow awoke from his latest nap immediately and sat up, poking his head out the window to see where they were. The sun was sinking low to the horizon, so it appeared they were going to be spending the night in this lavish city. He frowned. He had hoped they would travel nearer to the outer villages before they rested, but judging by the enormous buildings around them, they were still somewhere in the inner kingdom.

A few people milled about the streets, all dressed in the ornate fabrics of noblemen and women, but no one seemed to pay the procession any mind. They had stopped the wagon in front of an inn, and travelers in this part of the kingdom were supposedly common. As a peasant, he didn’t know much about the routines of the upper class, but he had heard that nobles conducted business and traded often between regions. The men and women around them now probably just assumed they were here for the same purposes.

Losing interest in observing his surroundings, the thief climbed to his feet and stretched his legs as well as he could in the small space. He was taller than average, so he couldn’t stand fully upright without hitting his head on the canopy. It was better than wasting away laying on his back though. Eager to get out of the torturous contraption, he clambered down from the back as soon as Penelope’s boots touched the ground. They might have been far from his homeland, but he was happy to be in any place that would serve as an alternative to a prison cell or a wagon bed.

In the next moment, he blinked as his stomach let out a low growl. Napping on the ride over had taken the edge off his hunger, but now that he didn’t have anything else to distract himself, he was acutely aware of the fact that all he’d eaten that day was half a piece of bread. “Will we be having dinner soon?” he asked, glancing at William, whom he had pegged as the main decision maker among the trio of guards. “I’m starving.”

“You are not starving,” William glowered at him in exasperation. It was becoming increasingly clear that he had despised every instance his captive opened his mouth. “We’ll eat later. I have a few arrangements to make first.”

Crow narrowed his pale eyes. He had always hated knights, but this one was grating on his nerves more than most. It was presumptuous of William to act like he, a rather emaciated convict, was in good enough condition to delay and cut short meals. His frustration came through in his voice. “How would you know whether or not I’m starving?” he crossed his arms irritably. “You’ve been well-fed all your life. I doubt you even know what hunger is.”

William clenched his jaw as if he had something to add, but instead he just turned away from the thief and addressed Penelope, “We will be staying at the Black Galleon Inn. The king sent a letter ahead, so the innkeeper should be expecting us.” He then spoke to the other knight, “Abraxas, lead the horses around back and meet up with us when you’ve finished. There should be a stable for them on the other side of the inn.” With that, he gestured for the female knight and their pet criminal to follow him as he headed for the door of the building in front of which they had settled.

Still simmering from his conflict with William, Crow didn’t speak to either of them while they walked into the inn. He found it more pleasant to pretend like he was by himself, exploring the city as a free man. There was certainly plenty to keep his eyes occupied inside the building. It wasn’t as elaborately decorated as the castle, but it still held an atmosphere of luxury. He guessed that it had been arranged to appeal to the wealthiest citizens of Brerra. There were some gilded features and tapestries along the walls, and the stone floor was padded with soft rugs.

Trailing along behind the knights, he noticed that some of the other staying travelers were staring at him as they passed by, and he bit his lip to stifle a smirk. Bedraggled and dirty, he was absurdly out of place among all of these rich merchants and lesser lords. He could only imagine the thoughts running through their heads as they tried to piece together what a churl like him was doing at such an esteemed inn. Although, he was admittedly disappointed that it didn’t seem like anyone recognized his face. Had his reputation really been so fragile that all it had taken for the people to forget him was one year behind bars?

Amusing himself, he decided to further confuse his observers by holding his head high and examining the décor with an unimpressed expression, as if he was used to higher standards. Unfortunately, his fun was put to an end when William noticed he was lagging behind. The knight grabbed him by the collar of his tunic and dragged him along, making it perfectly clear to all who were watching that the thief was just as lowly as he appeared.

Crow batted William’s hand away and smoothed down his tattered clothes, “I’m perfectly capable of walking on my own, thank you very much.”

“Then stop playing around,” William grumbled in annoyance. “We’re trying [i]not[/i] to draw attention to ourselves. Now, wait with Penelope and try not to cause any more trouble.” He went on ahead to speak with a well-dressed man at the back of the room—likely the innkeeper—and left Crow to stay behind with Penelope.

Crow tapped his foot impatiently and looked around again. His mind wandered back to dinner, the prospect of which was looking less and less likely as the sky grew darker. The knights might have been fine with skipping a meal or two, but his stomach was not nearly so disciplined. He was going to find something to eat whether they liked it or not.

Upon sweeping the room one more time, he spotted a young servant girl among a group of lords engaged in a conversation nearby. She had curly blonde hair tied back in pigtails and a freckled face that gave her a look of girlish innocence. He whistled softly to get her attention and then flashed her a smile when she turned toward around. Even though he wasn’t at his physical peak anymore, he knew that confidence could go a long way with women. It also didn’t hurt that peasants cared far less about appearance than nobles did.

Subtly, he waved a hand for her to come closer. She glanced briefly at one of the lords, whom Crow assumed was her master, and then made her way over to the thief, eyeing him curiously, “What is it that you want from me?”

“Must I want something in order to talk to someone with a face as pretty as yours?” he said, grinning when the girl’s cheeks turned rosy. Penelope may not have been taken by his charms, but he knew now that he still had a way with the ladies of his own class. He leaned down and lowered his voice as if sharing a secret, “I do have one request though. Can you tell me if the inn serves dinner at this hour?” He smiled at her with mock bashfulness and rested a hand on his middle. “I’ve been travelling all day, and I’m very hungry.”

The servant girl chuckled, finding his feigned diffidence endearing, and pointed at a set of double doors, “Yes, there’s a dining hall just through there.”

“Thank you, love,” Crow said gratefully, standing up straight again. “The gods have blessed you with kindness as well as beauty.”

“Y-you’re welcome,” the girl stammered, her face flushing a deeper shade of red before she bowed respectfully and hurried back to her master’s side.

Having gotten what he wanted, Crow turned back to Penelope with a pleading look, “Now that we know where the food is, can we [i]please[/i] get something to eat? I think I might just keel over from starvation if I go much longer without dinner.”