Crow flinched when Penelope tousled his hair. Her unexpected touch made his heart race and his breathing quicken. [i]Stop that,[/i] he chided his own body, even though the logical part of his mind knew it was stupid. He couldn’t prevent the reaction just by telling himself to. It wasn’t that easy. He looked up at Penelope, concealing his excitement by forcing himself to keep a straight face, and nodded at her words. [i]See? She thinks it’s ridiculous too. There’s no way she would want a romantic relationship with a thief like me.[/i]

At her mention of him getting some sleep too, he yawned inadvertently, “Yeah, I’m exhausted.” He climbed tiredly to his feet. “Goodnight.” he said before he walked over to lay down near William and Abraxas. One of them had already set out a thin mat for him to sleep on—probably Abraxas, since William still treated him like a dog—and a blanket. It wasn’t as luxurious as the thicker mats the knights had to sleep on, but it was better than nothing. Besides, he would take anything over prison stones.

Crow laid down on the mat and stared up at the stars overheard. They twinkled steadily, without any cares about what went on below. The thief found himself wishing he could be so carefree. His life used to be that way, but ever since he had met Penelope it seemed like things were much more complicated. He sighed, watching the night sky for a little while longer until he finally drifted off to sleep.