“I’m glad you’re not as bad as him,” Crow smirked. “I’m strong enough to carry you up a flight of stairs, but hauling you all the way to the next town would really stretch my limits.” He felt a wave of relief wash over him when Penelope sat next to him and kissed his cheek. It seemed she hadn’t changed her mind about him so far. [i]She really does want to make this work,[/i] fresh excitement rushed through him. [i]It wasn’t just a spur of the moment thing. She really meant what she said yesterday.[/i]

As Penelope leaned her head against his shoulder, he rested a hand on her thigh, enjoying their newfound closeness. He shook his head when she apologized for causing him trouble, “You were a perfect, tipsy angel,” he said teasingly. “The kid was the troublesome one. He made a scene in the restaurant last night by getting a little too friendly with the floor.” He shot Hartley an annoyed glance. “You’re a sloppy drunk, you know that?”

The boy ignored Crow’s comment as he suddenly realized he was supposed to have met Kip that morning already. He bolted out of the room, telling the others to stay put until he returned. With Penelope on his shoulder, Crow had no qualms with the request. He would take any excuse he could get to stay next to her like that.

“Mm,” he grunted in agreement when Penelope said Hartley was nuts. “I wish I could borrow some of his energy. Just the thought of walking all day again makes me want to go back to sleep.” He wondered how much farther the palace was from Hef’n. It was difficult for him to tell since there was a more equal distribution of wealth in Younis. If they had been traveling to the inner cities of Brerra, he could tell how close he was by the quality of life of the people he passed by.

[color=fff79a][b]“I think drinking last night has completely zapped away all my energy,”[/b][/color] Penelope said tiredly.

Crow looked down at her thoughtfully. She seemed completely drained, even after getting a full night of sleep. “Maybe you should take a short nap,” Crow suggested, softly stroking her leg. He didn’t want her to move away from him, but she needed to be more awake when they left for the next town. “Hartley won’t be back for a while, so there’s time if you want to.”