Crow felt a bit better when Penelope said he hadn’t been as useless as he thought in the fight. He supposed she was right. Even though he had only been trying to delay the mercenary from killing him at the time by talking to him, his actions had helped her too. But that was why he wanted to learn more. He didn’t want to be accidentally helpful to her. He wanted to be able to fight with purpose, to be a reliable partner when she needed him.

As Penelope pointed out that he would still be averse to seeing blood even if he knew how to fight, he nodded solemnly. Deep down, he already knew it was true. He supposed he just hoped that the fear would fade with time if he got used to being in battle more often. Then again, it wasn’t the smartest idea to rely on chance. His hematophobia could very well swing in the opposite direction and get worse as he tried to face it more often. Or there could be no change whatsoever, which was just as bad.

He eyed Penelope curiously as she became quiet. She seemed to ponder something for a moment before asking him, [color=fff79a][b]“Have you ever used a bow and arrow before?”[/b][/color]

“No,” Crow shook his head, although he was beginning to piece together what she was probably thinking. “I’ve stolen quite a few from the vaults in Brerra, but I always sold them for money.”

[color=fff79a][b]“I’m not too good with it myself, but I could teach you the basics,”[/b][/color] Penelope looked more eager as she went on. [color=fff79a][b]“I’m thinking that might be the perfect weapon for you. You can keep a distance from your enemy, so the issue of seeing blood won’t be nearly as bad as if we worked on fighting with a dagger or sword.”[/b][/color]

“That’s true,” Crow drummed his fingers against his knee. “I’d still need to get the arrows back, but arrow wounds don’t bleed nearly as much as a cut from a blade does.” He knew this from his own experience. Most of the injuries he had received over the years had come from archers, since they could strike from a distance. As long as the shaft was left in, the wound would only weep slightly rather than pour blood. He could handle that. Besides, a bow might also give him a way to use another trick that he had picked up a few years back…

“I think you’re onto something, love,” he grinned at her with newfound excitement. “I don’t know why I never thought of that before, but you’re right. It would be the perfect weapon for me.” He offered her his injured hand to dress, averting his gaze so he wouldn’t see how bad it was.

Once that was done, he stood up—it had been long enough now that most of his dizziness had passed—and held out his left hand to help Penelope up. “It’s getting pretty late, so we should get out of here,” he said, glancing at the street again. “I just hope there’s an inn nearby that won’t find two beat-up travelers suspicious.”