Crow smirked at William’s back when the knight turned to address Penelope. It had taken a while, but the hot-headed knight finally seemed to be coming around to view him as more than just a detestable criminal. Even if he was merely tolerating him now, the thief would take that over his spiteful outbursts any day.

He trailed behind the other two as they continued to walk away from the citadel, favoring his left leg. Now that the adrenaline of escaping the castle had faded, the wound in his thigh had made itself quite a bit more apparent, sending a shooting pain through him every time he took a step. He looked through the trees around them, trying to focus on keeping watch for night guards as a way to distract himself from it. Despite the ache, he didn’t want to stop until they were far from the Younisian palace.

When Penelope dropped back to walk beside him, he smiled at her, grateful for her presence. He wanted to hold her hand, but was content with the way she walked so closely beside him that their hands touched occasionally. With William nearby, it was the most they could get away with anyhow.

“I’m alright,” he shrugged as she asked how his leg was holding up. “It hurts a bit more after all that running around, but I expected as much. It’s nothing to be concerned about.” He glanced at William for a moment and then turned to her, lowering his voice so the other knight wouldn’t hear him, “How are you doing though? After… what happened, I know your tendency is to blame yourself, but it wasn’t your fault. I’m sure it was just a fluke. You can’t carry the burden of protecting everyone all the time. That’s too much for anyone to handle.”