That night at the tavern, Crow let himself go quite a bit more than he usually did. He ended the night with five strong drinks and wound up drunk enough that the walk back to the camp in the woods was difficult to manage. It was fortunate for him and the other thieves that Hazel had chosen to stay sober, since they would have had a hard time finding their way home without her guidance. She also kept watch for local knights while the others were unable to.

For Crow, the alcohol brought a welcomed sense of numbness and helped him to forget about Penelope for the time being. However, he still kept Rikki at bay whenever she tried to move in to kiss him. Even in his inebriation, he felt a strong sense of discomfort at the thought of being with her so soon after the knight. He wanted more time to himself before he even considered giving her a chance. Fortunately, she didn’t push him very much, since she seemed content with the closeness they had already rekindled earlier that day.

He was glad that she wasn’t rushing him to move on quickly. It reminded him that even though she had disapproved of and even tried to get in the way of his relationship with Penelope, she genuinely did care about him. Even if he didn’t approve of every method she had used to win him over, he knew she was coming from a place of compassion. Perhaps whenever he truly let the knight go, he could bring himself to love the thief who had been by his side through every trial in the past year.

When the group eventually made it back to their camp, Crow collapsed tiredly on his bed, still drunk on the ale in his system. He stretched languidly and pulled his blanket up to his chin. Pleasantly drowsy and numb to his negative emotions, he was ready to go to sleep for the night. However, before he drifted off, he felt a pressure on his side. He glanced down to see that Rikki had come over to join him on his mat.

She looked up to meet his gaze and smiled tiredly. “’Night, Crow,” she murmured, burrowing into his chest and letting out a long exhale as she settled down against his side.

“’Night, love,” he said back to her, returning her smile as he wrapped an arm around her back to pull her close. Between his exhaustion from the day and his contentedness at having his friend beside him once more, it didn’t take long for him to fall into a peaceful sleep.

--

The next day began like any other for the band of criminals. They enjoyed a simple breakfast together in the morning and then went out to spend their time underneath the warm sun. Alistair and Rikki left together to go on a leisurely patrol of the area, while Crow stayed behind with Hazel as she worked on making his next batch of medicine. Overall, it looked like it was going to be a peaceful day for the group.

“I really like this plant,” Crow mused as he lifted one of the herbalist’s ingredients to his nose. The time was nearing high noon, and Hazel had nearly finished preparing his draught.

“That would be the motherwort,” she said, taking it from his hand to put back with her other supplies. “And I’m running low on it, so I can’t let you toy with what’s left.”

“Do you need to get more?” he asked with a frown. “I could come with you if you do.”

Hazel nodded, “I do need more… but according to that physician, it only grows in the inner kingdom.”

“So we’ll take a trip,” Crow shrugged, stretching out his legs and leaning back on his hands as he watched the river flow in front of them. “I’ve been there plenty of times in the last couple of years, so I’ve learned my way around. If you need to go, then I’ll escort you.”

Hazel looked up at him for a moment before a small smile spread over the lips. “Thank you,” she said softly, turning away again to check on the pot she had cooking. A short moment of silence fell between them before she murmured, “Simon was going to go with me to restock on herbs… I wish he was still here.”

Crow studied her quietly, feeling a pang of empathy for her loss, and then leaned closer to wrap an arm around her shoulders. “I do too,” he sighed as she leaned lightly against his side.

The two lapsed into silence as they took a moment to mourn for their fallen companion. It was short lived, however, as they soon heard the sound of voices in the distance. Crow looked up to see that Rikki and Alistair were walking towards them, having just returned from their patrol. He was just about to greet them when he noticed that something seemed off. Both of the usually jovial thieves had concerned expressions on their faces and were speaking in hushed voices.

“What’s wrong?” Crow asked, standing up as his nervousness made him too restless to keep sitting. “Did something happen?”

“Not yet,” Rikki answered, folding her arms over her chest. “But it looks like something is about to.”

“We walked by the knights’ camp,” Alistair added with a worried look. “They were organizing a huge patrol—more knights than I’ve ever seen outside of a battalion—and they were talking about going to Wheldrake.”

“Is there another battle happening today?” Rikki asked, meeting his gaze with equal urgency. She shifted uncomfortably as she added: “I-I saw Penelope at the head of the group… She didn’t say anything to you… did she?”

Crow stiffened at the mention of the knight’s name and averted his gaze. “I haven’t heard anything about a battle,” he muttered. However, in the next moment, he blinked as he remembered that she had been talking to Gavin about organizing a patrol to hunt down Jaxon. [i]She’s really going to do it,[/i] he thought, feeling his blood run cold.

“What’s that look for?” Rikki said as she noticed the color drain from his face. “Do you know something?”

He hesitated at first before nodding reluctantly. “It’s not a battalion,” he said, looking up again to meet her eyes. “The knights found Jaxon’s camp a few days ago, and they’re sending in a patrol to kill him and the rest of his followers.”

“What?” Alistair’s eyes widened. “Why didn’t you tell us?”

“Because there’s nothing more we can do to get involved,” Crow answered simply. “Penelope and Olivia may have been willing to work with us, but the other knights will just see us as another enemy. If we try to go with them, they’ll just attack us. Besides,” he trailed off, shifting his weight slightly. “If they’re really sending as many knights as you say, then I’m sure they’ve got it covered.”

“I’m sure there’s still some way we could have helped,” Rikki protested tentatively.

Crow shook his head. “It’s best if we just stay out of it,” he muttered. “Knights catch criminals for a living. I’m sure they’ll deal with Jaxon on their own. It won’t be much longer until he’s out of our lives for good.”

Rikki opened her mouth again as if to argue with him but then closed it again, seeming to think better of it. Instead, she just sighed. “You’re the boss,” she said, reaching out to take his hand. “Come on. Let’s have some lunch to celebrate that bastard’s death. I think we still have some chicken left.”

Crow nodded wordlessly in response, following after her as she headed towards the camp. The news of the knights’ patrol to Wheldrake had left him with a foreboding knot in the pit of his stomach, and he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. [i]I’m just being paranoid,[/i] he thought, trying to reassure himself. [i]Jaxon’s gotten me all out of sorts. I’m sure it’ll be fine.[/i] Eager to get his mind off of Penelope and her patrol, he struck up a conversation with the other thieves about making another trip to the market soon, letting his worries drift to the back of his mind.