“Ouch,” Crow rolled his eyes at Penelope’s sarcastic gibe. “I took a sword for you, and this is the thanks I get? You know, if you’re going to be ungrateful, I don’t have to keep trying as hard as I do.” He cracked a small smile as she laughed and leaned into her lips when she kissed him. It had been a while since the last time they had been able to banter so casually with each other. Even though the circumstances weren’t the best, he was glad that they were able to now.

“It’s a little too late for that,” he chuckled at her teasing comment about his ego. “I’m already well aware of how great I am, and it’s going to take more than a few half-assed insults to take me down.” As she leaned her head against his, he closed his eyes and wrapped his free arm around her shoulders, smiling blissfully to himself. He liked that no matter what they did, whether they were talking or simply being together in silence, it all felt so natural. There was a level of comfort he felt with her that he’d never had with anyone else before, aside, perhaps, from his mother. It made his heart flutter with affection for the knight, as well as drew up an innate desire within him to protect and serve her to the best of his abilities.

Feeling especially fond, Crow turned his head slightly to press a tender kiss to Penelope’s cheek, trailing his hand gently along her shoulder blades as he held her against himself. He wished they could just stay like that all night, but of course, it wasn’t long before they were interrupted yet again. The thief groaned inwardly when the sound of footsteps disrupted the silence, and the knight had to pull away to put distance between them. It seemed like as long as he was stuck in this camp, they would never truly have a satisfying moment alone.

He turned annoyedly towards the entrance of the tent as Jane stepped inside. At first, he guessed she had come to treat him again, but instead, she sat down at her desk to work on something without even giving him a passing glance. Well, that was fine by him. His wound still ached, but the pain was manageable enough, so he didn’t need her to tend to him at the moment. He was about to turn back to Penelope when he caught sight of a second figure enter the tent.

Crow stiffened warily as a knight he didn’t recognize began walking towards him. After hearing about the intentions of Layth and his followers, he didn’t trust any nobleman he didn’t already know. If this stranger was here to ‘interrogate’ him, he intended to be prepared. However, it seemed the man hadn’t been sent for any such purpose. He glanced furtively at Penelope as she greeted her comrade in a confused, yet friendly manner. [i]This must be the guard she told me about earlier… that lieutenant,[/i] he thought, eyeing the knight with newfound interest. While the man’s presence was an unwelcomed interruption, the fact that Penelope seemed to trust him was enough for the thief to relax a little.

He met her gaze briefly as she left the tent, feeling a pang of disappointment that they couldn’t even properly say goodbye to each other with the other nobles around. It was frustrating to have to hide from everyone around them. The situation reminded him a bit of when they had been traveling with William back from Younis two years ago, except this time was worse, since they had to part ways so often.

Once she was gone, Crow let out his breath in a quiet sigh and stared up at the canopy over his head, listening to the quiet sound of Jane’s quill scribbling away as he resigned himself to spending the night in the company of people he didn’t know well or like.