Crow’s eyes fluttered slowly open as he awoke, dazed and disoriented in the grass. He shifted groggily, trying to remember where he was and when he had even fallen asleep. From the little that he could remember, he and Penelope had snuck out of the inn after John had passed out to visit the Gods’ Mirror pond, they’d slept together, and then they’d gotten ready to go back to their room for the night. Everything else was a blur, and he couldn’t recall falling asleep at all.

Suddenly aware that Penelope was no longer beside him, Crow sat up to look for her. However, knowing that she would never have left him while he was unconscious, he was in no rush to find her and took another moment to try and wake up a bit more. He ran a hand through his hair and stretched as he finally let his weary gaze wander over the clearing, expecting to see the knight sitting somewhere close by while he’d been sleeping. Instead, he stiffened in surprise when his eyes landed on her. She was nearby, but she wasn’t alone.

[i]What is he doing here?[/i] Crow thought with a rush of panic as he gaped at John. When had the older knight woken up? And how had he possibly found them out in the middle of the woods? The thief’s mind reeled as he tried to comprehend what was going on. He was worried about what Penelope’s father was going to do now that he’d caught them together, but even more so than that, he was worried that the man may have already done something to her. It was hard to tell for sure from a distance, but he was almost certain that he could see a faint glimmer of tears on Penelope’s cheeks.

Feeling a flash of protectiveness, he scrambled to his feet and ran quickly over to her side. When he reached her, he immediately dropped to his knees and rested his hands on her shoulders, no longer caring about keeping any space between them for her father’s sake. After all, John had already caught them for sneaking out together. What more could he possibly punish them for? So, ignoring the older knight, he studied her face with a concerned expression. Now up close, he was sure of it—she had been crying.

Anger pulsed through him as he realized that her father must have done something to her. He turned with a cold glare towards the other man, ready to defend her against whatever John had said or done, but then faltered as he saw wetness glistening on the older knight’s cheeks as well. In the next moment, confusion flooded his features in place of rage as he looked between the two Vermillions. No matter how hard he wracked his brain, he couldn’t understand why they both looked like they had been crying together. All he knew was that he needed to make sure Penelope was safe and alright.

“What’s going on here?” Crow asked warily, still unwilling to let his guard down around John. He leaned a little closer to Penelope out of protectiveness, eyeing her father with an uncertain expression. “How did you find us here, and why is she crying?”