Crow rolled his eyes when Penelope joked about not having enough space between them. “Of course,” he teased, pulling her a little closer as she nestled her head beneath his. “Or we could just keep this a secret from your father. I think that sounds much easier.” He shrugged faintly, closing his eyes as he relaxed against her warm body. After the whirlwind of everything that had happened in the last two months, it was nice to finally be able to slow down and simply enjoy being with her. After all, there was no telling when they would be able to do so again. Between the training his father had planned for him and the fact that her return to the castle was still up in the air, it seemed unlikely that they would even be able to see each other on a regular basis. The thought made him hold her a bit tighter.

When Penelope spoke up again, Crow nodded faintly in agreement, feeling his weariness from the long day begin to settle over him more prominently. From announcing his decision to his father, to trekking to Sarton, to sleeping with the knight, he was thoroughly exhausted and ready to pass out. “Hopefully it won’t be too much longer before we get to spend every night like this,” he murmured, meeting her gaze with a tired smile when she pulled back from him.

In the next moment, he yawned and shifted to lay more comfortably against her, closing his eyes again as he decided it was too strenuous to keep them open any longer. “This is the most relaxed I’ve been in ages,” he breathed contentedly, lulled by the gentle stroke of her fingers against his back. Though he wanted to spend the whole night enjoying their time together if he could, it was getting harder to stay awake. He stifled another yawn as he buried his head against her neck, slowly drifting off despite his best efforts.

“I don’t think I can stay up any longer…” he mumbled in a tone that was barely audible as he succumbed to his weariness and fell asleep in her arms.