As he walked with Penelope back to the front of the inn, Crow stretched his arms over his head and gave one last yawn for good measure. He was quite a bit more awake after wrestling with Penelope that morning, but he couldn’t quite shake off the last bit of his lingering weariness. [i]Of all the nights to have restless dreams, why did it have to be the last night of a long trip?[/i] He thought exasperatedly, rubbing the heel of his palm against his eyes in an attempt to clear away the tiredness. Of course, it didn’t go away, so he let out his breath in a quiet sigh and relented to the fact that he would just have to accept its unwelcomed presence until they got back to the castle.

When they reached the innkeeper’s desk, Crow hung back again while Penelope handed over their key. Despite how tired he was, the other man’s distrusting actions didn’t slip past his gaze. He rolled his eyes as the innkeeper checked the countless pieces of jewelry that adorned his arms and neck, as if afraid that the thief had swiped something from a distance. His fretting was pointless. It didn’t matter how talented Crow was at stealing; taking something from a man out of arm’s reach simply wasn’t possible. Honestly, the innkeeper’s worry was more obnoxious to him than anything else, and it did nothing to improve the weary thief’s mood. So, when Penelope rejoined him, and they headed to the door, Crow glanced back over his shoulder to cast the other man a final, dirty look before stepping outside with her.

Once they were out of sight of the innkeeper, he relaxed a bit more, although not as much as he would have liked. Like their journey from the castle to the outer villages, the nobles they passed threw him estranged looks and muttered amongst themselves, as if they were wondering why he wasn’t hanged yet. He pointedly avoided their bemused gazes. They would find out soon enough why he had been allowed to wander freely throughout the kingdom. His father had made it sound like he wanted to get on with the titling ceremony as quickly as possible. Once that happened, he had no doubt that word of his change in status would spread like wildfire in the inner cities of Brerra. After all, what other thief in history had risen from poor to power like he was about to? It was bound to be shocking news.

Crow blinked as Penelope’s voice drew him from his thoughts. He looked down at her, finding some comfort in the way she let their hands brush as they walked. “I don’t know,” he answered her question honestly. “It’s a lot to take in… I’ve been one thing my whole life, and suddenly nothing is going to be the same. I don’t think anyone can feel ‘ready’ for that.” He looked up again, studying the top of the castle that was within his view.

“But that’s alright,” he shrugged, turning back to her with a smile. “My life has always been one change after the next. Just because this one is a bigger change doesn’t make it bad. I’m sure I’ll get used to it.”