Penelope relaxed a little more as the king finally spoke up and gained control over the crowd. She could still tell that most of the nobles were still seething with rage but at least none of them looked ready to attack. She listened as the king made his point about how promoting Crow to viceroy was a wiser move than throwing him in jail. Crow's talent seemed to aid to the silencing of protest as well and soon the ceremony continued without further issue. 

She smiled faintly, trying to suppress it, as Crow was sworn in and applauded along with the other nobles. Of course, hers was far less forced than the others around her, namely the sandy blonde man who had been the first to object. As the king dismissed the nobles, she turned to leave with her family, glancing over at her father as she tried to gauge how he was feeling about the whole thing. She figured he would be pleased seeing Crow follow through with his word about becoming viceroy but as usual, the older knight was hard to read. Her aunt and cousin on the other hand, were very obvious about their feelings.

"I can't believe this.." Krea breathed as soon as they were out of the throne room and on their way to the great hall. "The king must have long his mind."

"Easy Krea." John muttered and sighed. "He explained his reasonings... Besides, it's not like anyone from our family was going to get the title."

"Well maybe not...But you're a little too calm about this don't you think?" Krea huffed. 

John shrugged his shoulders. "It's out of my power. To complain would be a waste of energy and surely bring me more trouble than good. This.. Collin, clearly has the king's favor after all." he pointed out as he kept his gaze focused ahead. 

Penelope fell behind her family for a moment, becoming uninterested in their conversation as Krea and Lucy voiced their upset about the thief while her father attempted to make them see reason. It was likely they had heard from Edward about how the thief had stolen from the battalion in the past so she was quite certain their personal dislike of him likely stemmed from that. She let out a small sigh as she glanced around the other upset nobles nearby. It made the knight wish that Gavin and Olivia were there. Since she wouldn't be able to see Crow or Naida right away, it would have been nice to have another friendly face around to share a happier outlook on the thief rising in rank. 

"This is insane, isn't it?"

Penelope jumped as a voice drew her out of her thoughts. She turned her head to see Cedric had somehow slipped up besides her. The knight blinked, caught off guard to see him again so suddenly, especially since she hadn't even spotted him amongst the crowd when she had first entered the throne room. Coming back to herself a bit she shifted to put a bit of distance between them. "Yeah.. not something you see everyday." she mumbled, now on guard. 

Cedric paused for a moment, clearly trying to figure out a way to keep the conversation going despite her lack of interest in speaking with him. "So what do you think about all this? I mean, you've been around that thief quite a bit right? I heard you traveled with him to the outer villages just last week."

"I don't know. Seems like he has the talent and I trust the king so, I'm certainly not going to fight the decision." Penelope shrugged her shoulders, attempting to remain vague about her opinion of Crow. However, she paused for a second before adding, "From what I know of him, he isn't a bad person. Aside from the stealing of course." 

"I guess so.." Cedric sighed then casted her a small smile. "Although I think that kindness of yours might be a bit of a weakness when it comes to judging people."

"Tell me about it." she said dryly as she eyed him accusingly. 

Cedric blinked and frowned a little. "Sorry... I wasn't referring to.. I mean.. Sorry."

"Yeah I get it... But why are you hanging around me anyways?" Penelope muttered. She was going to give him a chance to redeem himself but she didn't understand why he was already seeming insistent upon being around her. The knight was hoping he wouldn't bother her outside of maybe work if they got stuck together on a guard shift. 

"Well, I certainly can't make up for the past from afar." Cedric pointed out with a sheepish smile. He shifted a bit uneasily. "Besides I meant what I said about wanting to be you friend. And that I can't do from afar either.... If I'm really bothering you that much though I'll leave..."

Penelope looked over at him and pursed her lips into a thin line as Cedric wait for an answer. She supposed it wouldn't hurt. In time, he'd either prove himself or whatever angle he was playing at would come to light. Besides, it wasn't like he'd be able to get to her as close as he once had since she was with Crow now. "No that's alright..." she said with a hint of tiredness. Focusing her gaze back ahead, she stepped over to one of the empty tables to take a seat as the feast began. Cedric, of course, followed her eagerly and sat down across from the knight, quickly starting up another conversation with her as he asked questions about the war instead. With everyone else so focused on Crow's new position, it was actually a bit nice to speak on a different matter.