Crow winced when Penelope said she didn’t trust his judgment. He was well aware that some of his secrets had caused more trouble between them than they should have in the past. He just preferred to try and handle issues on his own before involving anyone else. After all, most of the time, he was able to deal with them without help. This case seemed to be no different. He had just been unsettled by a bad dream, so there was no reason to bring the knight into it. It wasn’t like there was anything she could do anyway.

“I know,” he casted her a halfhearted smile when she said she wouldn’t let it go next time. “I don’t think it will though… I’m sure I’ll be fine soon.” It had just been one nightmare. Once it wasn’t as fresh in his mind, he knew he would be able to move on and forget about it. He’d had plenty in the past, especially when he’d been younger and the memory of the slaughter in Tamsworth was still recent. He supposed the incident with Jaxon must have just stirred up old fears.

As a brief silence fell between them, Crow managed to swallow a couple more bites of food. After that, his stomach protested too much for him to finish the rest, so he pushed his plate aside. At this point, he didn’t care if it looked strange. Penelope had already caught on that he was upset about something, so there was no reason to give himself a bellyache to hide it anymore. If he built up an appetite later, he would just help himself to a second serving at dinner.

When the knight spoke up again, the viceroy turned to her with a nod. “That’s good,” he mused. He was going to add something else, but then paused as she went on first. Her words brought a hint of interest to his face. “That would be great,” he said, visibly perking up at the thought of getting back in touch with the other thieves. As time passed at the castle, he had begun to miss their company. “I haven’t really done much writing outside of when Udolf taught me all the letters, so I could use the help.”

Suddenly, Crow’s eyes widened slightly in realization, and he glanced toward the door. “Speaking of Udolf, I think I’m late for my lesson today,” he turned back to her with a helpless shrug. “I should get going before he gets too angry and starts accusing me of not taking my studies seriously again.”