Halfway through his conversation with Naida, Crow could tell he was running out of energy. It grew harder for him to focus on what his sister was saying, and at times he missed entire portions of the discussion by zoning out. He leaned heavily on the edge of the table, absently swirling the remains of the glass of wine he’d been working on as he wondered if he had the strength left to keep waiting for Penelope. The longer he sat in the Great Hall, the more tempted he was to go back to his bedchamber and try to sleep.

[i]It’s not like it would matter anyway,[/i] he reminded himself dully. Even if he tried to sleep, he knew he would wake up tomorrow feeling just as exhausted as he did today. The nightmares that appeared to him every night prevented him from getting anything more restful than that. He eyed the nearly empty glass in his hand. It was his second drink that supper, and he was starting to contemplate if he should have one or two more. Penelope had told him that Eldon had his patients drink to get rid of the dreams before. Though he wasn’t fond of the idea, he couldn’t help but feel a little drawn to trying it, if only to get one night of good sleep.

“Collin.”

Crow startled and looked up to see that Naida was watching him with a frown. “Sorry,” he muttered, taking a quick sip of his wine and setting the glass down again. “I didn’t hear the last thing you said.”

“Yeah, I noticed,” the princess crossed her arms. “You’ve barely been listening to a word I’ve said. Are you feeling alright?”

Crow shook his head, “I’m just tired.”

“Mhm,” his sister cracked a knowing smirk. “Lightweight?”

“Hardly,” the viceroy scoffed, finishing off the rest of his drink to prove his point. “I can barely feel it.”

“Then why are you so tired?” she tipped her head slightly, as if trying to examine him to find an answer.

“It’s just been a long day,” Crow lied, covering his mouth as a broad yawn escaped his lips.

“I thought you said you just had another lesson though.”

“I did,” he shifted slightly as he wracked his weary brain to think of an excuse. “It was the morning that was long.”

“Why?” Naida leaned forward, seeming interested in getting a story out of him.

Crow rolled his eyes, “I just ran into someone I didn’t want to see. That’s all.”

“Gods, it’s like pulling teeth to get you to tell me anything,” the princess groaned. “Details, Collin. [i]Details[/i].”

“Such a rumormonger,” he laughed, glancing up to give a curt nod of gratitude to Preston, who had appeared to refill his empty glass. “But fine. If you really must know, she was an old flame of mine from my youth. She approached me with interest to pick up where we left off, and I didn’t want to have an unpleasant conversation so early in the day.”

“Not another one,” Naida ran a hand through her dark hair in exasperation. “You should just be with Penelope already. Those harlots will leave you alone if they see that you’re taken.”

Crow snorted, biting his lip to keep from laughing aloud at her surprisingly vicious comment. “I think [i]you’ve[/i] had too much wine,” he remarked, lifting his own drink to his lips.

“Maybe, but they deserve it,” she muttered sourly before breaking out in a giggle. In the next moment, she sat up a bit straighter and peered over Crow’s shoulder, grinning excitedly. “Look who it is.”

Crow craned his neck to see that Penelope had finally arrived in the Great Hall and was heading to their table. He smiled to himself, happy to see that he would have some time with her after all. “Hey,” he greeted her in return when she sat down next to him.

“Took you long enough,” Naida smirked at her friend teasingly. “Where have you been all evening?”