Crow followed at Penelope’s side as she led them over to one of the nearby merchant stands, silently chiding himself for letting his emotions get the best of him. The last thing he wanted was to ruin the one day they could spend together by moping about a decision he had made. Even though he didn’t enjoy nobility as much as being a criminal, it was worth it to be with her. Besides, it wasn’t really that bad. His freedoms had been lessened, but it wasn’t like he was miserable. The castle was a comfortable place to live, the food was good, and there were some people he got along with, like Naida. There was no point in focusing on the negatives when it wasn’t a bad life.

Unfortunately, Penelope seemed to pick up on the change in his mood too. As she attempted to reassure him, he winced. He didn’t want her to know he wasn’t as happy as a viceroy, since she was the reason why he’d taken the position in the first place. His dissatisfaction wasn’t her burden to bear, but knowing her, she would probably try to take it on anyway. Everything she said was right too. It was a difficult season, but once he got to the end of it, he wouldn’t have to worry about pleasing anyone anymore. When he built up a better reputation in the castle, he could stop hanging around other noblemen; and when he married the knight, he wouldn’t have to keep rolling over to her father. The only person who would still have any say in his life was his father, and the king had been pretty agreeable so far. It wouldn’t be much longer before he could return to a similar way of life that he was used to.

“I can’t wait for that,” Crow sighed, not bothering to hide his somberness now that Penelope had already caught him. However, his mood didn’t stay down for long. When they approached the edge of the merchant stand, he noticed right away that the man was selling goods from Medora. The southern kingdom was known for its elaborate metalwork jewelry and crafts. His eyes swept over the wares with childlike fascination. He’d seen some Medoran art in the markets in the outer villages, but never anything this fine of quality. The copper pieces were inlaid with rubies and other jewels that had been cut to reflect the light. The artisan who had made them was highly skilled.

“Wow,” he whistled, fingering the edge of a metal pendant that had been shaped delicately into a leaf. “These are impressive.” Looking up at the merchant, he saw that the man was watching them with a pleased expression. He was probably the one who had crafted the goods on the table.

“Quant?” Crow asked, guessing the man had travelled from Medora.

The merchant raised a brow, seeming surprised to hear his native tongue in Brerra. His smile broadened as he answered, “Cinquanta peces d'or per al que esteu veient. Cent per les joies més grans.”

“Cinquanta?” Crow gaped at him in shock. “Per això només?”

“No trobeu joies d'aquesta qualitat a qualsevol lloc del vostre territory,” the merchant boasted proudly. A sly glint appeared in his eye. “A més, cap home no hauria de gastar cap despesa en la seva dona. Es veuria bonica amb el meu coure.”

Crow glanced at Penelope before turning back to the man with a shrug. “No puc discutir amb això,” he smirked. “Potser tornaré més tard.”

“Estaré esperant,” the man grinned.

Crow forced a polite laugh and then turned away from the merchant with a roll of his eyes. “He priced his goods at no less than fifty gold coins,” he explained to the knight, wrinkling his nose. “That’s more money than most villagers will ever see in their lives. Is everything in the inner kingdom this expensive?”

--

Penelope offered Crow a small smile and nodded her head in agreement. She hoped her words had alleviated some of his dissatisfaction. At the moment, there wasn't much she could do other than remind him that there would likely be an end point to how many people had such a say in his life. Luckily he didn't seem to focus on it much longer as his focus turned onto the the merchant's stand, eying over the various goods. She turned her attention onto them as well, eying them over with a little bit less intrigue.

Since she had grown up in the inner kingdom, such things weren't overly rare. Of course, they were well crafted and unlike anything a craftsman would be able to make in Brerra but that also made them more expensive here. She glanced over at Crow as he addressed the man in what she guessed to be the merchant's native tongue. Sometimes she forgot just how many languages the viceroy knew even without the training. The knight remained to the side as she listened to the two speak, raising an eyebrow curiously as Crow glanced at her.

As he turned to leave, the knight moved to follow him, catching the eye roll as she did. Penelope gave an amused look as he wrinkled his nose. "Not everything. Once we start looking at merchant stands that aren't from other kingdoms, the prices tend to be a bit lower... However, it'll probably still be quite pricey. Most jewelry doesn't sell for less than twenty gold pieces around here. And don't get me started on clothing." she mused, shaking her head. "There are some cheaper options of course but I would say on the high side you've looking at anywhere between two hundred to five hundred gold pieces."

Penelope wrinkled her own nose a bit as she admitted to it. Focusing her gaze ahead, she let out a sigh. "And of course, that won't hurt most noble's wallet, aside from perhaps having to save up their coins to recover if they aren't of a higher status. I'm planning to buy something near two hundred today but it's not going to clean out my coin purse." She shrugged her shoulders and began to make her way over to one of the stands that was selling clothing nearby. "That's why I think I'll be able to convince some nobles to help with the outer villages.. Even if it's just hand full, we could certainly make some type of difference."

Crow’s eyes widened in disbelief when Penelope explained that even jewelry that had been made in Brerra was at least twenty gold pieces. He felt like his head was swimming. He hadn’t known there was that much gold floating around the market in the first place. Even though he’d always understood to some degree that the nobles were wealthier than the peasants could ever hope to be, it was jarring to find out the men and women in the inner kingdom were able to spend a lifetime’s worth of farming wages on a piece of crafted metal without batting an eye. The gap in their quality of life astounded him.

As the knight went on to tell him that clothing was even more expensive, the former thief gawked at her. “Five hundred?” he squawked before clamping his mouth shut. With so many other people around, he didn’t want to draw attention to himself. Still, it was hard for him to imagine an article of tailored fabric could be so expensive. He couldn’t even count that high. Just trying to fathom it made him feel dizzy, and he ran a hand through his hair to stay grounded. Even after living in the castle for two weeks, this was the first time he had tangibly felt the kind of world he had stepped into. He glanced down at his own clothes, suddenly morbidly curious to know just how much money adorned his body. Everything he was wearing had come directly out of the king’s wardrobe, after all.

“My gods,” Crow muttered, speaking quietly enough that only Penelope would hear him. “I had no idea everything costs so much here.” He glanced at a few of the other nearby stands. Even though he was a noble now, would he be able to purchase anything at a marketplace like this? As far as he knew, he’d only been given some new clothes and the gold in the coin purse his father had given him for his trip to the outer villages. Unless Albin had gifted him some secret trove of wealth he didn’t yet know about, he was still almost as poor as he’d been as a thief. He wondered how he was expected to function in a society like this when he barely had enough money to buy himself a few meals. Perhaps he wouldn’t be abandoning his stealing habits as quickly as he’d thought.

Letting out a sigh, he turned back to Penelope. As mind-blowing as it was to discover how nobles lived, he couldn’t do anything to change it. There was no reason for him to waste his energy fretting over what he’d learned. “Even if you were the only one who was willing to help, I’m sure you would make an enormous difference,” he casted her a fond smile. “The villagers have no idea how fortunate they’re about to be.”

Glancing at the stand she was walking toward, he slowed his pace slightly. “Go ahead and find what you want,” he said, brushing his hand playfully against hers. “I can’t say I’m very interested in dresses, so I’ll meet up with you here when you’re done.”

Penelope looked up at him and casted him a small smile as he assured her that even her effort alone would likely make a difference for the people of the outer villages. "Well, hopefully I'm not the only one, but even if I am, I'll be glad to help out as much as I can." she mused quietly. The knight was rather certain she wouldn't be completely alone in her efforts though. Even if she couldn't convince a ton of nobles like she wanted, she knew she'd likely have the support of her friends. Gavin would likely help her organize everything and she had a feeling Nadia and Olivia would participate as well.

Noticing Crow slow his pace, she looked over at him and flashed a teasing smirk. "Well if you're certain. Such a pity too since I think that pink one would really bring out your eyes." she joked with a playful wink. Penelope took a few steps ahead of him and casted him a smile. "I won't be long though. I'll be back in a bit." Leaving his side, she headed off to the merchant's stand, hoping to make her time there as quick as possible. A pricy dress wasn't really something she truly wanted and she didn't want to take away time from being with Crow.

She reached the stand and swept her gaze over the various dresses, wondering what would be best for the party. The knight reluctantly stepped over to the more extravagant looking gowns. While they were pretty, they simply didn't suit the female knight who preferred something less dazzling. She knew she had to dress to impress though so, sucking up her pride, she began to shift through them, trying to make a decision.

"Ahh I see you must be dressing for a special occasion." the merchant spoke up with a sly gleam in his gaze. "I'm sure you'll find I have excellent choices. The seamstresses I work with are known for their talent. Has anything caught your eye?"

"Nothing special. And maybe.." Penelope replied to him with a casual shrug. She had been to the market place enough times to know that the merchants tended to charge a higher price if they thought a customer was look for a specific reason. The knight lifted a bright, golden dress. It had small designs of flowers around the bottom in red and seemed to shine in the light. Though it was a bit low cut when it came to the chest, it was clearly made to show off brerratic pride and catch one's eye, which was exactly what the knight needed. "How much for this one?"

"A lovely gown that's sure to impress." the merchant winked. "It's four hundred."

Penelope pursed her lips together. The price was more than she was willing to pay and certainly more than the dress was actually worth. She studied the dress for a moment and then turned back to the merchant. "I'll give you two hundred pieces for it."

The merchant blinked and then snorted. "No way. That dress is well crafted. I wouldn't accept anything less than four hundred."

"The color of it is lovely, I agree, but it's also not exactly complex in design. It's simple, even I can tell that much and I'm certainly not a noblewoman with a keen sense of fashion." Penelope smirked and gestured down to her rather plain attire before meeting the merchant's gaze. "I'll give you two hundred and fifty pieces for it. I believe that's a fair price for this dress. I doubt you'd be able to sell it for anymore than that anyways."

The merchant clenched his jaw and shifted his weight for a moment, clearly debating whether to accept the offer or not. Eventually, he shook his head. "Three hundred is the lowest I'll go." he grumbled firmly.

Penelope paused. Though it was more money than she had planned to spend, she supposed it was at least a bit better than the four hundred he had been demanding and likely the actual worth of the dress since she had been trying to low ball him. "Alright, I suppose I can meet you at three hundred then." she agreed reluctantly as she extended her hand to the merchant. After he shook it, she pulled out her coin purse and gave him the gold in exchange for the dress. Folding the dress neatly, she packed into a sack that the merchant offered and then began to make her way back over to where she had left Crow, feeling pleased with her purchase.

“You think so?” Crow glanced at the dress Penelope had pointed out. “Maybe next time.” He casted her a wink as they prepared to briefly part ways. Though he had been excited for the day trip because of the opportunity it gave them to spend more time together, he also wanted to do a bit of exploring on his own while he still could. Who knew when he would be able to leave the castle walls again? Ever since he’d accepted his title, he’d become something of a caged pet. Chances for him to get out and stretch his legs had grown few and far between, so he was going to take advantage of the time he had now.

“Alright,” he nodded when the knight said she wouldn’t be gone long. “See you soon, love.” Turning away from the tailor’s stand, his eyes roved over the rest of the marketplace with interest. Knowing Penelope, he was certain she was right that it wouldn’t take very long for her to pick out a dress for the party. Even when they had first met two years ago, she hadn’t struck him as the type of woman to fret over what she wore. She would likely just select the first article of clothing that caught her eye.

That meant he didn’t have much time to look around.

Weaving through the crowd, Crow made his way back toward the row of foreign merchants. Even though the wares were insanely expensive, he was drawn to the unique designs of the artists. Avoiding the Medoran man he’d conversed with earlier—he didn’t want to waste any time declining to purchase his jewelry—he ambled along the front of a stand covered with trinkets made from wood and glass. They were much simpler compared to the Medoran style, and he guessed that meant they were from Gorm. Everything he’d seen from the northern kingdom in the past was elegant but basic.

Entranced by a particular figurine made from a combination of spiraling wood and glass, the viceroy edged closer to the table. However, as he did, a movement in the row behind the merchant caught his eye: A tall man with a shaved head was watching him amongst the crowd.

Crow’s heart skipped a beat as the memory of the mercenary in Younis flashed through his mind, and he quickly looked up from the stand to turn toward the man, not wanting to let him out of his sight. However, as soon as he turned toward the spot where the stranger had been standing, the man disappeared. His startled green eyes darted over the faces in the market, but no matter where he looked, there was no trace of his stalker. The man had vanished.

“Are you alright, sir?” the merchant’s question drew his attention. The Gorman man had a frown on his face and a concerned edge to his heavily-accented voice.

“Yeah…” Crow trailed off without meeting his gaze. He looked over the crowd once more, but there was still no sign that the man with the shaved head had ever been there. He ran his hand anxiously through his hair. Had he just imagined it? How would a mercenary show up this far into the kingdom anyway? Surely the knights of Brerra would never let one get this close to the castle. He exhaled, a troubled expression crossing his features. I’m losing it…

Trying to shake off his lingering nervousness, he continued walking past a couple more stands, though he couldn’t keep himself from looking over his shoulder every once in a while to make sure he wasn’t being followed.

As more time passed and he didn’t see the strange man again, Crow decided with more certainty that he must have imagined him. He wasn’t sure what that meant about his sanity, but at least he could be sure he wasn’t in danger. He relaxed, resuming his exploration of the marketplace with renewed excitement.

Circling back around to the Medoran merchant, the viceroy studied his wares from behind a thin curtain of other people in the crowd. Even though he couldn’t afford to purchase anything in Bellmare, he didn’t want to leave a market like this emptyhanded. He rolled his wrists, watching the artist strike up a conversation with an interesting consumer. If he wanted to swipe something, now was his chance.

Walking with purpose, he strode up to the front of the stand from an angle, as if he was just passing by to get to another merchant. Getting close enough to graze the edge with his hip, he smoothly picked up the metal piece he’d had his eye on with two fingers and slipped it into his pocket without slowing his pace. As expected, the Medoran man didn’t even glance his way, and he melted back into the crowd without any trouble.

He smiled to himself as he headed back to the spot where he’d said he would meet Penelope. Now that he’d gotten a souvenir for himself, he was ready to move on to whatever she had planned next.

Penelope came to the spot where she agreed to meet up with Crow. Arriving there first, she shifted to hold her bag more comfortably against her side and glanced around for the viceroy, wondering if he had found something that had caught his attention. The marketplace held plenty of things that would easily draw in one's eye and there were many stalls to look through. Just when she was beginning to suspect she might be waiting awhile for him though, she spotted Crow making his way towards her amongst the crowd.

The knight smiled and moved to meet up with him. "Well, I think I've got all I needed... I certainly hope I have since this thing cost me more than I'd proudly admit." she mused with a shake of her head. Though she had money saved up, she still felt the price of the dress a bit ridiculous. She just hoped she'd be able to pawn it off after the party to get at least a decent amount of her gold back so it could be put to better use.

"So if you're done here, I figure we could start our walk back towards the river, maybe take a couple detours through the city." She explained to him with a shrug. To her, there wasn't any other place in particular she wanted to show him, aside from just sharing the city in general with him.She was still hoping they could find a private spot away from the city and castle to have a moment alone too but that was something they'd have to figure out once they left the city. Penelope's smile fade slightly. "I figure by the time we reach the river it'll be nearing time for us to head back to the castle anyways." she added on a less enthusiastic note.

As he sifted his way back through the crowd, Crow saw that Penelope had gotten to their meeting spot ahead of him. He hoped she hadn’t been waiting for him long. Knowing he’d gotten distracted for a while when he’d thought he was being followed, he had wandered around the marketplace for a bit longer than he’d meant to. That, and he’d made a detour back to the Medoran merchant’s stand to steal something before they moved on. He absently touched his pocket, where the metal piece he’d stolen was hidden.

Fortunately, he didn’t see any sign of annoyance in the knight’s eyes when he reached her, so he relaxed.

“At least we already know it’ll look great on you,” Crow shrugged when she spoke about the price. Everything in the inner kingdom was expensive, so he really couldn’t judge her for spending a lot on new clothes, especially if she needed the dress to impress the noblemen and women at the upcoming party. He casted her a lopsided smile, “You’re beautiful in anything you wear. I’m sure everyone will just line up to sign your petition as soon as they see you.”

His eyes flicked to the bag she was carrying. Even though he was exaggerating about the other nobles, he was admittedly curious to see what sort of dress she’d chosen to don at the event. He remembered that she had looked gorgeous in the green dress she’d worn to his titling ceremony two weeks ago. Although he didn’t care what she wore on a day to day basis, he found it to be a bit of a treat to see her put on something that accentuated the curves of her body in such an attractive way.

Maybe I understand why nobles clean themselves up at least a little, he confessed to himself.

“Alright,” Crow nodded when Penelope said they could start working their way back toward the river. It was disappointing that they wouldn’t have too much more time before they had to return to the castle, but he was still determined to make the most of what they had left. “Have any more stories for me from when you lived in this city?” he asked, nudging her playfully with his shoulder in an attempt to lift her spirits. “I have a feeling little Penelope used to get herself into all sorts of trouble here, didn’t she?”

Penelope looked over at Crow as he claimed she'd look good in anything she wore. The knight casted him a fond smile, appreciating the compliment. Although she knew he was exaggerating, she did hope that her pick of gown would be enough to at least meet Dimia's standards. The noblewoman was much more experienced with parties than she was so, even if Penelope didn't agree with her values, Dimia would likely know what would impress. That aside, she felt rather confident her dress would meet the requirements though. It was quite the eye catching color and certainly expensive.

As they began to make their way back, she glanced up at Crow as he nudged her. His teasing words made her roll her eyes and smirk amusedly. "I thought I said that you had gotten enough from me today." she teased, nudging him back. Giving an overly exasperated sigh, she crossed her arms and glanced around the street. "But I'll have you know I didn't get into that much trouble. I may have pushed the boundaries a couple times but that was usually because the people around here weren't all too accepting of my background. I suppose I can spare a couple more stories though if you insist."

Penelope shrugged her shoulders and then smirked a little. "Since I grew up here, I also trained here when I started my path as a knight. It wasn't the easiest thing at first since my father faced a lot of opposition to the decision.. I even lost a couple friends that I had managed to make here. It didn't take long before I started getting challenged to a couple different duels. I denied most at first since I was far from properly trained but... I did get into one duel. It was actually with one of the now lieutenants that visited the castle not too long ago. He was a pain in my ass back then and eventually I took him on."

She shook her head and gave Crow a sheepish look. "Of course, his father had been training him for quite a while now so needless to say that was one fight I didn't win. I got a few good hits on him though so it was a completely loss. My father was absolutely enraged that I took him on though. I don't think I heard the end of it for a good week or so." she chuckled. "Ironically enough though, I'm on quite good terms with that lieutenant now though."

“Damn,” Crow clicked his tongue when Penelope teased him. “I was hoping you’d forgotten about that by now.” Despite the mock disappointment in his voice, he couldn’t help the smile that appeared on his lips. Bantering with her always put him in a good mood. He couldn’t wait for the day when they would be able to be this close in the castle. Spending time with her without pretending to be distant sounded like a dream come true at this point. It was what he had been waiting for since the day he’d made his decision to accept the title his father had offered him. If the party went well, that time could be right around the corner.

As the knight went on to say that she hadn’t gotten into that much trouble, he smirked. “Right,” he drawled in disbelief. Really, he knew she probably hadn’t broken that many rules when she was younger. She’d always struck him as level-headed, and rational people were the least likely to get themselves into deep water—quite the opposite of himself. Hot-tempered even as a child, he had been known for causing mischief in Myrefall and rarely followed the rules. He was pretty sure that no one from his home village had been surprised when he’d grown up to be a criminal, since he couldn’t handle the structure of a real job back then.

He liked to think he had matured at least a little by now though. Even though he still found all the rules and traditions of nobility to be suffocating, he was doing his best not to disregard too many of them.

When Penelope finally fessed up a story for him, Crow listened with interest. From the tales she’d told him so far, it sounded like knights brawled against each other quite often. Offhandedly, he wondered if any of the guards at the castle would try to challenge him when John furthered his training or if they would be deterred by his rank. Either way, he had a feeling he’d made a few enemies at the palace who would love to give him some bruises.

“He was lucky he faced you so early on,” the viceroy shook his head when she finished telling her story. “I’ve seen you in battle recently, and I have to say, it’s frightening.” He gave an exaggerated shudder. “I’m just glad my plan to seduce you before you turned into such a dangerous warrior paid off. Now I’ve got the most talented knight in the kingdom on my side. It was definitely the best investment I’ve ever made.” He shot her a wry wink.

Penelope gave a small laugh at his words as he mentioned Jonathan being lucky to have faced her early on. Though he was just exaggerating, she did stand up a tiny bit straighter at his praise for her fighting skills. She might not have been the most fearsome fighter out there but she took pride in her skills. "Smart move. Almost as smart as the investment I made in seducing the infamous thief of Brerra." she teased returning his wink. "You've quite a lot of tricks up your sleeve. Certainly ones I'm glad I'm not at the receiving end of."

The knight smiled up at him amusedly, enjoying their time together. It was nice to be able to speak to him without having to worry about acting distant with each other. After all that had gone on as of late, she was glad they had managed to find the time to be like they were now, even if they still had to keep some distance between each other as they walked the streets. Penelope's smile faded slightly as she wished she could close the small gap of distance that was still between them because of being in public eye. She was nearly about to shift to walk a bit closer to him so there hands would at least brush as they walked but paused as another idea came to mind.

The alleys. She blinked as her green eyes flickered towards an upcoming side street. Barely anyone used them since the main roads took everyone where they need to go in the city. Side streets were often formed just because of the space needed to be left between buildings. Meaning likely be empty. A spark lit her gaze and she looked back to Crow with a grin. "Come on. I think I just figured out a better path to the river." she said and turned to lead them off the main road.

"Might take us a bit longer to get to the river but I think it'll be worth it.I know the back streets of Bellmare like the back of my hand." Penelope said with a wink and then flashed him a sheepish smile. "Although... it may be mainly from chasing criminals from the marketplace back when I worked as a local guard more so than just innocent exploring of my hometown."

When Penelope returned his teasing words with her own, Crow laughed. “Thank you,” he smiled at her, taking her point about his tricks as a compliment. “You certainly saved yourself quite a bit of trouble.” Despite his teasing words, he felt like their relationship had actually brought her far more trouble than he would have by himself if they had never fallen for each other. On the bright side, at least there was a light at the end of the tunnel they had chosen. Instead of fighting as enemies forever, they would eventually get married and be together as they wanted. The thought of it brought warmth to his cheeks.

As the knight spoke up again, Crow turned back to her curiously. “Okay,” he nodded, following her lead. Unfamiliar with the city they were traveling through, he trusted her to get them where they needed to go without any issues. He also just enjoyed walking with her. It was a luxury to be even this close to her since he’d moved into the castle. As long as they could keep spending time together, he had no complaints about where they went.

“That’s fine by me,” he shrugged when she said it would take them longer to get back. Casting her a fond smile, he added, “I’m just happy to be with you.” With their backs turned to the main road, he risked leaning over to press a swift kiss to her cheek. He was glad she’d thought of taking the alleys. Now that they didn’t have to worry as much about being spotted, he could let his guard down a little.

As Penelope confessed that she’d learned the streets from her years of chasing criminals, he smirked. “Oh yeah?” he mused, looking over the narrow passages they were walking through now. “Poor saps. I bet they had no idea who they were up against.” He shot her a mischievous look and strode closer to lace his fingers with hers. “You’re lucky this isn’t one of the cities I frequented though. I bet I would have gotten away if you’d been chasing me.”

Penelope felt her heart flutter a little at the fondness in his smile and words. It warmed her to know he felt similarly about the time they were spending together that day. Though she was glad to finally share her home town with him, she really just wanted nothing more than to spend as much time with him as they were allowed, especially with how much distance they had been forced to keep up between them. If the party goes well enough, more days like this one will be right around the corner.. she thought hopefully as Crow pressed a kiss to her cheek.

The knight continued to lead them down the narrow passage and glanced back up at Crow as he shifted closer to her. His mischievous look made her give a laugh and she rolled her eyes at his words. His words were a bit competitive and the knight didn't mind it a bit. Though she didn't exactly have pride in chasing down criminals—namely the former one she happened to be in love with—she wasn't going to simply agree. Not when teasing and bantering with him about it would be much more fun. "Do you now?" she snickered and gave his hand an affectionate squeeze. "Sorry, love," she gave him a teasing wink. "but I doubt that. You may have talent but there's no way you would have gotten away from me here."

Of course, she was just teasing him. Had they crossed paths in Bellmare, Penelope was pretty sure he could have come up with some outlandish plan to get himself out of whatever trouble he had gotten himself into, even if that trouble would have been her. Back then she would have easily fallen for his tricks just like any other knight. The thought made her feel a surge of gratefulness that their first meeting had been the journey to Younis. Had they met under other circumstances, they likely would have never fallen for each other. The thought made her shift a little closer to him. Despite all the trouble that had come from being together, the knight wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

She smiled up at him affectionately. "That aside, I think we're both a bit lucky we didn't cross paths here." She gave a shrug with an air of casualness, trying to suppress a smirk from taking over her lips. "I mean, you couldn't get away from me two years ago in Wellspring and I think I happened to keep up with you pretty well despite my lack of knowledge about the area."

When Penelope said she doubted he would have gotten away from her in Bellmare, Crow smirked. He was confident that he would have escaped when she was still a new knight. Having been a thief since he was a child, he’d already had years of experience under his belt by the time they would have crossed paths. He’d never had any trouble when it came to local guards either, no matter how well they knew their home cities. When it came down to knowledge versus skill, his tricks always won.

As she added that he couldn’t get away from her when they’d been in Wellspring, he shook his head and laughed. “Don’t let your head get too big there, love,” he casted her a cocky look. “You chased me after I’d just gotten out of a yearlong prison sentence. As great of a knight as you are, you couldn’t have kept up with me before I was arrested. I was in much better shape back then.”

Feeling playful, he casted a quick glance over his shoulder to make sure they were alone and then wrapped his arms around her as they walked. Pressing another kiss to her cheek, he flashed her a mischievous smile. “In fact, I’d say I’m in pretty good shape now too.” Pulling back from her again, he winked as he held up the coin purse he’d just lifted from her belt.

“What do you think?” he mused with mock nonchalance, swinging the pouch tauntingly just beyond her reach and casting her a cheeky, sideways glance. “Still say you can beat me in this city?” He lowered his voice as he added: “I’ll even make it interesting. If you manage to take it back, I’ll owe you one favor. Whatever you want, no questions asked.”

Penelope smirked and raised an eyebrow at him as he gave her a cocky look. "That just sounds like an excuse to me." she teased him again. As he wrapped his arms around her, she gave a quick glance around before leaning into him slightly. At first, she smiled as he kissed her cheek but noticing the mischief in his expression, it faded as she gave him a suspicious look. As he held up her coin purse, the knight rolled her eyes at him, both for his challenging words and for stealing her purse in the first place.

She paused for a moment at his words as he taunted her with the coin purse. While she wouldn't mind a bit of a competition between them, she was a bit worried about drawing attention to themselves. Of course, they were off the main road but that didn't mean the narrow passages would continue to remain as empty as they were now. The knight glanced down the alley. Surely even if there happened to be a couple other people around, it would be fine though, right? Looking back over to Crow, she smirked in amusement as he added a bet to their competition.

While she didn't care about winning for the sake of getting a favor from him, she had to admit it did put a bit more on the lines. "Alright, you're on. And if you by some miracle manage to get away, I'll owe you a favor, no questions asked, too." she agreed with a small nod. The knight really wasn't as confident as she sounded. Crow was a skilled thief and even though she may have been more familiar with how he operated now, she still hadn't worked with him enough to know every move. Besides that, it had been quite a while since she had chased down any criminal, let alone the former infamous thief of Brerra.

"Just don't start using your lack of recent practice as an excuse when you lose." she said with a wink. Smirking up at him, she asked. "So how much of a head start do you need then?"

“Big mistake,” Crow grinned when Penelope said she would do him a favor if he got away from her. “I can’t wait to come up with something embarrassing for you to do when I win.” He waggled the stolen coin purse by its drawstrings teasingly. It had been a long time since he’d last had this much fun with someone. He was excited to pit his skills against the knight in a friendly match. He’d never challenged a city guard like this before either, though he supposed that had more to do with the fact that they would actually arrest him if he got caught than anything else. Regardless, he was looking forward to seeing how their competition would go.

“Please,” the former thief scoffed when Penelope told him not to make excuses. “It was a legitimate excuse last time, but I’m not going to lose today.” He might not have had any opportunities to practice a theft like this since he’d been stabbed by Jaxon, but he was still confident in his abilities. When she’d caught him in Wellspring, he’d been locked up in a tiny cell for a whole year, malnourished and stir crazy. This time, he wasn’t even two months out of practice and was still in fairly good shape, all things considered. He wasn’t nearly as disadvantaged as he had been before.

As she asked how much of a head start he needed, Crow considered the question before turning to her with a haughty smirk. “Just count to five and you won’t see me again ‘til this is all over,” he declared, trotting a few paces ahead of her and tossing the pouch up and down in his hand. “Oh, and by the way,” he mused, casting her a sly smile over his shoulder. “When you give up, just say so and I’ll come to you. No tricks though. If you say the words, the game is over.”

With that, he took off at a sprint, heading for the nearest side street. “May the best man win!” he called back to her tauntingly just before he disappeared around the corner.

Penelope rolled her eyes at the former thief as he waved the coin purse in front of her teasingly. "Well I'll keep those words in mind when I win." she said with a smirk. Despite the competitive talk, she was much more entertained by how happy he seemed to be about this competition. His energy was infectious and she couldn't help but enjoy the way he was lighting up. Win or lose, she was just glad to have a bit of fun with him.

As he said to just count to five, she gave a small nod and smirked in amusement at his cockyness. "If I give up." she corrected him with a raised finger. "But alright, I agree, no tricks." The knight crossed her arms over her chest and watched as the former thief took off to the nearest side street. She gave a small snort at his taunting words and watched him disappear from sight. She remained still for a couple seconds longer, silently counting down the seconds. As she reached five, she took off in a sprint, heading to the side street she had seen him disappear down.

It had been a long time since she had gone chasing after anyone but there was still a familiarity with such a scene despite the two years in between. On top of that, she found that she was much faster without the weight of her usual armor. The thought made a smirk cross her lips. Though it might not be enough to win their friendly competition, she was at least going to give him a run for his money between her lack of armor and knowledge of the area. Making a sharp turn down the side street, her gaze flickered around as she prepared for the chase to really begin.

Crow wasted no time putting distance between himself and Penelope. As soon as he started running, he immediately fell back into old habits, dipping into the closest alleyways and using the natural structures of the city to his advantage in the escape. It had been a long time since he’d last been chased through the inner kingdom, but he’d had enough practice to find it easy. His heart raced with excitement and an eager grin took over his face as he turned a second corner.

The thrill of the chase aside, he was also curious to find out how well Penelope would keep up with him on a more level playing field. He’d been terribly out of shape the first time she had caught him at the river, but now, he was nearly as fit as he had been at his peak—aside from the slight toll of how long he’d been bedridden after Jaxon had stabbed him, but he was determined not to let that hold him back from winning their competition. His other tricks would make up for it anyway.

Sure that the knight was pursuing him by now—it didn’t take that long to count to five—he decided to test the waters with her a bit. She’d been with him long enough to know some of his escape tactics by now, but would she catch on to them in the middle of a chase? He glanced back over his shoulder, pivoting on the ball of his foot to press his back against the edge of a building around a third corner. Not seeing anyone right away, he quickly fished out a coin from the purse he’d stolen and tossed it on the ground on the other side of the alley, hoping to send her in the wrong direction by pretending he’d dropped the gold on accident.

With the distraction in place, he spun around and continued running in the opposite direction, not waiting to find out if she’d fall for his ploy as he tried to put distance between them yet again.

Having escaped with Crow before, she was already aware of some of his tactics. Recalling how they had used the alleyways of Younis to escape from knights before, Penelope knew she'd have to make sharp turns if she wanted to have any chance of catching up with him. Taking a guess, she darted down the first side street that came into view and did the same with the next. It was difficult to say if she was going the correct way or not. While there seemed to be a distant sound of footsteps, they were hard to pinpoint in the maze of alleyways they were in. For now, she just hoped that they would continue to grow louder rather than softer.

Luckily, it wasn't a guessing game for long. A glimmer of gold caught her gaze as she ran and looked to see a piece of gold on the ground. Certain it was from Crow, a grin took over her lips and she nearly began to head in the direction of it. However, another thought made her pause. Crow would never be reckless enough to leave behind such an obvious trail. Even if he had dropped gold by some accident, he would have picked it up to keep the knights off his trail. This was just a trick to throw her off and she had nearly fallen for it. He was a professional at escaping knights and she needed to keep more alert from falling for something so obvious.

Penelope gave a shake of her head and hurried off in the direction opposite of the gold piece. Even though she had caught herself in time, she had still lost ground from her momentary pause. The knight eyed an upcoming side street. Remembering the layout of it, she knew it was connected to quite a few different ones and would eventually connect back into the one she was currently on. She turned into it at a fast pace. The knight partially hoped that the thief hadn't taken this particular alleyway, wishing to use it as a way to try and catch up with him. If he had turned down another, chances were he would eventually cross through this one if he hadn't already. It was a bit of a gamble on her part but feeling confident she'd likely be able to get back on his trail regardless, it was one she was willing to take.

Crow glanced over his shoulder once more as he sprinted through the back alleys. Whether Penelope had fallen for his trick or not, he still couldn’t hear her coming after him. She must have been distracted at least long enough for him to pull ahead of her. He smiled to himself, pleased with how well the chase was turning out. It seemed it was just as easy for him to get away from her as it was from any other knight when he wasn’t hindered by time in prison. He couldn’t wait to hear her give up.

Rounding another corner, the former thief slowed his pace slightly. Having not come across sight nor sound of Penelope, he felt comfortable letting his guard down a little. Even if she managed to catch up with him, he would hear her coming. He tossed the coin purse in his hand, strolling through the shadowed street at a leisurely walk. Even though the challenge was fun, he hoped the knight wouldn’t hold out too much longer. He wanted to get back to the castle in time for supper.

Passing across an intersection with another alley, he glanced down either side to make sure he was still alone. Of course, there was still no sign of Penelope, so he walked across to the other side without any trouble. Before he could reach it, however, he froze as he saw a flash of movement in front of him. It seemed Penelope had taken another street that intersected with the one he was on now a few yards ahead.

Cursing under his breath, he slipped into the street he was crossing now, hoping the knight hadn’t seen him during the brief window in which she’d had the opportunity. Regardless of whether she had or hadn’t, the safest option was to assume the worst. He took off at a run, hurrying to distance himself from her again before she could catch up.

As he headed down the alley, his eyes darted over the sides, searching for an exit. Luckily, there was an adjoining path not too far ahead. He hastened his pace, nearly skidding as he turned down the street. When he rounded the corner, he slowed down again, catching sight of a stack of crates pressed against the back of a building. His gaze flicked back over his shoulder once more, and a grin spread across his lips as an idea began to form.

Without sparing a moment, he sprinted toward the wooden boxes, using his momentum to leap up the sides. When he reached the top of the pile, he put the drawstrings of the coin purse in his mouth, jumped up and caught hold of the edge of the flat roof. He could feel the strain in his arms as he hauled his weight up and over the building until he had hidden himself from sight.

Panting from the exertion of climbing, he laid on his stomach away from the drop off, staying still and hoping Penelope wouldn’t think to look for him above the ground.

As the knight headed down the street, her green gaze flickered around, keeping an eye out for any sign that she was getting closer to the former thief. The sound of his footsteps had disappeared and she was beginning to think that perhaps she had made a mistake in her judgment. She had felt certain that the dropped gold piece had just been a decoy but without any further sign of him, she was tempted to turn back, thinking she might have a chance of catching up with him if she went the other way now.

Penelope was just beginning to turn around when brief movement caught her attention. For a moment, she thought that she had just imagined it but then the sound of running footsteps told her that she hadn't. A grin crossed her lips and she quickly changed directions, sprinting off down the alley she had heard the footsteps sounding from. It seemed her original judgment had been right after all. She hurried after him, trying to follow where the source of the sound was coming from to the best of her abilities.

She was just beginning to think that she was catching up to him when the footsteps suddenly disappeared again. She rounded a corner and slowed her pace as she tried to listen for which direction he had gone in. However, she was just greeted by silence and an empty alley. Penelope clicked her tongue, knowing he much have been using some trick. Was he just hiding somewhere nearby? Perhaps he had ducked into a nearby alley to avoid her. Going off of that thought, she moved with more stealth now as she headed down one of the nearby alleyways.

Traveling down it, she found no success in trying to locate where he had disappeared to. Penelope backtracked to where she had lost him and tried to look down the other nearby alley ways to see if he had gone a different direction than she had originally suspected. Unfortunately she didn't have much success there either. Whatever trick he had pulled, it had been successful. The knight crossed her arms over her chest, knowing it was time to admit defeat.

"Alright, alright I give up." She called out, speaking a bit loudly as she wasn't sure how far away or close he was to her.