[IC] Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow glanced over at Hartley as the Younisian boy cut into the conversation. He stepped back from Penelope, letting his arms fall from around her so that she could converse with the young thief while he ambled back over to his companions’ sides. As he approached, he noticed that Rikki avoided his gaze, and he guessed she had been made uncomfortable seeing him kiss the knight a moment before. Alistair, on the other hand, had a broad grin on his face.

Once Crow was standing at his side, the other thief leaned over and nudged him in the side, “You’d better not forget to invite us to the wedding.”

Crow casted him a sideways glance, “Where did that come from?”

“Well, you’re not going to be a peasant anymore, so I’m assuming that means you’re not going to be waiting any longer to marry her, right?” Alistair explained, tipping his head towards Penelope. “I just want to make sure your closest friends are there when you two finally tie the knot.”

“It might not be as soon as you think though,” Crow shifted his weight slightly. “I may be taking a noble title, but there are still other obstacles left for us to get past before we can be married.” He fell quiet for a moment as he thought again about how the knight’s baroness might not allow her to return to the inner kingdom with him. Not wanting to linger on the worrisome thought, he turned back to Alistair with an amused smirk. “Besides, even if we did get married soon, how do you plan to get into a wedding in the inner kingdom?”

“Easy,” Alistair’s grin turned foxlike. “You may have built up a reputation there, but Rikki and I never have. They don’t know our faces, so all we need to do is steal some nobles’ clothes, and we’ll blend right in.”

Crow snorted at the image of his friends pretending to be nobles. “I think that as long as you avoid talking to anyone, you’ll be alright,” he snickered. “Just don’t open your big mouth or the real nobles will see through you in an instant.”

“Hey, I can pass as a nobleman,” Alistair rolled his eyes. “It’s simple. All you have to do is start some petty rumor about someone who doesn’t exist, and they’ll eat it right up. Watch.” He leaned over to Rikki and spoke in a low voice, “Did you hear that Sir Gand and Lady Harcourt are having an affair?”

Rikki casted him a surprised look, eagerly playing along with the game, “Oh my gods, no.” She spoke in an exaggeratedly arrogant voice. “Do their spouses know about this?”

“Not yet, but they will,” Alistair went on with a barely suppressed smile. He dropped his voice even lower as he added, “I heard Lady Harcourt is going to bear their love child.”

“I absolutely must tell every other person I know about this!” Rikki gasped before taking a few steps as she pretended to hurry off.

Alistair turned back to Crow with a garish bow, “And now there’s no more line for the food.” He gestured at an imaginary table.

“Fine, you’ve convinced me,” Crow laughed, finding their antics entertaining. “Whenever we do get married, I’ll make sure you both know about it.”

“Thank you,” Alistair shot him a pleased smile.

In the next moment, they all turned back to Penelope as she said a short goodbye to Alistair and Rikki. Crow met her lips in a brief parting kiss and smiled at her fondly, “See you tonight, love.” He watched as she left, waiting until she passed out of his sight before letting out his breath in a soft sigh. It wouldn’t be much longer until they found out if she would be coming back with him or staying on the warfront. He just hoped Mia would be reasonable enough to let her go.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope headed out from behind the waterfall, following the narrow path. As she reached its end, she ended up running into Hazel, who was making her way back to the cavern. The herbalist took a step back to allow the knight to step off the pathway. "Leaving?" Hazel asked her, her gaze flickering towards the cavern entrance.

"Yes. But just me for now." Penelope explained with a small shrug. "By the way, congratulations."

Hazel rested a hand against her stomach before giving the knight a nod. "Thanks.." the herbalist paused and let out a small sigh. "Good luck by the way. I hope you're able to bring about change... And hope that fool doesn't screw it up for all of us."

Penelope smiled amusedly and nodded her head. "I'll keep an eye on him to make sure he doesn't." the knight said with a small chuckle. Her smile softened a bit. "Goodbye for now, Hazel. And thank you for everything."

Hazel gave a small dip of her head and cracked a small smile. "Goodbye, Penelope."

The knight turned and headed off in the direction of her camp. Having said goodbye to everyone, it was finally time to return to her camp. The walk didn't take long and she was able to reach her camp a little before it was even midday. As the battalion came into view, the knight slowed her pace slightly. So much had changed within the last week it felt rather strange to her to be returning here, the one place that seemingly stayed the exact same even in her absence.

As she drew closer, one of the guards seemed to notice her and rushed over to meet her. Penelope felt a grin spread over her features as she recognized the guard to be none other than Olivia. "Hey! You're finally back!" the female knight returned her grin. "So what happened, huh?"

"It's a long story." Penelope said and shrugged her shoulders. "I'll explain it later but for now, I need to go talk to the barons." She figured it was better to wait until Gavin was around as well as Crow before she went into the story of what had happened on their trip to the inner kingdom.

"Alright... But I better get some answers before the end of the day!" Olivia smirked and then turned to lead the way back to camp. "Come on the barons are in one of their meetings right now so you came at a good time." She fell quiet for a brief moment and eyed Penelope. "Well.. Can you at least tell me where that thief of yours is? You seem pretty relaxed right now so I'm assuming he's not dead or arrested."

Penelope rolled her eyes. "He's back with his companions right now... But he'll actually be coming here tonight."

"Why would he do that after just escaping? Isn't that kinda risky?" Olivia raised an eyebrow.

"It would be... If the king wasn't the one allowing him to leave the castle or give him a note to make sure no knights would harm him." Penelope mused in a quieter tone as they entered the camp. Though she planned not to tell the whole story, she figured she could at least share the information she was going to be sharing with the rest of the knights anyways.

"What?" Olivia's eyes widened in surprise. "What the hell happened at the castle?"

"Long story that I promise you'll hear later." Penelope assured, smirking in amusement at Olivia's shocked expression. "See ya, Olivia. I've got to go speak with the barons." She gave a small wave to her friend before focusing her gaze forward on the large tent at the middle of camp. Her heart began to pound a bit anxiously in her chest as she thought about having to face Mia and convince her. She let out a breath and picked up her pace as she made her way to see the barons.

[Rogue Sloth]

Since Crow and his companions only had one more day left together, the other thieves chose to spend it in his company rather than going about their usual routines. After Penelope left, they were rejoined by Hazel, and everyone headed outside to relax in the warm sunlight. Crow spent most of the morning catching the others up on the last month of his life: telling them about what had happened at the knights’ camp, describing their trip to the inner kingdom—though he left out the night at the Gods’ Mirror pond—and even recounting everything that had happened at the castle, from his meeting with his father to his discovery that he had three siblings.

He was much less guarded about the information than he usually was. After being secretive about his life for the last two years, it felt good to finally start letting them get a little closer to him. Plus, he felt like he owed it to them after all the trouble he’d caused them Jaxon had been around. It was because of his lying that they had suffered as much as they had. They deserved to learn the truth about him before he left for the inner kingdom for good and became the king’s viceroy.

When he finally finished speaking, Alistair leaned back on his hands and whistled. “Who would’ve thought that all this time, we’ve been living with the king’s son?” He shook his head. “And here I thought you were just some village idiot.”

“I was barely his son,” Crow rolled his eyes at his friend’s comment. “I’d never even met the man before this past week.”

“Still, it’s pretty crazy,” Rikki mused, drawing her knees to her chest as she gazed out over the river. “You’re the firstborn heir of the most powerful man in the kingdom… I don’t even know what to think about that.”

“Trust me, I may be related to him, but there isn’t a noble bone in my body,” Crow assured her, picking up a nearby rock and tossing it into the water. “I’ve always been his son, but I’m still the same man as before. Nothing has changed except for my title.”

“Yeah,” Alistair shot him a playful grin. “You went from a pain in the ass to a royal one.”

“Shut up,” Crow shoved him roughly, although he couldn’t help the smile that tugged at his lip.

“I think it’s great,” Hartley spoke up. He was laying nearby in the grass with his head propped up on his arms. “You just got a free ride to nobility, and you didn’t even have to do anything to get it. Plus, you’re the king’s son, so that has to carry some influence, right?”

Crow exchanged an uneasy glance with the other thieves. “Not exactly,” he answered slowly. “It probably will around other nobles, but the king of Brerra doesn’t exactly have the same reputation as the king of Younis among peasants.”

“What do you mean?” Hartley frowned.

“Well, do you remember what Penelope and I told you about the last king?”

“Yeah,” Hartley thought it over. “You said he taxed the kingdom a lot, right?”

“Yes,” Crow nodded. “And my father hasn’t done anything different. The peasants here hate the king, so if anything, I’ll probably be liked even less once word gets out that I’m his son.” He shrugged. “Not that it makes much of a difference. People weren’t that fond of me when I was the most hated thief in the kingdom either.”

“Damn,” Hartley exhaled. “Looks like there’s just no escaping for you, is there?”

“Nope,” Crow tossed another stone into the river. “But that’s alright. I wasn’t trying to win anyone’s favor by doing this. It was just for Penelope.”

“Well you’d better start trying,” Hazel snorted. “I want my son to grow up in a better kingdom than this one.”

“Son?” Crow eyed her curiously. “You already know the gender?”

“No,” she shrugged, resting a hand on her stomach. “I’ve just got a feeling, and my feelings are usually right.”

“If you think it’s a boy, does that mean you’ve already got a name picked out?” Rikki asked, leaning forward eagerly.

“Yes,” Hazel’s expression softened. “I’m going to name him Simon, after his father.”

The group fell quiet for a moment before Rikki broke the silence. “I think that’s great,” she chirped.

“It’s a fitting name,” Alistair agreed with a grin.

Crow and Hartley offered their approval as well. The older thief laid back in the grass and let out his breath contentedly. It was moments like these that he was going to miss once he left for the castle. He was glad that his father had allowed him to visit one more time before he began his training as the next viceroy. He snuck a glance at the others as they continued to talk about Hazel’s growing child, capturing the moment in his mind so he wouldn’t forget it. After all, there was no telling if or when he would see them again, so he wanted to hold onto the memories they were building now.

I’m going to miss them, he thought with a melancholic smile before he rejoined their conversation once more.

[BuzzingBee]

Pulling back the flap of the tent, Penelope quietly stepped inside. Even though she tried to be a bit discrete, all eyes were on her almost instantly as Mia trailed off in whatever she was discussing with the others in the room. The lieutenant offered her baroness a small smile and dipped her head. "Sorry to interrupt. I just got back." Her gaze briefly flickered over the faces in the room until stopping on one in particular.

Gavin looked over at her with thinly veiled surprise, sitting in her regular seat besides Tomas. It made the female knight feel a small sense of joy knowing that Mia had taken her advice in letting the male knight temporarily take her place. It also made the knight feel a bit awkward. She had done that with the intention of helping Gavin rise in rank so that he'd be able to do what she couldn't once the war ended and she left to be with Crow. Now that she wouldn't be leaving her noble life behind, she wouldn't be stepping down from her position. Although, perhaps she could still temporarily give her position to him if she managed to convince Mia to let her leave.

"That's quite alright, Penelope. It's good to have you back." Mia smiled.

"What took you so long to return anyways?" Edward grumbled.

"And what about the thief? Did the king hang him?" Layth quickly piped in, eying his sister for answers. "Or did he throw him in a cell to rot?"

"Things... Took a different turn than I was expecting at the castle." Penelope admitted slowly, unsure how to go about delivering the news to nobles who despised the thief.

"What do you mean by that?" Bennett questioned, raising an eyebrow at her.

Penelope glanced at him before looking back over to Edward and Layth. "The thief is neither dead nor in prison, he actua—"

"What!?" Layth snapped. His eyes narrowed at Penelope and he curled his lip. "Don't tell me that bastard slipped away from you again! Damnit you of all people should have never accompanied father to the castle."

Penelope shot a glare at her brother. "He didn't escape." she grumbled, irritated by her brother's demeaning words.

"Then what did happen?" Edward challenged.

"I'm not exactly sure but the king gave him permission to travel to the outer villages." Penelope explained shifting her weight uneasily. "And he isn't to be harmed. The king even gave him a signed letter stating so."

The room fell silent and they all stared at her in shock. Layth was the first to snap out of his shock and glared at Penelope. "That can't be right! Why in the world would the king allow that cretin to walk free?" he growled.

"This is absurd." Edward muttered in agreement as he seemed to be trying to piece together some explanation.

"I don't know but that has what he had decided... Besides the thief is suppose to return to the inner kingdom before the end of this week." Penelope explained with a shrug. "I'm sure the king will give an explanation soon enough."

"I suppose we'll just have to trust his reasoning for now then." Gavin spoke up giving her a small nod of support. Tomas gave a mumble of agreement despite looking a bit concerned by this new development. Though Edward, Bennett and Layth were clearly having a tough time accepting it, she was glad to gain the support of her friend and fellow lieutenant.

"Speaking of which," her gaze shifted over to the barons. "The thief will be returning to this camp tonight. We should make sure word gets around throughout the camp that he's a guest for now and isn't to be harmed."

"Why is he coming here if he's supposed to return to the castle?" Bennett asked crossing his arms.

"I'm curious too... Why didn't he just accompany you here? It sounds like you traveled out here with him correct?" Mia asked calmly.

"We left at the same time. But he had some business to take care of in the outer villages and I had business to take care of here so we went our separate ways." Penelope shrugged then glanced at Bennett. "He's planning to rest here before he starts his trip back to the castle tomorrow."

"Ridiculous! Why would we let a criminal who's been stealing from us just waltz into our camp?" Edward growled.

"Because the king has given him the pass to." Mia pointed out with a shrug.

"Yeah well.. As soon as he gets here, that cur better show us this letter." Edward growled.

"If he even shows up! I can't imagine he'd willingly show up or return to the castle after all his crimes. We should be getting ready to hunt that bastard down again." Layth grumbled in agreement.

"We'll see.." Penelope mumbled, not bothering to argue further with her brother. Instead, her attention focused on the next task at hand, which was the much more concerning one of getting Mia's approval for her to leave. She shifted her gaze over to her baroness and dipped her head. "I'd also like to speak with you once the meeting is over."

"Of course." Mia mused. "We're about to wrap things up anyways. Tomas, Layth, Gavin I expect you three with deliver the news that the thief is not to be touched if he comes to our camp. And if he does, he must present us with his letter." After the three gave nods of agreement, she rose up to her feet and turned to address Penelope again. "Come let's go to my tent. I feel there's much to talk about since you've been gone."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow and the other thieves spent the rest of the afternoon lounging together on the riverbank. His companions caught him up on what he had missed which, luckily, wasn’t much. It sounded like things had stayed rather consistent for them despite his disappearance. Normally, that might have bothered him more, but in this case, he was relieved to know that they were capable of getting by without him around to lead them. Plus, now that they had had so much time to get used to his absence, he hoped they would be able to adjust to the change when he left them permanently. It would be reassuring to know that they were still thriving while he was gone.

As day turned to evening, Crow, Alistair, and Rikki headed to Myrefall, since his friends wanted to run one more raid on the local knights with him before he left. He was excited by their suggestion, as it had been quite a while since the last time they had been able to steal together. So, he eagerly pieced a plan together and relayed it to them once they reached the village. Having stolen from the knights here many times before, the simple raid went by without any trouble, and they came away with a rather impressive haul. Their success put all three of them in a good mood as they wandered back to their camp with bags full of stolen goods.

“This is enough weapons to get us through the whole season,” Alistair said proudly, looking through the bag he was carrying. “Those knights sure did get complacent when we stopped stealing from them for a while.”

“I’ll say,” Rikki nodded. “They probably won’t even notice all their weapons are gone until tonight.”

“Maybe not even then,” Crow rolled his eyes. “Local guards hardly ever check their stock. As long as none of them need to replace a sword, I doubt they’ll realize we took all their blades for a long time.”

“Yeah, well they’re definitely going to notice that their liquor is gone,” Alistair snickered as he held up a pot filled with spirits.

“Alright, so they might notice tonight,” Crow relented with a curt laugh. “Still, we’ll be long gone before then, so it won’t matter anyway.”

“Gods, I’m going to miss going on runs with you, Crow,” Rikki murmured suddenly, lowering her gaze to the ground.

Crow studied her for a moment before speaking, “Hey, things won’t change that much.” He nudged her arm in the hopes of cheering her up. “You’ve both been doing fine since I left before. I’m sure you’ll keep doing just as well after I leave tonight.”

“It’s not about that though,” Rikki looked up to meet his gaze solemnly. “I mean, I am going to miss your leadership and the plans you come up with, but more than that, I’m going to miss you.” She exhaled softly. “Everything won’t be the same once you’re gone.”

Crow fell quiet. “I’m going to miss all of you too,” he said after a pause. “But just because things are changing doesn’t mean they’re going to be worse. We’ll still see each other every once in a while too. I promise.” He offered her a reassuring smile. “Any chance I get, I’ll stop by to visit. You have my word.”

“Thanks,” she smiled halfhearted back at him.

“I’m going to hold that to you too,” Alistair spoke up. When Crow turned to look at him, he shrugged. “Rikki may be the most vocal about not wanting to see you go, but she certainly isn’t the only one… I’m going to miss you, and I know Hazel will too, so you’d better come back to see all of us.”

“I will,” Crow promised with a grin. He glanced up at the darkening sky. “Come on, we’d better hurry up, so we get back in time for supper.”

--

The three thieves returned to their camp behind the waterfall just before sunset. After dropping off the supplies they had stolen, Crow walked with them over to the hearth, where Hazel and Hartley were just finishing filling everyone’s plates for dinner. He took one of the bigger dishes and sat down by Hartley and Rikki. They conversed idly for a while as they ate, until Rikki caught sight of the sky outside, which had grown much darker with the approach of dusk.

“So,” she said in a low voice, avoiding his gaze. “You’re going to be leaving soon, aren’t you?”

Crow glanced at the entrance of the cave and then nodded. “Yeah… I told Penelope I would go to her camp at nightfall.”

“This is going to be the last time I see you too then, huh?” Hartley frowned.

“Maybe not,” Crow shrugged. “The job I took at the castle requires a lot of traveling, from what I know, so I could very well end up in Younis again.” He casted the boy a smile. “If I find myself in your area, we could cross paths.”

“That would be great,” Hartley cheered up right away. “Kip and I moved to Dalry after we got married. It’s right near the border with Brerra. You should come by sometime! Ooh, maybe we could have our stealing competition that we never got around to when Penelope was there to say ‘no’ two years ago!”

“Calm down,” Crow laughed. “Don’t get so far ahead of yourself. I’ll stop by if I can, but let’s not go making any plans that might jeopardize my good standing with my father, alright?”

“Gods, you’ve become just as boring as she has,” the Younisian boy groaned and rested his cheek in his hand.

“It’s called responsibility, dumbass,” Crow smirked. “I have to have at least a little bit if I’m going to be with her.” He glanced back at the cavern entrance. The sky outside was nearly black, which meant it was time for him to leave. Letting out a reluctant sigh, he rose to his feet. “I should get going. Penelope is expecting me soon.”

“Already?” Alistair turned away from his conversation with Hazel.

“Yeah,” Crow scratched the back of his neck. “I need to leave for the castle tomorrow morning, so I can’t stay out too late.”

Rikki looked up at him for a moment before she jumped to her feet and wrapped her arms tightly around him. He blinked in mild surprise, caught off guard by the sudden embrace, but before he had time to react, the others followed her lead. Alistair, Hazel, and even Hartley surrounded him.

“Be safe, and don’t do anything stupid, okay?” Hazel murmured.

“Yeah,” Alistair grinned, though Crow could see a hint of sadness in his eyes. “Show those nobles what it’s like to have power without abusing the lower classes.”

“I will,” Crow smirked back at him.

“We’ll miss you,” Rikki said in a shaky voice. “Please come back sometimes and don’t forget about us.”

“Are you kidding?” Crow smiled at her softly. “I’ll never forget you guys. You’ve been better family to me than my father ever has, so you bet I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

They embraced for a little while longer before Hazel eventually led them all to pull away from him. She offered him one more halfhearted smile and tipped her head towards the entrance. “Go on. Your lover is waiting.”

He nodded, letting his eyes wander over each of them one more time as he thought about how much they all meant to him. “I guess this is it,” he took a steeling breath and then grinned. “Give the knights hell for me.”

“You know we will,” Alistair laughed.

“Well then give them a little extra,” Crow winked. “I’ll see you all whenever I’m able to get away from the castle. Goodbye.” He dipped his head and then turned to head out of the camp, leaving his family of thieves behind as he began the trek to the knights’ camp.

[BuzzingBee]

"Let me guess... You're expected to escort Crow back to the inner kingdom, correct?" Mia questioned as soon as they stepped into her tent. The baroness walked over to her desk and let out a small sigh. "Well if it's ordered by the king, there's not much I can say against it so don't worry about your duties here."

"I'm not... Not exactly at least." Penelope answered shaking her head. Seeming to catch Mia off guard with her reply, the baroness turned around to face her lieutenant with a questioning gaze. Penelope met her gaze with a look of determination. She had to get Mia to understand that the war needed to end and that it was more reasonable for her to return to the inner kingdom. "When I traveled to the inner kingdom, I-I began to realize that this war needs to end. With how's it's going right now, there will be no victors. It's a constant back and forth with no one gaining the upper hand. Both kingdoms will be weakened greatly by it and the only difference between winner and loser will be who just barely manages to hold out longer."

Mia studied Penelope with an intrigued gaze. "So... what are you suggesting we do to end it?"

"A peaceful resolution." she responded. The lieutenant paused for a moment and shuffled her feet. "I actually spoke to the king about this while I was at the castle.."

"And what did he think?"

"I'm not sure.. He wanted time to think on it but he didn't outright reject the idea." Penelope explained. "And that's why I want to return to the inner kingdom. I think I can get him to look for a peaceful end to this war. So.. I was hoping, you'd let me take a leave from this battalion."

"I see.." Mia frowned a little. "And how do you plan on persuading him?"

"Well, hopefully through gaining the support of other nobles. Namely barons that are on the frontlines and I'm not just talking about the ones in this battalion. If I can dedicate my time to campaigning for the wars end in the inner kingdom and gain enough support, the king won't see any reason to continue the war. Not only that, but I also want to start preparing my plans for the end of this war to help the outer villages." Penelope gave her a pleading smile. "What do you think?"

"It's not bad.. I agree that this war has been a stalemate for far too long.. But I am reluctant to lose my lieutenant." Mia sighed.

"I know but with any luck, the war won't last much longer if I'm able to leave... Besides, it seems Gavin was taking my place just fine anyways. Perhaps he could continue to fill in for me?" she mused hopefully.

Mia pursed her lips together for a long while and let out a sigh. "He's been doing well... But I still need time to think this over... Give me until the end of the day. I'm sure you're hoping to leave again tomorrow with that thief."

"Yes.. Thank you Mia." Penelope said with a polite smile. It wasn't a yes yet but hopefully by the end of the day it would be. She dipped her head gratefully to her baroness and then turned to head out of the tent. Almost as soon as she stepped outside she was quickly crowded by Olivia and Gavin, both clearly looking for answers. She was a bit surprised to see Gavin so curious about what was happening but she supposed it was because even he couldn't come up with a solid explanation.

"Soooo~ Are you going to tell us what the hell is going on or not?" Olivia grinned giving her friend a nudge.

"I'd like to at least be prepared if it's some other crazy plan.." Gavin mumbled.

"No crazy plans to worry about this time." Penelope assured him with a small smile. Her gaze shifted over to Olivia and she narrowed her eyes. "I think I let you hang in suspense a little longer. Consider it pay back for never telling me about Naida being a princess." She shook her head and glanced over at Gavin. "Sorry, you're just a casualty."

"Oh so you finally found out?" Olivia snickered.

"Hold on, Naida is King Mannering's daughter?" Gavin gawked in sudden surprise. He shot Olivia a small glare. "Why didn't you mention something to us before?"

"I thought it was common knowledge... And if it wasn't, I didn't want to miss out on you making that exact expression." Olivia laugh and then gave a disappointed sigh as she looked back to Penelope. "I'm bummed that I didn't get to see your reaction to it though. Such a waste."

Penelope rolled her eyes at her friend. "Whatever. Come on there's still work to do. I'm certain no one's going to get a tent ready for him and we still need to spread word around that he isn't to be harmed."

---

After spending most the day setting up a tent and making sure the night guards knew not to attack Crow, she grabbed a quick supper and then headed off to see Mia, feeling rather nervous. Crow would likely be arriving soon after she spoke to the baroness and she could only hope that she'd have good news for him. At the very least, she was glad they wouldn't have to wait until the next morning to find out if she'd be staying or going.

Penelope stepped into Mia's tent again and dipped her head to the baroness. Mia looked up from her desk and gestured for her to come closer. Walking over, she subtly eyed the piece of paper that Mia was writing on before focusing her gaze on her baroness.

"I've made my decision." Mia sighed and rolled up the two pieces of paper neatly before turning to face Penelope. "I will allow you to go to the inner kingdom but only for two months. If there is no sign of the war ceasing by then, I expect you to return to the battlefront here... Here. One of these is for the king, I wrote to him in support of your decision to end the war, and the other is excusing you from the warfront. Just in case anyone questions your stay in the inner kingdom." She held out the rolled up pages to Penelope.

The knight felt a wave of relief and excitement wash over her as Mia gave her approval to take a leave from the warfront. Unable to hold it back, the knight smiled as she graciously took the paper Mia offered to her. "Thank you, Mia. I promise I'll do everything I can to get the king to end this war." she promised.

"I'm sure you will... Now then, carry on with whatever you were doing. I'm assuming that thief is coming soon, correct?" Mia asked.

"I believe so." she nodded.

"Well, I hope so." Mia sighed and turned back to her desk. "I've heard Layth is keeping an eye out for his arrival... With a small patrol readied if he doesn't come. I'd suggest you join your brother. Knowing him, he'll still try to use what force he can."

"Right." Penelope gave a small frown before nodding her head. She turned and headed out of the tent towards where Layth had taken up a guard station. Upon reaching her brother, she noticed he was barely even keeping an eye out and was instead speaking with a comrade about plans on where to search for the thief. The knight rolled her eyes and stepped over to the two.

"Those plans of yours are going to be useless once he gets here." she mused casually as she stepped over to them.

Layth turned to her and let out a snort. "We'll see. I'm not gullible enough to believe that he'd just willingly return."

"No.. But perhaps you are foolish enough to believe he won't." Penelope muttered under her breath, focusing her gaze on the distance ahead of them as she waited alongside Layth and his comrade for Crow's arrival.

[Rogue Sloth]

As Crow trekked through the forest to the knights’ camp, his eyes flitted between the shadows in a cautious search for motion. Even though he had a letter from his father permitting his freedom to roam about the outer villages, he knew it wouldn’t help him if a knight chose to attack without giving him time to explain himself. His hand wandered to his waist, where he had hidden a new set of daggers that he had taken from the haul of weapons he and the other thieves had taken earlier that day. It was the first time in quite a while that he had been armed, and it felt good to know that he could protect himself if need be. Still, he hoped he wouldn’t have to resort to using such measures at all.

Heading further through the trees, Crow glanced back over his shoulder as he felt another pang of longing for the life that he had officially left behind. Part of him wished he could just turn around and run back to the cavern and his companions, but he knew he couldn’t do that. He had to stand firm in his choice to give up thievery for the title of a nobleman. Turning back around, he let out a quiet sigh and watched as his breath left him in a visible vapor in the air. It was a cold night. Despite his reservations about joining the nobles in their camp, he hastened his pace, eager to get to get to someplace where he could warm up.

Eventually, a dim campfire came into view between the trees up ahead, and Crow felt his shoulders relax in relief. He reached into his tunic pocket to retrieve the note his father had given to him, wanting to have it in his hand, so he could present it to the knights if they attempted to apprehend him. As he held it, he looked it over curiously. It was interesting to him how such a small piece of paper could carry so much weight. Giving in to his intrigue, he unraveled the paper and studied the scrawling letters inside. Of course, they were mostly still meaningless to him, but he noticed with some satisfaction that he recognized a few letters like ‘E’ and ‘C.’

Determining that trying to read the foreign looking characters was useless to him, he rolled the letter back up and retied the ribbon that bound it. Looking up again, he saw that he had nearly reached the edge of the nobles’ camp. However, before he stepped past the edge of the tree line, he blinked in surprise as a group of knights rushed towards him from a nearby post. He froze and took a step back, readying himself to run if they pulled weapons on him.

“Wait, wait, wait,” he held out his hands to both ward them off and flash the paper he was holding. “I have permission to be here.”

Unfortunately, his warning did him no good as two of the knights caught hold of his wrists and pinned his arms behind his back. He winced at their roughness. “You didn’t let me finish,” he snarled, feeling a twinge of annoyance at their haste to catch him instead of hear him out. “I have permission from the king.”

“Yeah, we heard,” the knight on his left shrugged. “But we were just told not to hurt you. Nobody said we had to let you have another chance to run away.”

Crow rolled his eyes, “I’m not dumb enough to waltz into a camp full of my enemies if I wanted to escape. If I was trying to run, I would’ve done it a long time ago. Now let go of me, you idiots!”

Suddenly, he caught sight of movement off to his right. Upon turning his head, he recognized two of the knights that were approaching. “Ah, now this makes sense,” he said dryly, narrowing his eyes as he met Layth’s smug—yet also slightly surprised?—gaze.

He turned next to Penelope, “Could you please tell your brother to call off his dogs? I’d prefer not to have my shoulders dislocated tonight if I can avoid it.”

[BuzzingBee]

The two didn't have to wait for too long before comotion was heard to the right of them. Penelope blinked in surprise as she spotted the group of knights rush towards Crow. She exchanged a glance with her brother, who seemed momentarily shocked that the thief had even appeared, before quickly moving to head over to the group. She felt a hint of irritation as soon as she saw how roughly they were handling Crow.

Of course, she probably shouldn't have expected much more then that considering these were knights Layth often associated himself with. As Crow addressed her, she gave a small nod of her head and turned to focus her gaze on Layth who had followed her over. "Well?" she questioned with a hint of impatience.

The male knight curled his lip and glared down at Crow. "Why should we just let him walk in anyways?" he grumbled, clearly reluctant to oblige.

"Because the king clearly doesn't want him treated as a threat right now." Penelope rolled her eyes. Smirking at her brother, she added,"Besides even you know that if he was trying to run, he wouldn't have come here, right?"

Layth clenched his jaw and then shifted his gaze onto one of his comrades. "Let him go and go alert the barons. We'll handle this." he ordered bitterly. His comrades hesitated before following orders and letting Crow go. They dipped their heads to Layth and then hurried off into the camp. Her brother watched them go for a moment before turning back to Crow and glaring at him. "Alright thief," he spat. "where's this paper preventing me from running my sword through you?"

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow grimaced as the knight on his left tightened his grip on his arm. He shot the man a foul look, annoyed that the knights weren’t even giving him a chance to prove that he had permission to be here. Once I outrank them, I’ll make sure they regret treating me like this, he promised silently to himself, carefully studying the faces of his captors to ingrain them into his memory. He supposed one perk of accepting the title his father had offered him was that he could look forward to eventually getting back at all the noblemen who had been cruel to him before. It would be fun to simply talk to them and watch them flounder as they had to teat him with respect that he knew they didn’t want to give him.

His eyes drifted to Layth, and his lip curled upward into a devilish smirk. Out of all the knights he had encountered, he looked forward to getting revenge against Penelope’s brother the most. He couldn’t wait to see the merciless knight again and make him squirm beneath the weight of the rank his father had given him. It was going to feel great.

When Layth finally gave a reluctant order for his comrades to let the thief go, Crow let out an indignant huff and straightened out his tunic. He watched the knights leave with a petty satisfaction, knowing that they were just as upset about the situation as their lieutenant was, and then turned back to Layth as the knight demanded to see his letter.

“Right here,” he held out the rolled-up paper with a pleased smirk as he saw a brief flash of astonishment cross the knight’s face, as if he hadn’t fully believed it existed.

With a snort, Layth snatched the letter from his hand and unraveled it. His eyes swept over it in a scrutinizing fashion before widening slightly in surprise. “My gods, this really is the king’s seal,” he shook his head. “Why the hell is the king allowing a criminal to roam free?”

Unsure who the knight was speaking to, Crow took it upon himself to reply. “Beats me,” he shrugged, barely suppressing the amused grin that threatened to take over his mouth. Deciding to prod at Layth a little more, he added: “Now then, would anyone like to tell me what my accommodations will be for the night?” He folded his arms over his chest and eyed Penelope’s brother snidely. “I’m tired from my walk here, so I’d like a bite of food to eat and a comfortable bed.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope crossed her arms over her chest as she watched Layth take the letter from Crow. The knight bit back a smirk as she noticed her brother's eyes widen with surprise. At his words, she gave a small shrug before her gaze shifted over to Crow as he spoke up. Naturally his words didn't go over well her brother. Layth seemed rather tense, clearly disliking the outcome of this situation.

"Sleep in the dirt, cur." Layth growled. "This letter gives you permission to move freely but I don't see it saying anything about having to treat you like a guest."

Penelope rolled her eyes and looked over at Crow. "I had a tent readied for you and there's probably still some food left over from supper if you want any." she offered, ignoring her brother.

Layth shot a glare at her. "What the hell do you think you're doing?" he grumbled challengingly. "We're giving this bastard enough by not killing him, I don't see any reason to let him use any of our supplies."

"The letter may not say that we have to treat him like a guest but he clearly has some kind of favor with the king. I think that itself implies better treatment than just sleeping out on the dirt." Penelope pointed out. "All I'm saying is that I would certainly hate to have a thief be the reason our battalion loses favor with the king."

Layth pursed his lips into a thin line, thinking over her words. The knight was pleased to see that she struck a cord with him. He clearly wanted to fight against it but with a glance down at the letter again, he seemed to realize there wasn't much he could do. After all, she wasn't completely lying in saying that Crow had the king's favor, since it certainly seemed like he did. Penelope was able to relax a little as she noticed a hint of defeat enter Layth's gaze.

"This is madness." He growled under his breath and shot an icy glare at Crow. He turned to leave and shook his head. "I need to speak to the barons about this."

[Rogue Sloth]

“That’s not very nice,” Crow clicked his tongue when Layth told him to sleep in the dirt. “I don’t think the king would be very happy to find out that you spoke to me like that.” He bit back a smirk when he noticed the knight curl his lip at him. However, before Layth had a chance to retort, they both turned to Penelope, who announced that she’d already prepared a tent for him. The thief casted her a grateful smile, having already expected that she would have made arrangements for him. He just wanted to rub it in her brother’ face as much as he could.

Of course, her news that he would not only be getting a bed for the night, but an entire tent as well just made Layth more upset. Crow stood back and leaned against a nearby tree as the two siblings began to squabble over it. He was pleased to see that Layth’s argument didn’t hold much water compared to Penelope, who was quite right in her “assumption” that the thief had the king’s favor. He found it entertaining to watch her brother inevitably fall silent as he accepted his defeat.

“This is madness… I need to speak to the barons about this.” His bitter words just made Crow grin. He knew it was petty, but he enjoyed seeing Layth be cornered so completely.

“Right, be sure to put in a good word for me,” he casted the knight an impish wink for good measure. “I’ll be sure to pass it along to the king if you do.”

“Disgusting viper,” Layth spat at him before finally spinning around to march back into the camp. He was muttering under his breath as he left, although he spoke quietly enough that the thief didn’t catch what he was saying.

“Nice to see you too,” Crow rolled his eyes and turned to Penelope. He glanced over the area briefly to make sure they were alone before he pressed a quick kiss to her cheek, putting distance between them afterwards in case any of her other comrades passed by. “I wasn’t really that hungry,” he confessed with a shrug and a lopsided smile. “I actually ate supper with my companions before I left. I just wanted to get under your brother’s skin.” He studied her face for a moment, feeling glad to be with her again after spending most of the day apart. His expression softened slightly as he felt his heart swell with affection for the knight. He loved her so much, but he still didn’t know if she would be coming with him to the castle. The thought of spending so long away from her was almost unbearable.

“So, did you speak with your baroness?” he asked in a low voice, a hint of nervousness seeping into his eyes and he waited for her answer.

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope watched her brother stalk off before turning back to Crow. She smiled as he pressed a kiss to her cheek. The knight gave an amused look as he admitted that he had just wanted to bother Layth further. "I can never be too sure when it comes to you and food." she pointed out with a small smirk. As he asked if she had talked to Mia, her smirk broadened into a grin and she nodded her head.

Reaching into her pocket, she retrieved the papers that the baroness had given her and held them up with a hint of pride in her gaze. "I did and it looks like you're going to be stuck with me for a while." Penelope explained joyfully. Aside from the work she wanted to do in the inner kingdom, she was excited that she wouldn't have to be parting from Crow for such a long time. Even if they had to put some distance between each other, it was still better than going for who knows how long without seeing him at all.

She swept her gaze over their surroundings before reaching to briefly take his hand in hers giving it an affectionate squeeze. The knight would have liked to close the distance between them completely but being so close to her camp, she knew they couldn't risk it."At least for two months.. If I don't make any progress convincing your father by then, I have to come back." she added with a shrug as she put the papers away once more. Her smile wavered slightly at the thought. The knight was trying to remain hopeful that she would be able to make progress by then. Not only just so she could stay with Crow longer but also because of the danger Toreus had warned her about if the war didn't cease. She couldn't afford to fail.

Trying not to dwell too much on the possibilities, she gave Crow a small smile and let got of his hand before beginning to turn to lead the way into her camp. "Come on, I'll take you to your tent."

[Rogue Sloth]

The grin on Penelope’s face was enough to melt away all of Crow’s lingering fears. He relaxed and smiled back at her as she went on to confirm that she had gotten her baroness’s approval to come back to the inner kingdom with him. His heartbeat quickened with excitement at the thought. Now, he could be sure that when he began his new life as a viceroy, he wouldn’t have to go through it alone. She would be there with him, and the transition wouldn’t be nearly as difficult. He felt weak with relief.

“Thank the gods,” he sighed, eagerly taking her hand when she reached for his. “I don’t know what I would do if I had to go back to that place by myself. Those nobles would probably drive me mad.”

He fell quiet as she added that she had only gotten sure approval for two months. The detail made him shift slightly. He was glad that he could be certain that she would be with him for that long, but he had been hoping that they could stay together indefinitely. After all, he was planning to start courting her more formally when they returned—albeit secretively, since they still didn’t want word about their relationship to spread any farther than it already had. If all went well, he intended to marry her after that. If she had to go back to the warfront, those plans would have to be put on hold yet again.

“Well, I hope my father is willing to hear you out then,” he said softly, offering her a somewhat forced smile. Having only spoken to the king a few times, he still hadn’t figured out what kind of man he was, so he wasn’t sure what to expect. He wanted to believe that Albin would be reasonable or at least consider ending the war to stop the expenses and loss of life. However, it was always possible that he was a warmonger like the barons on the battlefront.

As Penelope changed the subject, Crow nodded his head, glad to put the worrisome thoughts behind him for now. “Alright,” he said, bringing a hand to his mouth as he let out a sudden yawn. “I’m glad you managed to set something up for me. I’m too tired to pitch a tent, myself.”

He followed her into the camp, noticing right away that every knight in the area was eyeing him with unbridled hostility. Their unfriendly gazes made him uneasy, but he knew they couldn’t attack him. His father would be furious if he found out his son had been killed by an out-of-line soldier, so as much as they disliked it, they couldn’t lay a finger on him.

“I’m glad the king gave me a letter,” he muttered under his breath to Penelope as he kept watch of the other knights around them. “I’m certain at least some of your comrades wouldn’t hesitate to murder me in my sleep if I didn’t have proof that I’m allowed to be here.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope glanced over at him and gave a small nod. "I figured I better handle it. If I just left it to the others you'd probably be sleeping on the ground like Layth wanted." she mused with a quiet sigh as she focused her gaze back ahead. Walking through the camp, she was quick to notice the scathing looks nearby knights were casting at Crow. The knight gave a small eye roll but otherwise ignored them as she lead the way to his tent.

As he spoke up, she gave a small nod of agreement. "You wouldn't have even made it into the camp with how Layth is." she mumbled with a shake of her head. Focusing her gaze ahead, she walked on until they reached the tent that she had set up from him. It was on the same side of camp where her own was located, though there was still a few tents of distance from them. She pulled back the flap and stepped inside. Once inside, her gaze immediately fell on the two familiar figures of Olivia and Gavin, who both seemed to have been patiently waiting inside.

She blinked and glanced between the two. "What are doing here?"

"To congratulate Crow for not being killed, jailed or otherwise maned for his crimes." Olivia smirked and waved at the thief. "Welcome back."

Gavin sighed and met Penelope's gaze. "We snuck in while word spread about him reaching the camp. I figured it was less suspicious than just meeting you guys outside." he explained with a shrug.

"Yes, yes now aside from that, would someone please explain what the hell is going on?" Olivia groaned. She looked at Crow and pointed accusingly at Penelope. "This one has been making us wait all day for explanation."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow shook his head when Penelope said that Layth wouldn’t have even let him into the camp if he hadn’t had a letter from his father. He disagreed; killing him on the spot would have been to merciful for her brother. Layth probably would have had him arrested the instant he set foot within sight of the guards and then come up with some cruel way to torture him for all the trouble he’d caused. Either way, he was relieved that Albin had planned ahead for such circumstances and ensured that he was untouchable to the knights.

When they reached the tent, Crow glanced furtively over his shoulder at the knights who were still watching him and muttering amongst themselves. He sighed and turned towards Penelope again, though he kept his guard up just in case any of her comrades were foolish enough to disregard the king’s orders. He couldn’t wait to get inside the tent and away from their venomous glares. So, as soon as she raised the flap at the entrance, he eagerly followed her through the opening.

However, once they were inside, he paused as his eyes landed on two other figures who seemed to have beat them there. He blinked in surprise, hanging back slightly as Penelope asked Olivia and Gavin why they were there. A small smile curved his lip. It seemed the two were even more curious to find out what was going on than the rest of the battalion. When Olivia questioned him about what was going on, he casted one more glance over his shoulder before moving a bit further into the tent and sitting down across from them. He met Olivia’s gaze with a serious expression, took a deep breath, and then said: “Eh, I think I’ll make you wait until tomorrow.”

“Not you too!” Olivia groaned. She leaned forward to give his shoulder a shake. “Come on! I’ve been waiting all day to find out what happened with you two. You’ve gotta give me something!”

“Alright, alright,” Crow laughed, throwing up his hands. “Fine; I’ll tell you. You just have to swear to me that this doesn’t leave the tent. Got it?”

“I swear,” Olivia nodded eagerly, resting her hands on her knees and holding his gaze intently. Gavin murmured his agreement as well.

Crow studied their faces for a moment before, determining that he could trust them, he exchanged a quick glance with Penelope and then turned back to them, speaking in a lowered voice: “When we went to the castle, the king offered me the job as his viceroy.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope smirked in amusement as Crow teased Olivia before giving in and agreeing to tell them. The knight moved to sit down besides him, meeting his glance as he finally gave them the news about the king offering him the job of viceroy. The room fell silent for a brief moment before Olivia let out a disappointed sigh.

"Come on~ I want to know what actually happened." she groaned again, clearly thinking he was just messing with them.

"That is what really happened." Penelope said with a smirk. Her gaze shifted over to meet Gavin's as she noticed the male knight eying her searchingly. Though he hadn't said anything, she could tell he didn't believe the thief's words right away either. "The king offered him the job... and he's going to take it." She looked over at Crow, smiling fondly at him. "That's why he allowed him to journey out here and expects him back by the end of the week so he can officially take the title."

"Woah.." Olivia whistled with wide eyes as she took in the news. In the next moment, she grinned and let out a laugh. "That's crazy.. From pauper to princess, huh?" she snickered teasingly to Crow.

Gavin, on the other hand, remained silent for a while longer as he absorbed this new information. He shook his head and looked over at Crow with a stupefied expression. "I just... What?" he blinked and glanced between the thief and female knight as if hoping to find some sort of missing information. "Why the hell would the king offer him such a high title?" he finally managed out. He blinked, seeming to realize his tone was a bit harsh and looked back to Crow. "No offense... it just.... Come on even you have to admit going from a thief to a viceroy sounds absurd."

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow shifted slightly as the room fell silent. He glanced between Olivia and Gavin, trying to read their facial expressions since he couldn’t tell what was going through their minds. When Olivia finally spoke up in a frustrated groan, the thief frowned. He opened his mouth to tell her that it wasn’t a lie, but Penelope spoke first. Casting her a sideways look, he nodded as she told her friends that he really had been offered the title, and he was going to be taking it when they got back to the castle.

When Olivia teased him, Crow just rolled his eyes. Though he had been willing to explain his reasoning to his companions, he was more hesitant to do so with the knights. They had earned some of his trust, but he hadn’t known either of them for very long—he didn’t really count his brief encounter with Olivia two years ago, since they had only spoken for a day—and he was naturally reluctant to talk about himself to others in general. Still, it seemed like they needed more details to really believe him.

Gavin confirmed his suspicion when he went on to question why the king would offer him such a title. The harshness of his words didn’t bother Crow. After all, he had been just as dumbfounded when his father had originally made him the offer. To anyone on the outside, it simply didn’t make sense.

He averted his gaze, fidgeting with the hem of his tunic as he tried to decide how much to tell them. After a moment, he looked up again to meet Gavin’s gaze, “He found out I’m multilingual, so he decided I was a good fit for the job.” He shrugged. “Since I already know the languages of all our neighboring kingdoms, I only have to learn whatever else there is to being a viceroy.”

“I didn’t know you knew other languages,” Olivia studied him with intrigue.

“I don’t know,” Gavin frowned. “It still doesn’t add up to me. Even if you’re fluent in foreign languages, you don’t know as much in other areas as someone born in the inner kingdom. Why would the king choose a hated criminal instead of a nobleman with an upstanding reputation?”

Crow lightly bit the tip of his tongue and casted an uncertain look at Penelope. He didn’t like the idea of telling the knights any more than he already had, but it seemed like Gavin was already suspicious that he was leaving out crucial information. He let out a sigh of resignation. It looked like he was going to have to admit the truth to them after all.

“Because that hated criminal technically has more of a right to the title than any noble,” he said in a quiet voice, looking up to meet the knight’s eyes again.

“What does that mean?” Gavin asked with clear confusion.

Crow took a steeling breath. “This really can’t leave the tent,” he murmured, glancing over his shoulder as if he was worried someone might be eavesdropping on them outside.

“Okay,” Gavin said, eyeing him hesitantly.

“What is it?” Olivia leaned forward, obviously excited by the prospect of learning something secretive.

Crow wavered for a moment longer before he admitted: “I’m sort of… the king’s firstborn son.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope glanced over at Crow as he spoke up to answer Gavin. While Olivia didn't seem to push for more of an explanation, Gavin, on the other hand, wasn't willing to just accept the information they had given him. The male knight was reeling from it all and it made her a little nervous about how far he'd try to dig in order for things to make sense to him. Her worries seemed to be rather reasonable ones too as Crow's explanation of knowing other languages still wasn't enough for the knight.

She met Crow's look with a faint frown, unsure what to say to get Gavin to quit looking for more information. The knight expected that Crow would be able to get out of it and was a bit surprised when the thief resigned to telling the two the truth. As he admitted to being the king's firstborn son, her gaze shifted over to the other two, who now stared at him with a fresh wave of shock. It appeared secret had even stunned Olivia into silence.

After a moment passed, Gavin raked a hand nervously through his hair and shifted his gaze over to Penelope. "You... you knew... How long have you known?"

"A long time. Before Mannering even became the king." she admitted with a small shrug. She looked over at Crow and reached to take his hand. "I didn't think it'd ever change anything though."

"Gods this is more than I was expecting." Olivia laughed. She shook her head and winked at Crow. "I never would have guessed that I was hanging around royalty."

Gavin studied Crow with a hard to read expression. Whatever it was, Penelope could tell he was looking at him in a new light. They had been on better terms since the incident with Jaxon but she guessed that he was trying to figure out how to act around the thief now that he was coming to terms with the news. After all, Crow would out rank him.

[Rogue Sloth]

Crow held his breath as Olivia and Gavin stared at him in silence. Their reaction unsettled him. He hadn’t intended to tell them that he was related to the king at all. The only reason why he’d even admitted it was because he knew Gavin wouldn’t let the subject go until it made sense to him. He lowered his gaze uncomfortably, tugging at the hem of his shirt. The last thing he wanted was for them to start acting differently around him just because he was Albin’s son. He much preferred to be thought of as a thief and peasant than a royal’s estranged child.

When Gavin eventually spoke up to ask Penelope how long she’d known about his heritage, Crow glanced up at her to listen to her reply. He felt her venture to take his hand, and he laced his fingers with hers, giving her hand a grateful squeeze for the subtle comfort she offered him. Though he hadn’t planned on telling her friends the truth about why he’d been given the job, he was glad that he had her by his side for support when he did. Her presence made him relax in spite of the tension lingering in the air.

At Olivia’s comment, he rolled his eyes. “I may be his son, but I’m far from royalty,” he said. “My father and I have a complicated history. I doubt he would crown me as a prince even if I wanted to be one.”

“Why wouldn’t you?” Olivia asked curiously. “If you’re his firstborn, then that means you technically have a birthright to the throne.”

“Gods, no,” Crow wrinkled his nose in disgust. “Just being a noble is going to be difficult enough. I want nothing to do with the duties of the royal family or the throne. Besides, he’s already got another son who’s being raised to take over as the next king after my father’s reign ends.”

“If you say so,” Olivia shrugged.

Crow sighed, “Anyway, that’s the real reason why my father chose to make me his viceroy… He was the last man to hold the position, and he said that since I’m his son, he believes I’ll have the same qualities that made him such a talented ambassador to the last king. That, and he said he wants to make up for the past wrongs between us.”

[BuzzingBee]

Penelope nodded her head as he finished explaining the reasoning for the king giving him the title of viceroy. She was still a bit iffy on how much she trusted Albin's explanation for wanting to make up for past mistakes—mainly due to her father's influence since he seemed to think the king had an ulterior motive—but regardless that was how things had developed.

"So..." Gavin spoke up slowly, avoiding eye contact with Crow as he instead looked to Penelope. "What does that mean for you?"

She blinked at the question and gave a small shrug. "Well, it means I won't be leaving." she admitted with a half smile. The knight glanced over at Crow before looking back to the male knight. "With him becoming the viceroy, there wouldn't be any status difference getting in our way so, we're going to live together as nobles rather than peasants."

"What about your father? You were pretending to still be courting Gavin last I checked." Olivia asked curiously. "Is he going to be ok with you suddenly breaking off that courtship for a new one with a noble who was once a thief?"

"Well about him..." Penelope scratched the back of her head and gave an embarrassed smile. "He sorta found out about us on the trip...It didn't go over very well at first but I think he's coming around."

"That's good." Gavin mumbled, glancing off to the side. The male knight let out a sigh and then recovered giving her a faint smile. "I'm glad you won't be leaving us then."

"Yeah.. Although I will be leaving the warfront for a while. I'm going to be traveling back to the castle with him tomorrow." Penelope told them.

"What! You're already going to leave again?" Olivia pouted.

She looked over at her friend and gave a small smile. "Sorry. I'm trying to convince the king to look for a peaceful end to the war and I got Mia to approve of me leaving for two months at the least. So I guess you'll have to fill in for me a little longer Gavin." Penelope nodded to the male knight.

"I'll do my best." Gavin promised with a nod. He paused and then got up to his feet. "We should get going.. It's getting late and you two have quite a bit of traveling to do tomorrow." He paused and dipped his head to Crow. "Congratulations." he muttered.