BuzzingBee

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

oof

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope waited a bit anxiously for him to say something, worrying about how he would react. When he finally spoke again, she was surprised by his words, both because he seemed to hold no anger towards her and because he had thought she had been dead all this time. It made her feel another stab of guilt for not telling him sooner. What didn't surprise her too much was to hear that Olivia had been the one to speak to Crow. So that's why she wanted me to take her guard shift.. Penelope realized. She wanted to be annoyed with the other knight but part of her was thankful to see Crow again.

As he went on, Penelope felt her heart begin to beat nervously as he took her hands in his. When admitted to still loving her, she felt her heart skip a beat despite her better judgement. She held his gaze for a moment, falling silent at his question. After two years, she had given up on any hope for a future with Crow and it felt rather unreal to have him there offering it to her again. However, this time, she couldn't agree to it. Gavin flashed through her thoughts and she reminded herself of her feelings for her actual suitor. She cared for him deeply, perhaps even loved him, and the work she had done over the two years as a knight wouldn't be wasted. It was just more logical for her to give up Crow, since she had already done that.. Or at least, she thought she had. The emotions she currently felt at seeing him again didn't make her as certain as she had once been.

"I," She finally spoke up, though reluctantly. "I can't, Crow. I'll always care for you.. I don't think I could ever fully get rid of my feelings for you but I-I have someone else now. A suitor." She pulled her hands away from his and kept her gaze lowered. "And I really like him. He's a good guy.. At the rate the war's going, we'll probably even be married before it ends."

She finally lifted her gaze to look over at Crow. Her throat felt tight with emotion, it wasn't easy saying no to him even after all this time. Penelope tried to deny how hurt she felt at her own words. "It's probably better this way.. There's no telling if I'd even make it to the end of this war. Or if we'd even win." She added, trying to convince him as well as herself. It made sense to her, especially after seeing how well the last time they made plans for the future went.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope's just really confused by how he's acting lol
She also figured it was better to just try and clear everything up cx

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope wrapped her arms around herself as Crow responded to her. His words were warm and made her believe that he was truly just there because he had missed her. Why is he acting like this.. The knight wondered. It didn't add up to her. Even if he wasn't mad about her leaving him behind, surely he had worked to move on just like she had. It had been two years after all. Maybe it's just because he doesn't know the full story behind what happened. She thought suddenly. He had likely just been forced to put two and two together since she had never appeared or met up with him to explain what happened.

As he tilted her head up, Penelope noticed him falter as he finally noticed the scar on her face. She flinched a little as he traced the scar with his hand. The knight wasn't insecure about how she looked now with the new scars she bore but they also served as reminds of her failures and what she had lost. "A mercenary." She answered him quietly before adding with a hit of frustration. "Though.. I might as well have just done it to myself.. Anyways, that one isn't even the worst one."

Deciding Crow deserved to understand what had happened two years ago, Penelope shifted her armor and pulled her shirt up a little ways to reveal part of the long scar that was now located on her torso. "This is the one that almost killed me," She paused, hesitate to speak with him about the past even though she had decided to tell him,"It's from the time William and I were attacked on the way back. I healed from it.. Then immediately went out to go try and track down the mercenaries that took the staff with William. The closest we got was a mercenary who spoke their language but that just ended up with me getting the scar on my face.

I still wanted to keep trying though.. Lucky for me William was smart enough to know when to stop. He made me realize how impulsive and ridiculous I was being so after that, I gave up." Penelope lowered her shirt and shifted her armor back into place. She looked over at Crow and gave him an apologetic look. "I'm not sure what you heard about the failed mission but I figured it was enough to realize I wasn't coming. I'm sorry.. For never showing up.. Never bothering to explain what had happened. I just didn't see the point. I knew I had to be here for my family, and now even my friends," She looked over her shoulder at the camp then focused back to Crow, looking a bit pained as she went on, "and that meant leaving you behind. I'm sorry."

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Honestly lol

Penelope's shook xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope shifted in her armor as she stepped out of her tent, unaware of the fact she was being watched. She walked off towards the edge of camp where Millicent was located. The other female knight stood rigidly on guard, her eyes scanning the surrounding area for any sign of movement. However, her focus quickly broke as she heard Penelope approaching. She looked over with a questioning gaze. "Olivia made me take her shift." Penelope responded with a shrug.

"She's so irresponsible." Millicent huffed crossing her arms. "Well, whatever. I'm off. Thanks Penelope." She shot Penelope a smile before turning and walking off to retire for the night. Penelope merely nodded to her before moving to take the other knights place for her guard shift. The night soon grew more quiet as most of the knights retired to their tents. She kept a watchful gaze out but enjoyed the silence of the night. With all that was going on and coming up, she was glad to have a moment alone to clear her thoughts.

However, it didn't last long as she suddenly heard someone whisper her name. She blinked and looked towards where the source of the sound had come from, spotting the unknown man step out into view. Instinctively, her hand went to grab the hilt of her sword as she eyed the stranger cautiously. Penelope narrowed her gaze as she looked at the man. It took her a moment to recognize him. Not only had it been two years but he had greatly changed from the thief who had just gotten out of prison. Her eyes widened with realization and she quickly let go of the hilt of her sword.

"Crow." She breathed.

Before she could even react fully, he wrapped his arms around her. Suddenly back in his arms, she felt her heart flutter excitedly in her chest. Penelope slowly moved to wrap her arms around him, returning his embrace with hesitation. In truth the knight was still shocked from seeing him again and was still processing the fact that after two years apart she was somehow back in his arms. What also surprised her alongside his sudden appearance was how happy he seemed to be at finally seeing her again. It confused the knight who had convinced herself that Crow had grown to resent her for leaving him behind without any explanation.

After a moment, she finally forced herself to take a step back from him. She met his gaze and frowned as she felt a familiar mixture of grief and guilt wash over her. Penelope averted her gaze shamefully. "W-What are you even doing here?" She questioned him. "You shouldn't be here."

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

It's nice to have Olivia back XD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

As Penelope and Gavin stepped over to help with unloading the supplies, the female knight spotted her brother pacing angrily nearby. She exchanged a glance with Gavin and then moved to walk over to her brother. "Something wrong Layth?" She asked curiously. He looked over at her and snorted, as if her question was ridiculous.

"Is something wrong! Of course something is wrong! We were stolen from." He growled.

"What?" Gavin blinked.

Layth then held up the ransom note to the two so they could read it. "Some barely literate bastard took a bunch of weapons from us and now they're expecting us to pay to get them back." He explained, fury burning in his gaze. "There's been a problem with thieves in this area. I hope she finds them. I'll personally lead a patrol to go finish them off! Don't they know we're at war here?"

"It is.. an unfortunate situation." Gavin agreed with a small sigh. His gaze shifted over to the female knight besides him.

"We should just pay them." Penelope mumbled. "We have enough fighting going on at the battlefront... Why risk knights just to get a few weapons back."

"Coward." Layth spat venomously.

"She has a point, Layth." Gavin mused, narrowing his gaze at the other male knight. "Besides it's not our place to decide. Have you even alerted the barons yet?"

Layth glared at Gavin. "I was just on my way to." he grumbled before shoving past Gavin and stalking off towards the larger tents.

Gavin watched him go before shaking his head in disapproval. "Are you sure that's your brother?" He sighed. When Penelope didn't reply, he turned his head to look over at her with concern. Penelope eyed the supplies. Though her expression was stoic, worry and nervousness began to bubble inside her. It's not Crow.. I'm just being paranoid.. She told herself, trying to relax once more.

"You think it's your friend?" Gavin asked quietly, guessing her concerns.

Penelope looked over at him and hesitated before answering. "No. He's illiterate so he couldn't have written that note..." She turned and continued over towards the supplies that were let and began to help unload them as planned. "Come on. There's still work to do."

The two went on to help unpack the wagon. It didn't take long since they had the help of a few other knights around. As it grew later, some of the knights that weren't on guard began to relax, eating, drinking or just simply going straight to bed wanting to get as much sleep as they possibly could. Penelope sat besides Gavin away from most of the crowd, leaning her head against his shoulder. "Well I'm not looking forward to the coming days... Or rather the coming battles." Gavin mumbled to her as he looked out at the camp.

"Me neither..." Penelope agreed somberly. The two enjoyed a moment of content silence until Penelope heard footsteps approaching from behind her. She sat up and turned her head to see Olivia approaching them. "Oh, hey. Where have you been?" She greeted her as she stepped up besides them.

"Oh, just scouting around the area." Olivia told her with a shrug. She smirked at Penelope. "It's actually pretty nice here with some, interesting places." Gavin raised an eyebrow at her but Olivia continued to ignore his presence. "Anyways, I'm tired and I was wondering-"

"You want me to take your guard shift." Penelope guessed, giving her friend a slightly annoyed look. It clearly wasn't the first time Olivia had pulled such a stunt. Olivia gave a bright, pleading smile.

"I'll make it up to you! I promise." Olivia told her with a small, mischievous gleam in her gaze.

"I say don't do it." Gavin snorted, making Olivia shoot a glare his way. Penelope shook her head at the two. "It's fine. I'll do it. I wasn't scheduled a guard shift until tomorrow night anyways."

"Great! It starts right after Millicent's shift ends... Which is in a little while." Olivia exclaimed cheerfully. "Well now that that's settled. I'm heading off to bed. Thanks Penelope!"

She shot Gavin a victorious smirk before turning and walking off towards her tent. Gavin gave an annoyed look before turning to look over at Penelope as she stood up. "Guess you're off to get ready for your guard shift huh?" He asked as he stood up as well, taking her hand in his for a moment.

Penelope nodded her head. "Yeah. I've got to get my armor on." She told him. "You heading to bed?"

"Probably.. Or I'll go see what Alan's up to." Gavin said and shrugged. He leaned in and pressed a quick kiss to her lips. He pulled back and gave her a small smile. "Goodnight, Penelope."

"Goodnight, Gavin." She said returning his smile. She parted from him and then walked off towards her small tent on the right side of camp. She rolled her shoulders, trying to fight off the drowsiness she felt from the day in order to be ready for the guard shift she now had. Penelope let out a small yawn as she stepped into her tent and began to place on her armor, readying herself to take Millicent off her guard shift.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Alright! It's officially two years later XD

Also I updated Penelope's info on her character post in case you're interested c:

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

After finally giving Crow up and attempting to move on with the life she had planned out before, Penelope found it difficult and regretted having to leave behind the thief just as much as she guessed she would. She blamed herself for the failed mission and that was guilt that has yet to fade. She returned to her regular job as a palace guard, without much issue despite the failed mission. It was there that she ran back into Olivia and the two female knights forged a friendship. Olivia came to be the one person who knew more about what happened between her and Crow than anyone else. Though, Penelope was still careful to not share to much with her unlikely new friend, even building up walls and bottling away the times she grew lonely or sorrowful. The two female knights got along especially well now, mainly due to Penelope's less strict attitude.

At first, Penelope had intended to keep a low profile, losing a bit of her ambition to push her career further. However, that changed when she met Mia Chandler. The baroness was eager to enlist Penelope as a lieutenant. Though she was hesitant at first, she eventually agreed, hoping that focusing more on her career would help fill in the parts of her life that now felt missing. Not to mention that the baroness was rather enjoyable company as she wasn't arrogant or greedy. Though it appeared to Penelope that Mia preferred to ignore the issues of the outer villages rather than playing a hand in making them better or worse.

Things seemed to get back on track. That is, until her brother and father returned home. John was terrified to learn about all that Penelope had been through but his fear of losing his daughter, came out as unbridled rage. He forced her to resign from being a knight with the intent of making her just another noblewoman. Layth was amused and glad to see Penelope forced to step down. It was a rather difficult time for the female knight as she momentarily lost the career she had been focusing on to forget Crow. Penelope didn't fight back against her father's decision though, feeling powerless as the things she loved seemed to continue to be taken from her, and kept her negative emotions bottled away.

Eventually her title as a knight was restored thanks to the influence and power of Mia. Though not without John getting a bit of what he wanted. When Penelope learned she would be forced into a marriage, her frustration with her father grew but once again she kept it to herself and an unspoken distance between them continued to grow. She had low expectations for the marriage and when she finally met Gavin, it was just as bad as she imagined. He didn't seem to care much for her but was at least polite. Penelope mainly kept to herself when spending time with him and rarely makes an effort to talk to him. However, as time goes on, he begins to grow on her. She finds herself just finding respect for his career goals, understanding the desire to help and change the state of the outer villages.

Then, after letting a young thief escape, she finds herself forced to open up to him a bit and surprisingly, he doesn't turn on her or think less of her for her past decisions. Gavin grows from an unwanted suitor to a trustworthy friend and over time, Penelope finds herself slowly developing feelings for him, which surprises her as she didn't think she'd fall for anyone again after Crow. Luckily, it's not one sided either, as she late comes to find out. Their courting becomes a bit more serious as they grow close. It's the first time that Penelope truly begins to have hope for a happy future again, provide they can both survive the upcoming war.

--

It's been two years since I've been this far from the castle.. Penelope thought as she looked around the outer village that her battalion had finally reached. Around her, some knights busied themselves with moving supplies and setting up tends while others relaxed and checked in on their comrades who had already been at the battle front for some time now. Penelope stood away from it all, her mind drifting to a different time.

She had avoided the outer villages, mainly out of the fear of running into Crow. It was unlikely they'd even be in the same village at the same time but the thought of crossing his path, seeing his resentment towards, and having to just ultimately say goodbye to him again was something that still left her with a small sting of grief, despite believing to have moved on. She sighed to herself as she began to think about him more. It had been a while since he had crossed her thoughts. The first year apart, she had thought of him often. The second year, thoughts of him grew less frequent and even farther apart until she had a couple months where he finally didn't cross her mind. That streak was quickly broken though now that she was back at the border. She supposed it was only natural, considering it was where she had last seen him.

"Penelope," Murmured a concerned voice. "Are you ok?"

Penelope blinked, a little startled by Gavin's sudden appearance as she hadn't heard him approach her. "Oh, yeah.. I'm fine.. Just a little nervous I guess." She mumbled with a shrug.

Gavin moved to take her hand in his, giving it a comforting squeeze before letting go. "Yeah, me too. But we'll be ok." He assured her, his gaze shifting away from her to look over towards the distant border. "I've been eying the campside over and it seems like we haven't lost too many. I'd have to speak with one of the barons to confirm, but it seems like we've got the numbers right now."

"That's good." Penelope mused crossing her arms. She flashed him a small smile and then turned to head towards one of the wagons filled with the supplies. "Come on, we should go help set up."