BuzzingBee

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope let out a sigh as he denied her suggestion. She supposed she should have seen that coming. It had been difficult enough to get him to speak to her about it. Still, the knight found herself wanting to argue against his decision. Even if he had gotten through it once, that didn't mean he should force himself to deal with it alone, especially if there might be a better way to handle it. After all, if others had gone through it, especially being nobles, there had to be some way to cope with it.

However, she knew he wouldn't be willing to budge. He hadn't even wanted to tell her. To try to convince him to tell a stranger would likely be impossible. As he tried to reassure her, she gave him an uncertain look that only grew into a frown as she noticed his smile waver. Penelope shook her head and pressed a kiss to his cheek. "Gods you're stubborn." she murmured as she pulled back. "I don't like your decision to just handle it but alright..."

The knight trailed off for a moment as she thought over the situation. Needless to say, she was already thinking about trying to get answers and ideas for him. Just because he wouldn't say anything didn't mean she couldn't ask other knights. They'd likely just think she was having nightmares about her time on the warfront afterall. Her thoughts began to drift off for a moment and her eyelids grew heavy. Despite the topic of conversation, she was quite comfortable between the softness of the bed, the warmth of the blanket over them and Crow's comforting presence.

She blinked, forcing her head back up as she caught herself from closing her eyes. The knight frowned a little as she glanced towards the window. It was late and she needed to get going but now that she knew what was bugging him, she didn't want to. She wanted to stay besides him, even if she wasn't able to do anything to keep him from having the dream again. With a thoughtful look, an idea came to the knight.

"Do you want me to stay?" she asked him softly. "Just until right before dawn. The guards should switch out then and William will probably think I just snuck past him when I left somehow... And the guard that replaces him will likely just assume I'm getting off my shift. I'll just stay awake so I won't over sleep." The knight offered him a half hearted smile. "What do you think?"

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope grasping for solutions cx

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope gave a small smile as he grumbled and shook her head in response. While she never intended to make things difficult, she was very determined to find out about what had been bothering him that day. Besides, in her opinion, she had given him a warning that she would if it continued to bother him. Not to mention she believed he was making things more difficult than they had to be to begin with. For a moment, the knight thought he was still going to resist her but as she felt him take in a slow breath, she prepared to listen.

She fell quiet as he began to tell her about how he used to have reoccurring nightmares after the slaughter that occurred in the village he visited. A small frown crossed over her lips as he began to depict the dream. As his expression grew bleak, she shifted to run a hand comfortingly over his shoulder. Her frown deepened as he explained that the change in the nightmare had been of Jaxon killing him in camp. The image of it in her head made her stomach twist slightly, like a lingering ghost of the panic she had felt when the murderous thief had almost killed him.

Though he said it shouldn't have bothered him that much, the knight partially disagreed. After all, these weren't just normal nightmares in her opinion. They were terrible experiences he managed to live through, which likely explained why they were so vivid. The thought of even having recurring nightmares of what happened at Jaxon's camp alone was already enough to make her feel uneasy.

As he admitted that he was worried about them starting up again, she gave a small nod of understanding. "I think that's a valid concern." she mumbled softly, reaching over to caress his cheek with hand. Recurring nightmares weren't unheard of to the knight. While she had never experienced them herself, she had heard of other knights experiencing them. Especially after gruesome battles. It made her think that Crow's worry about them starting up again was likely quite accurate. With things slowing down now that they were away from the warfront, there was likely less distracting his mind from what had happened at Jaxon's camp. However, she didn't want to make him more nervous by saying any more.

The knight paused for a moment, thinking the situation over. "Hopefully it was just a one time ordeal... Even if it's not, I know there might not be much I can do to help with that but... Maybe Eldon or someone else can." she gave him a small smile. "I know some knights around here have had nightmares over things they've seen. Especially ones who've experienced the battlefront. They might have a way to deal with it other than just having to suffer through them every night."

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope's using selective hearing at this point lmao
They are xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Of course, getting an actual answer from him was like pulling teeth. However, she at least managed to get a small detail. Penelope raised an eyebrow slightly as he admitted that it had been a dream that was bugging him. To be honest, she hadn't quite been expecting that but thinking more on it now, it began to make a bit of sense to her. It was why it he had been acting differently in the morning and likely why he had been reluctant to part with her that night. Whatever dream it was, he must have been afraid that it'd return.

She let out a soft sigh and gently brushed back a strand of hair from his face. Dreams may have not been reality but the feelings they created from it were. While her concern was a bit lessened since it wasn't anything physical, she still wanted to learn more about why it had shaken him so much. Even when she had had nightmares herself, she usually managed to get past them before the end of the day. Though his tone made it clear that he wanted the subject dropped, she wasn't willing to.

"Well, what was it about?" she asked, shifting to get into a slightly more comfortable position. She crossed her arms on his chest and rested her chin on them as she looked to him for a more detailed answer. Though it was late, the knight had partially meant her words. It might have been a risky choice but she simply cared about him too much to just accept his simple answer and leave. If it meant staying with him longer and risk having to sneak around William or anyone else then so be it.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope's not going to let him do that this time cx

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

The way he stiffened at her words answered her question almost immediately even if he didn't respond out loud. The knight waited for him to confirm her words out loud but unfortunately, he ignored them inside. Her frown deepened, disliking how he tried to avoid speaking about it again. However, this time she wasn't so willing to let it go. If it truly wasn't important, surely he would have handled it by now.

With her mind made up, she suddenly sat up and wrapped her arms firmly around his middle before falling back into the bed, dragging him back down with her. Once they were back on the bed, she shifted to lean slightly on his chest while still keeping one arm wrapped firmly around him. Trying to make sure he couldn't get up, she shifted to wrap her leg around his for good measure. Penelope met his gaze and gave a half hearted smirk. "I warned you at breakfast I wouldn't let it go so easily. So now you're either going to tell me or Preston's going to be smuggling me out of your room this time instead of stolen jewels."

Her smirk faded as her gaze softened into a look of concern. "Seriously though, what's wrong? And don't say it's not important. If it's been bothering you this much, it's important."

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Penelope realized something was fishy xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

In her sleepiness, the knight took his words as a joke at first and smiled a little. However, her smile faded as she felt him hold her tighter and suggest that she just stay with him. Realizing he was being serious, she blinked in surprise. As nice as being able to stay the night with him would be, it'd be far too risky. There was a chance of Preston finding them and anyone else who might stop by in the morning. Not to mention the risk of someone finding out she wasn't in her own room. She didn't really get any visitors aside from her father, but she didn't exactly want him figuring out where she had been all night. Especially after he had nearly walked in on them before.

She pulled back from him just enough to meet his gaze and frowned. "Crow, you know I can't... It's way too risky. I'm already pushing the limit with staying here this late." she pointed out. The knight paused as another thought came to her. It was a bit strange for him to insist on her staying. Though he was known to take chances, he usually knew the limits. For him to try to push that was a bit strange.

Penelope blinked as she recalled how something had been bothering him. She had momentarily forgotten about it due to his improved mood and being busy with the letters. The knight studied him for a moment, wondering if his behavior now had something to do with it. The thought was concerning to her since it seemed like it was more important than he originally let on if that was the case. Which was exactly why she didn't really trust his judgment.

"Is... Is this because of what was bugging you?" she asked him softly, moving to rest her hand on his arm as she looked at him concernedly.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Managed to magically finish my post on my lunch lol