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Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow was relieved when Penelope suggested they should meet again in three days. Since their last couple of meetings had happened whole weeks apart, he had been thinking that by ‘shorter,’ she had meant five days or so. To only wait three would be much easier to bear. As an added bonus, he wouldn’t have to worry about slipping out of his camp to see her, since she would have more news of the next battle by then. He could use that as an excuse if any of his companions questioned why he was visiting with the knight again.

“That works great for me,” he grinned, already eager to see her at the next meeting though they hadn’t even parted yet. He hoped they would continue to be able to meet this frequently, even if he wasn’t quite sure how they would pull it off. If she didn’t have new updates about the war every time they met, he was going to have to start sneaking out of his camp as well, which was risky since they didn’t have a set curfew like the knights seemed to and every once in a while, someone would stay up later than all the rest.

As Penelope stood from the ground, he followed her lead and sat up as well, taking her hand when she offered it to help him stand up. Using her as leverage, he shifted his weight onto his left foot to give his injured right leg a break as he got up. Once he was standing, he shook his head at her initial question. As far as any of his companions knew—aside from Hazel, of course—he still hadn’t seen the knight in almost a month. Not wanting to use any of their time at this meeting to discuss formalities, he had kept it a secret from them, so he could relax and fully enjoy his time with her.

He was just about to explain this to Penelope, when she spoke up again and said something that made him stiffen: “Or did Rikki already tell everyone?”

Before that night, his answer to her question would have been an immediate ‘no,’ but now, he wasn’t so sure. His heart beat faster with nervousness as he realized that, while he had been out of the camp all day, she’d had plenty of time to tell the others that he was seeing the knight romantically. After he had shut down her attempt to ruin their relationship by sleeping with him, he couldn’t help but wonder if there was anything left to keep her quiet about it.

“She didn’t tell them before, but she may have today,” Crow said, his worried green eyes meeting Penelope’s. “After… what happened, I wanted to be alone to clear my head, so I haven’t been back to my camp yet. She could have told them in my absence.” He ran a hand through his hair, suddenly anxious to return to the hideout and find out that Simon and Alistair knew about him and Penelope. “Gods, I hope she didn’t say anything,” he murmured under his breath, shaking his head as he imagined having to face them tomorrow.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

To be fair, Crow's only impression of Gavin was when he followed Penelope out to the tavern without her knowing xD
He didn't come off like the most trustworthy person at that time

Also, the thing with Rikki is still fresh in his mind and has him on edge

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

When Penelope finally agreed to at least keep her guard up around Gavin for him, Crow felt himself relax. He still wished she wouldn’t keep spending time with her former suitor anymore, but he supposed the compromise was good enough. As long as she stayed alert, he could be sure that the nobleman wouldn’t be able to get away with anything funny if he really was biding his time. It was the next best thing, so he was just going to have to be content for now.

He met her lips as she kissed him again, letting the subject drop after they had reached an agreement. Closing his eyes, he laid his head back in the grass and exhaled softly as she leaned against his chest. He didn’t find the position overly comfortable, since all of her weight was directly on top of him, but he could tell that she was enjoying it, so he didn’t complain. Her contentedness was more than enough reason for him to deal with the mild discomfort.

As he felt her breathing slow, he ran his hand soothingly over her back and smiled to himself. He felt a sudden burst of affection for the knight. Lying with her now, alone in the forest, he longed for a time when they could sleep beside each other again with no time constraints to follow or disapproving companions to answer to. We just have to wait until this war is over, he thought with a sigh. It’s been going on for a year now. The end can’t be that much further, right?

Feeling Penelope shift against him, he glanced down at her again and nodded tiredly when she said she should leave soon. He rolled onto his side to face her when she laid down in the grass beside him, resting his arm beneath his head for support. At her following words, he nodded again. “I think you should decide when we meet next,” he said with an amused smirk. “Because if it’s up to me, I would say we should get together again tomorrow night.” He reached out to rest one hand on her arm, craving her touch now that there was some space between them.

“You know your comrades better than I do,” he went on, holding her gaze. “How soon do you think you can get away from them again?”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow's a little worried Gavin might pull the same sort of crap that Rikki did ^^;

Sidenote: their cuddling is adorable and I love them so much

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“I suppose so,” Crow admitted when Penelope brought up how he had been willing to be friends with her before they had gotten back together. Reflecting back on it, his situation with her had been far different than Gavin’s though. He didn’t think it was really fair to compare the two. However, before he had a chance to say anything, he blinked in surprise as the knight suddenly wrapped her arms around him in an embrace. Smiling fondly at her, he moved to return the gesture, but in the next moment, he caught sight of the mischievous glint in her eye and felt her bowl him over.

He laid back in the grass and rolled his eyes, laughing softly at her spontaneity. For the moment, his concerns about her former suitor fled, and his attention was focused solely on her. He reached up with both hands to hold her at her waist as she climbed on top of him and kissed his forehead. As he gazed up at her, his eyes wandered over her body, and he was struck again by how beautiful she was. He still couldn’t believe how fortunate he was to be with a woman like her.

When she spoke again, his green eyes flicked back up to meet hers. Her words sent a thrill of elation through him that made him smile and intensified his affection for her. He closed his eyes blissfully, tilting his head back as she began to kiss him along his neck. While he had never been concerned about her love for him wavering, he liked hearing her say it out loud. It made him feel good when she said it with such confidence and certainty.

“I love you too, Penelope,” Crow grinned up at her, wrapping his arms around her back to pull her down onto his chest. He pressed a kiss to her cheek as he held her in a tight embrace. “And I hope it goes without saying, but the same goes for me,” he said, meeting her gaze tenderly. “I don’t want to be with anyone other than you, and nothing will ever change that.”

He kissed her again on the lips this time, loosening his hold on her to run one hand gently down and up the length of her back. His lighthearted expression wavered slightly as he thought again about what Rikki had tried to do with him that day. “I know you’re convinced that Gavin has accepted being your friend and nothing more,” he said suddenly, holding her gaze a bit more seriously. “But just do me a favor and don’t let your guard down completely around him, alright? It’s true that I was willing to be friends with you, but that was only because I care about you and want what’s best for you.

“At the time, you were with a noble who wouldn’t force you to give up everything to be with him. That’s why I was willing to back down. As far as I knew, it sounded like he was a better option for you than I was.” He smiled up at her a bit melancholically, running his fingers through her brown hair that fell like a curtain around them. “On the other hand, you left him to run off with a criminal,” he went on. “If he really cares about you as he seems to, I can’t imagine he’s going to simply stand by and watch. As long as he thinks he’s better for you than I am, he isn’t going to settle. I can promise you that.”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Me too cx

Crow doesn't buy Gavin's friend act at all lol

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“I see,” Crow muttered when Penelope told him that she was still friends with Gavin. Lowering his gaze again, he felt a pang of jealousy that she was still giving the nobleman any of her time. Perhaps it was selfish, but he wanted to be the man she was closest to. It was hard for him to believe that he still held that position in her life when he was only able to see her once or twice a week, and her former suitor was able to be around her every day.

Part of him wondered if he was being hypocritical, since he had been hanging around Rikki too, and she obviously had feelings for him. But it’s not the same, he reasoned. We were never together like Penelope was with him. Besides that, he wasn’t sure if he was even going to continue pursuing a friendship with the thief after what she had done to him. If she was going to continue to be openly hostile about his relationship with the knight, he wanted nothing more to do with her.

He glanced up at her as she tried to reassure him that Gavin had moved on and was just being a good friend to her. Despite the confidence in her words, he couldn’t bring himself to believe that what she was saying was true. It didn’t make sense to him that this nobleman had truly moved on yet felt the need to continue spending time with her. Something was off.

“I’m sorry, love,” he shook his head. “I know you trust him, but I just can’t do that.” He moved slightly against her side, shifting into a more comfortable position. “As a man, I can tell you he’s not staying by your side because he’s content with being your friend. We’re not that selfless. He’s waiting for something to change—for some opportunity when he can show you just what a great companion he would be for you.” His lip twitched up in a knowing smirk. “You can argue with me if you’d like, but I know I’m right about this.”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Jaxon Pritchett
Age: 26
Leader of the Rogue Thieves

Bio: Ruthless and driven by greed, Jaxon leads a large group of fifteen Brerratic thieves near the inner kingdom of Brerra who loot and pillage nobles to hoard their wealth for themselves. He leads them in a laid-back manner with few rules but isn’t afraid to punish anyone harshly if they should cross him personally. Additionally, if anyone ever poses a threat to him or his band of followers, he will kill them without hesitation, since he believes this is the only way to keep from being captured by knights.

In regard to the war, Jaxon cared little about what was happening on the frontlines. That is, until he encountered a Younisian spy who propositioned him and his thieves to work for their side for a handsome pay. Finding their offer appealing, he agreed to sabotage the Brerratic forces so the Younisians could make a comeback in the next battle.

Other: Sociopathic tendencies

DEATH: PAGE 81

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

He's not going to be happy with that xD
Although, he'll probably mostly be concerned about Penelope's well being after he pieces together what must have happened, since Jaxon's group is ruthless and not afraid to kill knights.

Crow might be a little jealous cx

--

EDIT: I made a CS for Jaxon, since I feel like he's going to be a recurring character for a while

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow stroked Penelope’s arm gently as she leaned her head on his shoulder and finally told him what she had been going through since the last time they had been able to really talk. He was a bit confused at first when she brought up the death of one of the knights. They were in the middle of a war, so a lot of people were dying on all sides. He didn’t understand why she thought it was important to mention a particular knight he didn’t know.

However, as she mentioned the name of her former suiter, he listened a bit more attentively. By the sound of what she was saying, it seemed like she as still spending time with the nobleman. He frowned, unsettled by this new information. While he trusted Penelope wholeheartedly, he didn’t like the fact that this knight was still lingering around her. What reason would Gavin possibly have to keep contact with her after they had broken off their courtship? It seemed suspicious to the thief.

Trying not to get hung up on the detail, he fixed his gaze on her eyes as he listened to her go on about her patrols with her brother. It was good to hear that Layth seemed to be redirecting his focus off of him and his companions. The thieves preferred to go about their business relatively ignored. When attention was off of them, they had more freedom to steal without worrying about being caught. It was good timing too, because he suspected they were going to have to raid the knights’ camp for more food soon now that their supplies were starting to dwindle.

As Penelope finished by mentioning that Olivia seemed to be acting differently around his friend, he quirked a brow in surprise. “That’s funny,” he said. “Because Alistair’s been a bit strange as well. He often goes through phases of taking interest in a woman, but I never really thought anything of it since they usually just end up leaving him because he’s a thief. If Olivia is interested in him too, he might have better luck this time.”

Crow fell quiet for a moment, glancing away from Penelope as his mind wandered back to her mention of her former suitor. As much as he tried to ignore it, he couldn’t disregard the twinge of annoyance he felt that this man was continuing to linger around the woman he was with. After a moment, he cleared his throat awkwardly. “So, you’re still spending time with Gavin?” he asked, trying to keep the displeasure out of his voice. He eyed her curiously, “I would have thought he’d move on after you ended your courtship with him.”