Trash Panda

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Okay no worries xD
I've got class until 2, but I'll be free after that! My husband and I were gonna do a date day, but we moved it to Friday because his friends want to hang out today and I have two projects I want to get done by today or tomorrow

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Yay for new characters cx
It'll be interesting to add a Younisian knight, since it would give us characters from every rank in that kingdom (Felicia and Hartley represent the other classes)

Crow got distracted by messing with Hazel xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow exhaled peacefully as he leaned against Penelope’s side, feeling relieved that the trip was going well so far. Now that he’d tied up loose ends with his companions, all that was left was to convince Penelope’s baroness to let her come back to the inner kingdom with him. He wasn’t sure what to expect with that. The woman seemed reasonable enough, but she might not want to let go of her lieutenant before the war was over. He just hoped Penelope would be able to convince her that she could do more from inside the castle than she could on the warfront.

As the knight went on to say that she could leave first so he’d have more time with the other thieves, Crow mulled over the idea and then nodded. “If you go early, that will give you more time to convince Mia too,” he mused under his breath, wanting to keep the conversation between the two of them. “I could still meet up with you tomorrow night, so we’ll be ready to head back to the inner kingdom in the morning if you can come with me, but you should go before then, so you can talk to your baroness sooner.”

He held Penelope a little closer to his side as he thought about the possibility that she might not be able to come back to the castle with him. Since she was the whole reason why he had accepted the job in the first place, he wanted her to be by his side when he began his new life as the viceroy for his father. If she was forced to stay with her battalion, it was going to be a lot harder for him to adjust to nobility. Of course, he knew he still had Naida, who had expressed that she wanted to help him get used to castle life, and he was grateful to have her friendly face around, but it wasn’t the same. He wanted to be with Penelope.

“You both look tired,” Alistair suddenly broke the silence, smirking at them amusedly.

“We’ve done a lot of traveling over the last week,” Crow answered him with a yawn. “And there’s still one more three-day trip back to the castle.”

“It’s still strange to think that you’re going to the inner kingdom for any other reason besides raiding nobles,” Rikki shook her head.

“Who said I’m not?” Crow casted her a mischievous grin. “I may be taking a new title, but I’m still a thief at heart. If any of the nobles there get on my bad side, I’ll be sure to put them in their place.”

“Just don’t get yourself into trouble,” Hazel rolled her eyes. “I don’t want to find out you ruined your chance to do something meaningful for these villages just because you couldn’t let go of a petty feud with some powerful nobleman.”

“Alright, I promise I won’t fight with anyone who outranks me,” Crow said and then snapped his fingers. “Oh wait, that’s just my family.” He winked at her slyly. “Looks like you don’t have anything to worry about after all.”

“Gods,” Hazel pinched the bridge of her nose. “Who in their right mind thought it was a good idea to give you power?”

“Just the highest-ranking man in the Kingdom of Brerra,” Crow quipped snidely.

“Just don’t do anything outlandishly stupid,” Hazel huffed. “As long as you don’t get yourself arrested again, I don’t need to know about whatever other idiotic stunts you pull at the castle.” She rose to her feet and smoothed down the front of her dress. “Anyway, I’ve had about as much of you as I can take for one night, so I’m going to bed.”

“Oh, come on, love,” Crow rolled his eyes. “Don’t be so dramatic.”

“Nope,” Hazel shook her head, although he could see a teasing glint in her eyes. “After being free from your jabbering for a whole month, I need to ease myself back into this. Goodnight.”

“Night,” Crow smirked, following her with his eyes as she headed back to the sleeping area. Once the herbalist was gone, he let out a sigh and leaned into Penelope again, letting most of his weight rest against her side in an exaggerated fashion. “We should get some sleep soon too. I’m exhausted.”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

I think it would be interesting if Hartley was one of the people who join the mission to Eyaris later too. Mostly because it makes sense for there to be Younisians interested in their cause, but also because he's kind of glory-seeking, so it makes sense for his character.

Crow's starting to feel the weight of his decision more

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

“That’s good,” Crow nodded when Penelope said he hadn’t missed anything. While the reunion with his companions seemed to be going well enough so far, there was a small part of him that had been worried the others wouldn’t be as friendly if they had the knight alone. Fortunately, it seemed like his fears were unfounded, so he was able to relax again. He trailed his hand calmly down her arm, letting his eyes wander briefly over the rest of the group before returning to her face as she continued to speak.

“I do,” he returned Penelope’s smile when she thought he would want to spend more time with his companions. Letting his gaze return to the others, he went on in a low voice, “It wouldn’t feel right to leave them so soon after everything I just told them.” That, and he was already finding it difficult to leave. It had been a while since the last time he’d been able to return to their hideout, and now that he was here, part of him wished he could stay. He sighed softly. As much as he wanted to forget about his decision and move back in with the other thieves, he knew he couldn’t do it. His time here was ending so that he and Penelope could start their own life together in the inner kingdom. As hard as it was, it was for the best.

Crow leaned his head against the knight’s, relishing the time he had left in the outer villages. “As much as I’d like to stay for a while, we should probably go to your camp tomorrow evening,” he murmured. “I told my father that I would come back in a week, and I want to make sure we have enough time to wait for your baroness’s decision without returning to the castle late.”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow started messing with Hartley right away xD

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

On the short walk back to the main cavern, Crow and Rikki passed the time by catching up with each other. He hadn’t realized just how little they had spoken recently until they began sharing stories about things they normally would have talked about before. It felt good to finally start bridging the gap that had formed between them over the past few months. Though he was sure things would never quite be the same between them, he liked having his friend back for the little time he had left before leaving for the inner kingdom again.

When they made it back to the others, Crow was greeted by yet another friend he hadn’t been able to talk to in quite a while. “Hey, kid,” he grinned as Hartley bounded over to him from the hearth. They exchanged a brief embrace, during which the thief noticed something else about the Younisian boy. “You’re taller,” he raised a brow in surprise. The last time he’d seen Hartley, the younger thief had been noticeably shorter than him, but now they stood at about eye-level with each other. He felt strange to speak to him without looking down.

“I am,” Hartley squared his shoulders and beamed proudly. “Looks like you can’t call me ‘kid’ anymore, can you?”

“Don’t get cocky, now,” Crow snorted. “Just because you grew a bit doesn’t mean you’re suddenly an adult. I’m still a few years ahead of you, so you’re still a kid to me.”

“Oh really?” Hartley crossed his arms, a smug smirk crossing his lips. “Would it change your mind to know that Kip and I are married now?”

Crow’s eyes widened at that. “It might,” he admitted, studying the boy with newfound curiosity. “Congratulations. I had no idea.”

“Thanks,” the Younisian’s smirk widened into a broad smile. “So, have you and Penelope tied the knot yet or what?”

“Not yet,” Crow glanced past Hartley at where the knight was sitting with the other thieves and smiled fondly. “But hopefully it won’t be much longer.”

“Huh,” Hartley’s expression turned playful. “Maybe I should be the one calling you ‘kid!’”

“Try that, and I’ll make you regret it,” Crow rolled his eyes and punched the boy in the arm.

“Alright, alright,” Hartley laughed, holding up his hands. “I won’t, but you’ve gotta stop calling me that too, okay?”

“I guess I could hold back until the next time you give me reason to use it,” Crow teased. “As long as you don’t do anything stupid, I won’t call you ‘kid.’ Deal?”

“I’ll take it,” Hartley grinned.

The two shook hands over it and then headed over to the hearth to join the others. Rikki had already gone ahead and struck up a conversation with Alistair. When he reached the group, Crow sat down next to Penelope and pressed a kiss to her cheek. “I told you I’d be back soon,” he playfully leaned into her side. “Aside from the brat waking up, did I miss anything important?”

“Hey!” Hartley frowned, catching how the other thief had referred to him.

“I only agreed to stop calling you ‘kid,’” Crow winked at him slyly. “Nobody said anything about ‘brat,’ ‘boy,’ or ‘dumbass.’”

“Gods, I’d forgotten how annoying you can be,” Hartley groaned, raking his fingers through his wild hair in frustration. “I’m starting to think it would have been better if you hadn’t come back.”

“Missed you too,” Crow smirked. He turned back to Penelope, wrapping one arm affectionately around her shoulders. “But seriously, did I miss anything while I was gone?”

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

It was probably a good thing that Penelope and Rikki talked before, otherwise that conversation could have gone so much worse xD

--

EDIT: I just realized I never added an 18+ tag for this RP lol
I just put that on, since we've got a lot of mature themes (violence, sex, drinking, etc...)

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow nodded gratefully when Penelope wished him luck with Rikki. Now that he knew she was alright with him speaking to the female thief alone, he turned back to the tunnel and took off after his upset friend, moving at a light jog to catch up with her before she got too far ahead. Luckily, it seemed he’d gone after her quickly enough, because it wasn’t long before he caught sight of her silhouette in the darkness up ahead. She appeared to have slowed down quite a bit, walking at a slow pace now that she’d already put some distance between herself and the rest of the group.

He slowed down to a walk as well, not wanting to startle her by suddenly appearing at her side while she was still distraught. Tentatively, he stepped up to her from behind and reached out to rest a hand on her arm. “Rikki,” he spoke her name softly, though he could feel her tense up despite the gentleness of his approach. Her sharp reaction made him wince. They used to be as close as family, and now she was bristling at the mere sound of his voice. This was why he couldn’t just leave things as they were. As uncomfortable as it was, he wanted to resolve the conflict that had been simmering between them for so long.

“Come on, love, talk to me,” he pleaded. “I know you’re mad, but—”

“Mad?” Rikki suddenly interrupted, coming to a stop. She turned around to face him with tear-filled eyes. “You think I’m mad at you?” She shook her head. “Anger is the furthest thing from what I’m feeling, Crow. I’m not mad, I’m hurt. I just…” She trailed off, wiping the tears from her eyes and wrapping her arms around her middle. “I feel like I don’t know you anymore. Ever since Penelope came back into your life, you’ve been acting like a different person. I never know what to expect out of you, and it feels like you spring something new on us every other day… I miss the Crow I met in Colchester two years ago—the Crow I fell in love with.”

“Rikki…” Crow faltered, unsure what to say.

“I know you’re not going to suddenly turn back into the man you used to be,” she went on in a murmur. “While you were gone, I spoke with Penelope, and I see now that you love her more than you could ever love me. I’ve accepted that… But now, after you’ve finally come back to us, you tell us that you’re only here to say goodbye for good.” Her voice broke, and she took a shaky breath. “Of course I’m hurt. How could you expect me to be okay with losing you forever? I know you don’t love me, but that doesn’t change the fact that I love you more than I’ve ever loved anyone else… I don’t want you to go.”

Crow said nothing as she broke down into quiet sobs. He’d already known that out of all his companions, Rikki was going to take the news of his decision the hardest. However, now that he was finally talking to her about it, he realized he still didn’t know what to say.

He remained quiet for a drawn out pause before he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her in a comforting embrace. “I don’t want to leave you either—any of you,” he said softly. “Trust me, this wasn’t a quick or easy decision for me… but it is what I have to do. I’m just sorry I couldn’t find a way to give you more time to prepare.”

“Why do you have to go at all?” Rikki’s voice was muffled as she buried her head into his shoulder. “Why can’t you stay here with us?”

“Because this isn’t the life I promised Penelope,” Crow explained in a low voice. “I can’t make her sacrifice everything for me when I have the opportunity to prevent her from doing so.”

“But what about you?” Rikki looked up at him with a frown, her chin quivering slightly as she fought back more tears. “The only thing that’s changed is who’s sacrificing for who. Why is it better for you to give up everything for her?”

“Because I’m not really giving up very much,” Crow shrugged. “Think about it. I’ve got no money, no permanent home, and no job. If Penelope came to live in the outer villages, we’d have to survive off whatever meager earnings I could bring in without drawing much attention to myself, and it would be difficult to settle down while I’m still being tracked by bounty hunters.” He offered her a halfhearted smile, “Honestly, you, Alistair, and Hazel are all I have out here, and I told you before that Penelope and I were going to leave together after the war anyway. The only thing that’s changed is that we’re leaving sooner than we expected.”

“But you’re also moving to the inner kingdom,” Rikki sniffled. “At least if you were in the outer villages, we could still see you sometimes.”

“I know,” he sighed. “But it’s as I said: I’m doing this for Penelope. Besides, it’s not like we could never see each other again.” He smiled at her more genuinely. “You and Alistair know the inner kingdom just as well as I do, if not better. I’m sure you could find a way to visit me there if you really wanted to.”

“I suppose that’s true,” Rikki chewed on her bottom lip thoughtfully.

“I’ll tell you what,” Crow went on, letting his arms fall from around the other thief and stepping back from her now that she seemed to be feeling a little better. “The next time I have a chance to go back to the outer villages, I’ll be sure to pay the three of you a visit too. How does that sound?”

“I’d like that,” a small smile tugged at the corner of Rikki’s mouth. She studied his face for a moment longer before the smile vanished and a soft exhale escaped her lips. “Gods, it’s not going to be the same around here without you around… I’m going to miss you, Crow.”

“I’m going to miss you too,” he held her gaze for a moment longer in the darkness before waving his hand in a beckoning gesture. “Hey, I’m not leaving just yet, so why don’t you come with me to rejoin everyone else? I’d like to spend what time I have left here with all of you together.”

“Okay,” Rikki nodded, her smile returning and softening her features as she walked with him back to the main cavern.

Let Me Steal Your Heart [BuzzingBee + Dagger]

Crow and Rikki are finally going to be able to deal with their conflict cx