He walked over to the window and scanned the surroundings outside. They needed to get moving. There was no telling how quickly Prince Kurt’s search party would get here.

Kurt didn’t reply. He was analyzing this new information in his head. Blaine must be from Vastar, and that gave Kurt a big clue as to why he was kidnapped. This must be about revenge, but if so, why did he say he wasn’t going to harm Kurt?

Fear gripped him as he convinced himself Blaine must have been lying. After all, it would be so perfect, killing him to get back at his father for being so heartless to the people of Vastar. His death would surely devastate the people of Renova. Their future ruler would be lost.

“We’re leaving now, so you should hurry and get dressed,” Blaine demanded, walking back to the bed and pulling a key out of his pocket to unlock the shackle around Kurt’s ankle.

"Leaving? Why? Where to?" Kurt questioned, his eyes widening in fear.

No no no, they needed to stay here. If what Blaine said was true and they weren’t that far from the castle, his father most certainly has discovered he’s missing by now and is sending his men to find him. If Blaine took him farther from the city, his rescue would be more difficult.

Oh god, what if he never got rescued, and never saw his home again?

No, he couldn't let himself think like that yet. There was still hope.

Blaine removed the shackle from Kurt and looked up at him, eyeing him warily as he considered how much he could tell Kurt. “To Spade,” he finally answered, knowing Kurt probably knew of the place. It was a small town, and a loyal ally to Vastar. They didn’t have enough forces to help fight in the war, but they gave what supplies they could. “That’s where I’ll be finding out whether we’ll be returning you or not so we could put this all behind us.”

“You make that sound like it’ll be easy,” Kurt muttered. And if they went to Spade and found out he wasn’t to be returned? The prince was afraid to ask what would happen then.

“Just get dressed,” Blaine said sternly. They were wasting time here, and it wasn’t helping his anxiety.

Kurt narrowed his eyes at him. No one ever dared give him orders unless they were higher up than him in status, and the only person higher than him was his father. He reluctantly complied though and took the clothes into his hands. He had to remind himself that Blaine was armed, and there was no telling how willing he was to use his weapons against him.

He stood up and paused. Blaine was still staring at him, and Kurt didn’t feel comfortable getting almost naked in front of another man. Especially a man he barely knows…who is holding him hostage….and has weapons.

“Do you mind? Trying to get dressed like you so rudely demanded,” Kurt glared.

Blaine raised an eyebrow, slightly caught off guard by the comment. For a split second, he thought Kurt somehow knew he was gay, and thus thought Blaine was trying to check him out or something. Sure, the prince was attractive, but Blaine was no creep who had any interest in molesting his hostage. He was a dignified assassin…as contradictory as that may sound.

That couldn’t be why though, so he dispelled that thought quickly. In the absolutely miniscule amount of time that they’ve been…acquainted…Blaine has shown no signs of it. He figured Kurt probably wanted him to turn around so he can hit him on the head and run away or some other sort of foolish attempt of escape.

“Well, I have to keep an eye on you, your highness. Can’t have you running off,” Blaine answered blatantly.

Kurt frowned. The way Blaine said ‘you highness’ irked him, always in such a snarky tone. “Then stand by the door and turn around.”

The corner of Blaine’s mouth pulled up in amusement. “Is this really that big a deal?”

And then to his shock, Kurt blushed. So he did think Blaine was trying to check him out!

Which did make sense though, Blaine was aware that Prince Kurt was gay. That was a well-known fact throughout all of Renova, and thus most people in Vastar knew about it as well. The story goes that Kurt confessed his homosexuality to his father when he was fifteen because he was tired of him and the other residents of the castle bothering him about seeking a princess to marry.

Luckily for the both of them, homosexuality was not something that was frowned upon in these parts. For Kurt though, there were a lot of citizens of Renova who were quite disappointed. Kurt was now twenty years of age, and there were not many gay royals or nobles to choose from. Actually, there were no gay royals. Many people realized the prince may end up marrying a commoner, and what a scandal that would cause. There was also the issue that two men could not have children. Who will be the new heir to the throne after Kurt?

These were among the many trifles the young prince had to deal with on a daily basis. At the moment though, his primary concern was to not be assaulted by his blade-wielding kidnapper.

“The more you argue with me about this, the longer it will take for us to leave,” Kurt retorted, angry at himself for blushing and angry at Blaine for making him blush.

Blaine couldn’t help but laugh a bit, and Kurt glared at him for it. In a way, he could see how he was being amusing. Any normal person in his current situation would be screaming their heads off for help or trying to fight Blaine off, neither of which he was doing.

Kurt was a prince though, and felt obligated to act like one no matter the situation. He was not going to make himself look like a pathetic weakling in front of his kidnapper. It would be disgracing. No, he had to maintain a regal manner despite the fact that he was thoroughly panicking on the inside.

“Very well then, I’ll turn around,” Blaine said, an amused grin on his face. He walked over to the door and stood in front of it, arms crossed, back facing Kurt. “I’m only giving you two minutes though.”

Kurt repressed an annoyed sigh and began changing, pulling on the long-sleeved, off-white shirt and dark brown trousers. The prince grimaced. The cheap, simple material felt foreign and uncomfortable on his skin, but he had no other choice. He slipped the worn-out shoes on, and then eyed his pajamas he left on the bed.

“Done?” Blaine asked, glancing behind him. He caught Kurt staring at his old clothes as if he were wondering what to do with them. “Bring those with you. Now let’s go, we can’t have anyone finding you,” he commanded, opening the door and waiting for Kurt.

“I think you mean you can’t have anyone finding me,” Kurt corrected him, and reluctantly gathered his clothes into his arms. He had thought it would be a good idea to leave them there. If any of his father’s troops came by searching for him, maybe knowing he had been here would help them. Obviously Blaine had that figured out as well though.

Kurt stepped out of the cabin, the warm sunlight hitting his face and causing him to squint as he looked around. The forest was vast and intimidating, but it didn’t hinder his fight-or-flight response from kicking in, which was leaning more towards flight at the moment.

Blaine was not just any average kidnapper though. The weapons and armor he wore told Kurt that much. That as well as the fact that he snuck Kurt out of his heavily guarded castle without alarming a single guard proved that escaping him would be no walk in the park.

Besides, even if Kurt did run, he had absolutely no idea where he was or which direction to go in.

“This way,” Blaine motioned for Kurt to follow him and began walking westbound from the cabin.

Kurt stayed still, glancing around nervously. If there was ever a perfect time for him to be saved, now would be it.

Blaine stopped and looked over at him, letting out an annoyed sigh. “Please don’t make me threaten you. This really doesn’t need to be difficult,” he said.

Kurt glowered at Blaine, but followed reluctantly anyway. When it came to being rescued, he was going to have to be patient.

The two of them were silent after that. Blaine lead the way through the forest of pine trees and shrubbery, only the sounds of their footsteps cracking on leaves and occasional bird calls breaking the silence.

The wheels in the prince's head were turning. It was incredibly clear that if they were meeting someone in Spade, then his kidnapping was not simply the act of this one man, but a part of something bigger. He still didn't know what Blaine wanted him for, but he would probably find out once they reached the town.

However, once they got there, he would be a hostage to not just one man, but two. Or possibly even more? Escape at that point would be highly improbable. The panic of realization was hitting him fast. He needed to try and get away while he was alone with Blaine.

Kurt hoped that, if they were walking towards Spade at the moment, Renova would be in the opposite direction. Or hopefully that’s how it works. Kurt was no expert at direction. Essentially, all he had to do was turn around and run, and keep running until he got out of these woods and found someone to help him. Or at least until he lost Blaine.

Could he possibly outrun his captor though? By the looks of it, Blaine is a trained soldier. That easily made probably five times stronger and faster than Kurt.

He had to try though. This was his life at stake. It was now or never, right?

Kurt’s heartbeat quickened as he made his decision, and adrenaline began pumping through his veins at the thought of what he was about to do. He tried to calm himself externally as best he could, not wanting Blaine hear the near-hyperventilation in his breathing.

Now or never.

The clothes in his arms fell to the floor silently, and Kurt turned around and dashed off in the opposite direction. His long legs carried him as fast as they were capable through the plants and trees. Don’t trip, don’t trip, don’t trip… he chanted to himself in his head, his surroundings a blur as he raced through the forest.

Blaine spun around and stared after Kurt with an expression that was shock at first, but quickly turned smug.

“Not a good idea, your highness,” he murmured, his hazel eyes twinkling with amusement.