“So… what happens now?” Wes asked as he dodged Blaine’s sword swing.

“That brat stays here until they catch his stalker,” Blaine muttered as their swords clashed and both boys pushed towards each other seeking for dominance.

“Hey, don’t call him a brat. You haven’t even met him,” Nick commented as both Wes and Blaine grunted and pulled apart.

“Yeah,” Jeff said. “He may not be as bad. People say he’s really nice.”

“Whatever,” Blaine scoffed.

They were silent for the next minutes with only the sound of metal against metal filling the air. Nick and Jeff were watching the match in front of them intently while David was polishing his shield. Wes gave some swings that almost hit Blaine but he quickly dodged them and they continued to search for each other’s weak points. Finally, Blaine took Wes by surprise and kicked his sword out of his hand. He pointed his own sword at Wes’ chest and smiled.

“I won… again.”

Wes just rolled his eyes and stuck his tongue out like a five year old, making Blaine throw his head back and laugh. Wes laughed along and patted him affectionately on the shoulder. Nick and Jeff stood up while Wes and Blaine left their swords aside.

“When does he arrive?” Jeff suddenly asked as he took his sword and prepared for his own little duel with Nick.

“Tomorrow morning, I think. He’s supposedly taking the long route, in case his stalker – or whatever he is – is waiting for him to flee,” Blaine repeated the words his father had told him.

He didn’t like this. He really, really didn’t like this. Prince Kurt was staying in their kingdom until things settled back home but Blaine had a weird feeling about this. Not a bad feeling… just weird. He didn’t know what to expect. It didn’t help that his father was all mysterious and smiling knowingly at Blaine but refusing to say why.

“In any case, please be nice, Blaine. The poor boy is surely going through a lot and the last thing he needs is you being a jerk.” David warned him.

“Hey! I will not be a jerk, okay? Not unless he is.”

“Oh, that’s so mature,” Wes teased as he handed Blaine a towel for his sweat-drenched hair.

Blaine pouted and the rest of the boys laughed as he and Wes sat down to watch Nick and Jeff practice.

“But seriously, Blaine, try not to get too impatient if the prince does turn out to be a spoiled brat. The last thing we need is yet another war.” Wes whispered to him as Nick tried to corner Jeff.

“I know that. Don’t worry, I’ll try.”

It wasn’t that Blaine was mean or a complete jerk. It was quite the opposite. Blaine was a level-headed, nice, kind young man. He was guarded, yes, and didn’t let many people in but that was understandable given his very tumultuous upbringing, but even after everything he had been through, Blaine remained a sweet, caring prince. He was extremely patient too, and it was fairly difficult to make him snap. The one and only thing he could not stand was arrogance.

Unfortunately, being a royal figure granted him endless encounters with people who were the exact personification of arrogance and conceit.

He had lost count of how many boys and girls he’d seen throw horrible tantrums for not being given what they wanted in the precise moment they wanted it. Shallow beings with no other topic in their conversations but the wealth of their families or the extent of their lands were all Blaine had seen and known. Despite his past experiences with other princes or princesses, he knew well that a book is never judged by its cover, which is why he planned to try and be nice to their arriving guest and make him feel welcomed and safe.

He just didn’t think he’d be able to survive for God knows how long if Prince Kurt turned out to be just like everyone else.

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Kurt wiped away the tears on his face for what seemed like the hundredth time. He hadn’t been able to stop crying ever since his father had told him he’d be leaving. He was so sad to leave his family behind that he didn’t even care he’d be going to Davon. He couldn’t get excited over the fact that he was finally reuniting with his friend, at least not now.

Not when Mercedes and Quinn were finishing packing his things in the trunk, crying silently. Not when Sam and Puck carried those trunks out of his chambers with solemn look on their faces. Not when his brother hadn’t looked him in the eye since his talk with their parents.

There was simply no room for excitement right now.

As his last belongings were stored in the small wagon, Sam and Puck returned.

“It’s time to go, Kurt,” Sam said with a hint of sadness in his voice.

Kurt sighed and turned to say goodbye to his girls. Mercedes crushed him in a hug and told him everything would be okay. Quinn couldn’t help it and started crying as Kurt held her, swallowing his own tears. They got out of his chambers and walked silently to the entrance where the wagon waited and his parents and brother were too.

His step-mom came forward, wrapping him in her gentle arms. He sighed shakily against her robes and closed his eyes, trying to memorize the smell of her hair. He let go and turned to Finn who shook his head.

“I’m coming with you. I’m seeing you get safely to Davon.”

Kurt smiled weakly and nodded. He closed his eyes and turned to the one person that hurt the most to leave behind; his father.

“Dad,” he whispered, trying to keep his voice steady.

“I will do my very best to have you back home soon, Kurt. I won’t rest until you’re safe.”

“Dad…” he repeated as he voice cracked this time.

Both lunged towards each other and held tightly. Burt ran a hand through Kurt’s hair. They pulled away and Burt sniffed while wiping away the tears in Kurt’s eyes.

“Don’t cry, my boy. You’ll be home soon.”

Kurt nodded and turned to take his place next to Finn, who would be driving the wagon. He smiled at his brother and thanked him for going with him. He figured it would make this easier, at least until they finally reached Davon and it was time for them to say goodbye for who knew how long. Finn turned the wagon around and they started their trip. Kurt glanced back one more time before focusing his eyes on the road ahead.

The two brothers rode quietly for a short while, until Kurt shifted closer to Finn and dropped his head on his brother’s shoulder. Finn frowned at the gesture because Kurt was never the one to initiate contact between them. He felt a lump in his throat and anger coiling in his chest.

It was unfair that his brother had to go through all of this. Finn had always known there was something scary and dangerous in David’s eyes. It was a sort of spark that had always been there, even as kids. He never thought it would reach this level, though. He never suspected David to be capable to such extremes just to get Kurt to love and be with him.

He would get David and Kurt would be safe, no matter what it took him. He would not let his brother down.

“Will I be able to write to you?” Kurt whispered, interrupting Finn’s thoughts.

“I d-don’t think that’ll be a good, um, a good idea,” he stammered. “David may intercept the messages and find out where you are. We don’t know what he’s planning to do or where he’s hiding so any risky move could ruin this whole emergency plan.”

“Oh.”

“But we’ll figure something out, I’m sure there’s a way for you and I to stay in touch without endangering you. We’ll work it out,” Finn promised, looking down at his brother with a lopsided smile.

Kurt sighed heavily and nodded against Finn’s shoulder. They fell into a comfortable silence as they rode on. Kurt raised his head from his brother’s shoulder to take in the view. It was all green and fresh and beautiful. It was sad, in a way that Kurt got to take in that beautiful scenery under such terrible circumstances.

It was still surreal to him, everything that had happened. He really didn’t think Dave was capable of such actions. He shuddered at the thought of being kidnapped by him and knowing he had been so close…

Well, he really regretted not taking his father’s words more seriously.

But his mind was still going over the irony of the situation. Now that the hard part had passed, his heart was torn between elation and despair. His eyes still stung at the thought of leaving his loved ones behind, especially since he didn’t know how long he would have to hide before it was safe to come home. But then he remembered.

He was finally going to reunite with his childhood friend.

He grew incredibly nervous at the thought of their encounter. Now that he had resigned himself to his fate, he could look at the brighter side of things. He wondered if the prince would remember him, if he had never forgotten in the first place. He decided to wait for the prince’s reaction to act on. If he seemed to remember him, he’d talk about their shared past. If he didn’t, Kurt would wait and get to know him again. After all, Kurt himself didn’t remember much of their time together. He just knew it was the same person because of what his father had told him and Finn’s encounter with the princess.

His mind flew back to the thought of that beautiful olive skin and those dark curls. In just a couple of days he would get the chance to see him again.

Yes, there was definitely a bright side to this whole thing.

Finn pulled him out of his thoughts as they came to a small, open clearing next to a small pond. He stopped the horses and hopped off the wagon. Kurt followed suit and helped him free the horses so they could rest and drink some water. After that, both men began to prepare the tent where they would be sleeping.

On a normal situation, the trip to Davon would have taken around five or six hours of travel, but given the circumstances and the fact that they didn’t know where David had gone into hiding, they couldn’t take that risk. They had opted for the less known route. Even if it would take them one more day to get to the kingdom, they knew the odds were in their favor. If David found out where they were headed he was sure to follow the straight rode rather than this one.

When everything was ready, they lit a fire and sat down to eat some of the supplies they had brought with them. Once the food was ready, they began to eat silently, the only sound coming from the occasional huffing of the horses and the night sounds of the forest surrounding them.

“This is nice,” Finn abruptly commented, while taking the last bite out of the piece of bread in his hand.

“What is?”

“This, you and me sitting by the fire, eating… It doesn’t really feel… I mean, it just looks like we are having some quality time together, you know? Sitting here like this, with nothing but the calm sounds of the night, makes me want to forget that I need to let you go when we reach Davon. Makes me want to believe we just decided to take a small trip… We – maybe we should have done this before.”

Kurt felt a lump on his throat and he tried to swallow it with his food. He nodded jerkily and took a deep breath.

“Just earlier I-I was thinking the same thing. I should have done more of the things that you like to do… I’m sorry I didn’t. There’s so much I wish I could have done with you, Finn.”

“Hey, no, don’t do that. Don’t talk like you’re not coming back. We’ll get David, okay? I give you my word. And you’ll be home soon and we’ll go on a camping trip, just the two of us. Our own little brotherly adventure.”

Kurt nodded, feeling his eyes pooling with tears. He took another shaky breath to steady himself and thought of something to change the subject and prevent the tears from falling down.

“So,” he started. “Have you decided what you’ll do when you see the princess tomorrow? She may be there to receive us when we arrive.”

“Yes, she probably will but –” Finn’s eyes widened as if he had suddenly remembered something extremely important. His lips twisted in a wide grin as he turned to look at Kurt.

“What?”

“That’s it!” Finn exclaimed happily. “The princess! We can stay in touch through my letters to her! We can let her know tomorrow and then, I can write a paragraph in my letters to her that goes to you.”

“Finn, don’t be silly, you can’t do that!”

Finn frowned slightly.

“Why not? I will write in a sort of code of course and she’ll reply in the same manner. And that way you and I can still talk!”

“But, wouldn’t that be… strange? You are courting her, after all. I wouldn’t want to hinder the flame of romance with a paragraph of your letters dedicated to me.”

“I’m sure she’ll understand. Besides, I don’t think I could go on writing to her just like that, without knowing you’re there but I can’t talk to you or know how you are.”

Kurt smiled fondly at his brother.

“Let’s wait and see how she feels with that.”

Finn smiled back and nodded, standing up to clean up and put out the fire. Kurt watched him. Even when Finn was the older of the two, Kurt was always the one bossing him around or scolding him when he did something wrong. Most of the time, people thought he was the older one. But Finn’s protective character always shone on. It was one of the things Kurt loved about his brother. Even when he sometimes had some crazy, silly ideas or even when he screwed up and Kurt had to help him get things straight, the minute he felt something or someone threaten Kurt’s safety, he would step up to defend him.

Kurt knew he could always count on his brother. That was why he was certain Finn would honor his word and get him home soon.

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Blaine woke up at dawn. He sat up on his bed, rubbing his eyes. He turned to look at his window and realized how early it was. He groaned, knowing that, once he was up, he could not go back to sleep. Resigned, he tossed the sheets aside and got up, taking a moment to stretch. He scratched his shoulder absently, his eyes fixed nowhere in particular as his mind took flight.

He was nervous. Today was the day when Prince Kurt was to arrive. According to his father, the Winstow prince would arrive around noon, considering the time of his departure and the route he’d be taking. Blaine sighed. The talk with his friends before had left him thinking. It was true that people that had come across the Winstow prince said he was really nice and charming. It was also true that Blaine was letting his prejudice cloud his judgment. It was this uncertainty, this feeling of facing the unknown that made him restless.

He shook his head to clear his thoughts and started to get ready. Once he was properly dressed, he got out of his room and decided to take a walk through the gardens. He was certain everyone else in the castle was asleep and he could use the fresh air. The sun was coming out of hiding when he walked out of the castle and he let the warmth hit his skin for a few moments. Slowly, he made his way to the white gate that led to the maze. Just as he reached it and was pulling it open, a voice came from behind him.

“You’re up early.”

Blaine twirled around quickly for he recognized the voice.

“Sebastian? What are you doing here?”

Sebastian Smythe, son of the king’s right arm and captain of the army, had been friends with Blaine ever since they were eight years old. Following his father’s steps, Sebastian was part of the royal guard and was quite a skilled soldier. He had been away for the past weeks, taking a training course on one of the bordering provinces. He wasn’t due to return for another couple of days, or so Blaine thought.

“I was the best one there so they let me return early,” Sebastian supplied, giving Blaine a flirty look. Blaine just rolled his eyes.

“Well, congratulations,” Blaine said as he turned around to return his attention to the lock on the gate.

“Heard we’re having some visitors over soon,” Sebastian commented as he followed Blaine inside the maze.

“Yes, prince Kurt from Winstow is taking refuge here for a while. Apparently there’s a man out there who can’t take no for an answer.”

“Interesting.”

Blaine gave him a disapproving look. “Please keep your ways to yourself, Sebastian. The last thing we need is you seducing the prince or whatever it is you’re planning.”

“Don’t worry, I already have my sight set on someone else,” Sebastian said casually but grazed his hand against Blaine’s subtly.

“Right.”

Blaine graciously pulled away as they continued to walk. Sebastian had made it pretty clear he was interested in Blaine a long time ago. He had pursued the prince incessantly, complimenting him every chance he got and spending way too much time with him. But Sebastian’s flirty attitude towards Blaine had never paid off. Blaine was not interested. That didn’t stop Sebastian from trying, no matter how many times Blaine had asking to stop and look for someone else.

Sometimes he wondered what would happen if he just gave in and accepted Sebastian’s advances. But then he backtracked because he knew it wouldn’t be right. He didn’t love Sebastian and he was certain he never would. He could only see him as a friend and even after everything he’d been through in his life, Blaine still believed in love. He still dreamed of meeting a man that he could love and would love him back. And most of the time, Blaine was sure Sebastian didn’t even love him either. He just wanted him and Blaine would not condone to that.

He didn’t know how long they’d been there but when they finally reached the end of the maze, they found Wes waiting for them.

“Blaine! There you are, I’ve been looking everywhere for you! Prince Kurt has –” Wes stopped his ranting when he saw Sebastian standing behind him. He narrowed his eyes at him but immediately returned his attention to his best friend.

“Prince Kurt is here,” he said, not even bothering to greet Sebastian.

“What? Is it – what time is it?”

“Half past noon. Now, hurry. His Majesty and Rachel are already waiting for you.”

Blaine shot Sebastian an apologizing look before he trotted behind Wes to receive the prince. He caught up with his friend and could feel the tension oozing from him. Wes had never liked Sebastian. Blaine tried to say something to sooth him but he didn’t know what so he remained quiet as they walked across the castle to the main gate. There stood his father and cousin. His father saw him out of the corner of his eye and turned to fully face him.

“Blaine, nice of you to join us,” he said with a disapproving tone, to which Blaine responded by mouthing I’m sorry to him.

Three servants walked pass them into the castle carrying what appeared to be the prince’s luggage. He saw them walk away when suddenly, Rachel tugged at his arm and he turned to see her.

“That’s Prince Finn,” she hissed excitedly and Blaine turned to look at the extremely tall man that was now approaching them. Blaine squared his shoulders and took a deep breath as he eyed his cousin’s suitor.

“Your Majesty,” the prince said in a respectful tone as he bowed to each of them, taking longer than necessary in his bow to Rachel. “I’m Prince Finn from Winstow.”

“Welcome, prince Finn,” the king said as he took Finn’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “This is my niece, Rachel and my son, Blaine.”

They bowed as he named them and Finn gave Rachel a small, shy smile. Rachel blushed at Blaine’s side and he had to suppress a smile. The prince seemed like a nice man and the look on his eyes let Blaine know the interest he had in his cousin was sincere.

“Thank you so much for this favor you are doing for my kingdom and my family. My brother’s safety is in good hands. But let him thank you himself. This is my brother, Kurt.”

He gestured behind him as Prince Kurt stepped up. The moment Blaine caught sight of the second prince, he forgot his own name. In front of him was the most beautiful man he’d ever seen. Pale skin and chestnut hair with a pair of incredible, breathtaking blue eyes.

“King Robert, thank you so much for your kindness and for taking me in.”

“Not a problem, my boy. I hope you’ll enjoy your stay, despite the circumstances that got you here.”

Kurt smiled and turned to look at Rachel.

“Princess Rachel,” he bowed and Rachel gave him a warm, welcoming smile. He then turned to look at Blaine and the minute their eyes locked both princes took in a sharp breath.

“Prince Blaine.”

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