Kurt knew this was a shock, hell, he still couldn't believe it himself. He thought that he was in a daze from taking in the fact that Prince Blaine Anderson was his whipping boy, but he didn't however expect Mercedes to fall to her knees on the floor with tears leaking from her chocolate brown eyes as soon as the words fell from his lips.

"No," She whispered, shaking her head over and over. "No, he couldn't be. H-he and his father...they got away. I saw them. H-how did they get Blaine? No..."

"'Cedes?" Kurt questioned, getting down onto the floor with her.

"It has to be some mistake, Kurt...Blaine, he got away. The guards, they got Blaine and King Anderson out of the Dalton palace before the soldiers swarmed. They were safe!" Mercedes insisted as she steadily became borderline hysterical.

Kurt was confused, why did Mercedes have such an insistence that Blaine got away? Mercedes had been in servitude her entire life, hadn't she? Something told Kurt that there was more to Mercedes' story than she was letting on.

Kurt extended his arms to her as she gladly excepted the embrace. No mere servant would accept a hug so easily from their "master", at least none of the servants Kurt had come into contact with anyway.

"'Cedes, you haven't always been in servitude, have you?"

She didn't respond at first, she just blinked back tears and then shook her head silently. That's when it dawned on Kurt. Mercedes had in fact, been a lady of class. She had to have come from a family of Dalton Supporters. It all made so much sense. Kurt had always suspected, but she never mentioned anything about her past.

"Why didn't you tell me, 'Cedes?" Kurt inquired as he brushed his fingers softly through her hair.

She sniffled and responded with a weak chuckle. "It's not something that normally slips into conversation with the Prince you serve, Kurt."

"That's the thing though, isn't it? I'm not your Prince...Blaine is, am I right?"

Mercedes tore her eyes away from Kurt and stared down at her hands for a moment looking as if she were searching for the right words.

"Kurt, I'll admit it. I was born and raised in Dalton. When this arrangement was made, I'll be honest, I wasn't thrilled. Having come from such an easy life, it's a bit of a shock when one day you're living at home thankful that the war has ended, but the next your house is broken into by the McKinley police force and you're carted away for a life of servitude. It's just...it's not easy."

"'Cedes-"

"No Kurt," Mercedes stood up abruptly and wiped at the remaining wetness in her eyes. "This is my cross to bear, not yours. I can't have your apologies. It's already been hard. I wanted to hate you, I really did. It would have made this whole thing a lot simpler, but you had to be...well you, Kurt. Being your personal servant is what I think gets me through.

I was expecting to be whipped and chained up in some dark and decrepit dungeon, but instead I have my own room in the Servant's quarters and my only job really is to tend to you, so it really makes everything OK."

"But you don't really believe that completely do you, Mercedes?" Kurt asked as he stood up to meet her eye level again. "I'm sure that if you had the opportunity to go back, you'd take it, right?"

"Well sure," She responded without hesitation. "Who wouldn't, Kurt? Not that serving you isn't wonderful...it's just that it's such a change from the life I'm accustomed to-"

"In Dalton," Kurt finished.

"Right," She agreed.

"So, 'Cedes," Kurt took both of her hands in his and led her back to his bed to sit down again. "Did you know Blaine? Or were you just-"

"A higher class commoner?" Mercedes chuckled, earning a sheepish grin from Kurt. She sighed deeply and prepared herself to tell Kurt everything. "The thing is, Kurt. When I tell you that I was accustomed to a different life, I was telling the truth. My father was the personal assistant to King Anderson, so I also lived in the palace."

"Your father is William Jones?" Kurt asked, already knowing the answer.

"Yes, that's my father," She responded smiling fondly at the mental image she might have been getting of her father. "So you asked, did I know Prince Blaine? Well, yes, I should say I did know him well. Truth be told, he was the only friend I ever really had. I'm sure you know that it's not really easy to make friends at a higher status."

Kurt knew that well. If Kurt was a snobby spoiled prince like he was expected to be, then sure, he'd have a ton of friends, but people like he and Mercedes saw the bigger picture. What does being arrogant and self-absorbed ever get anyone?

Mercedes could see that Kurt was absorbing all of this, so she continued. "Blaine was there when I was taken away..."

Kurt's eyes widened as he continued to listen to Mercedes speak.

"We were studying for an end of term final in one of the drawing rooms upstairs when we heard large pounding coming from downstairs. People come and go around palaces as you know, but this noise was different...much louder. Rachel was there, too."

"Rachel was there?"

"Yeah, she was there. Before she was taken as a servant here to McKinley palace, she was one of the maids in the Dalton palace. Slavery had ended as you know, but maids and butlers were still considered legal. After the law had been passed, Rachel and her fathers still continued to work in the palace, only this time, they made income from it. Rachel was the one I sent to go see what all the fuss was about downstairs."

"What was that noise, Rachel?" Mercedes questioned as she looked up from her algebra.

"I'm certain I don't know, ma'am, should I check?"

"I'm certain you should...and while you're at it, stop flirting with Prince Blaine," Mercedes teased the maid who had been infatuated with Blaine since they were young children. She had confided the secret with Mercedes years back, but it really was too obvious to even be considered a secret.

Rachel's cheeks lit up immediately as she stuttered out a "Yes, madam," and rushed off to do what was requested.

"Mercedes, you know how that embarrasses her," Blaine admonished with a smile as he watched Rachel make a hasty retreat.

"I know, but damn that girl has to know that it can't go anywhere."

"Well, of course, I'm gay," Blaine responded with a grin.

"Yes you are, sweetheart, now come on, we've got a lot of studying to do..."

They had gone back to studying and were just about to get back into the mind-set when shouting came from below.

"Really, what's going on?" He asked Mercedes far more concerned than he had been a moment ago.

When a shriek sounded from downstairs, they both knew it was Rachel. They hardly had time to react when three guards burst into the room.

"What's going on?" Blaine questioned, standing up from the table.

"Sir, there's been an ambush of the palace. McKinley Police Force, we must get you both to safety. We already have The King and Mr. Jones being escorted into a carriage in the back of the palace."

Blaine took the information in and nodded. He reached a hand out to Mercedes which she accepted and they took off for the back entrance. They trailed along with the guards trying hard not to look down at the scene in the entrance hall below, but it was chaos. McKinley officers were everywhere, a few were chaining up the palace staff, one of them being Rachel. They both wanted to call out to her and save her, but they knew that they couldn't. All they would do is draw attention to themselves, right now they hadn't been noticed. Their hearts broke, but they had to keep moving and cross their fingers that they weren't noticed.

A few more steps then a shout came from below.

"Prince Blaine, top floor! You know your orders! Take him!"

The guards circled around Blaine and Mercedes and began to run towards the back entrance as the officers trailed behind. The carriage was now in view with the King and Mr. Jones waiting for their children.

"Blaine! Thank God!" The King let out a sigh of relief as the guards got Blaine into the carriage. They were just about to get Mercedes in when the officers arrived. All of the guards were taken down with little to no effort and the carriage driver was ready. The carriage began to move before the guards had gotten Mercedes in safely.

Blaine reached a hand out to Mercedes while Mr. Jones did the same to pull Mercedes in, but the officers were too quick, they grabbed her from behind, severing the contact between her father and the prince.

"Mercedes, no!" Mr. Jones screamed attempting to jump out of the moving carriage after his daughter, but the carriage was gaining too much speed.

"Mercedes!" Blaine screamed. Mercedes managed to look up before she was chained and dragged off. He was crying still holding his hand out to her from the carriage window. And that was the last time the two friends had seen each other.

"It's been months...and now Blaine's here. I just don't know how they got him and not King Anderson...it makes no sense," Mercedes finished.

Kurt was in shock over the story, he had never imagined what Mercedes' capture had been like, now he knew."Mercedes, I know my words mean nothing, but I really am sorry," He said quietly to the floor.

She reached out a hand and placed it on his chin to draw his face back up to hers. "Like I said, Kurt, it's all right. I know you and I know it's not your fault."

After her sentiment was issued, they were both startled as the door was opened. They both glanced over to see a palace guard standing there uncomfortably.

"Begging your pardon, sir, but The King has called a gathering in the entrance hall. Both of you are requested."

With a nod from Kurt, the guard disappeared.

"What on earth would he need to call a gathering for?" Kurt asked, bewildered, but suspicious none the less.

"Especially requesting the presence of servants," Mercedes replied in agreement.

They both followed the request and joined the other confused servants downstairs in the entrance hall.

"Ma'am, do you know what this is about?" Rachel asked as she approached the two of them. Even though Kurt had told her not to, she still bowed her head at him when she saw him. She still hadn't broken her habit of calling Mercedes ma'am even though they were in the same position now.

"No idea," Mercedes responded.

They weren't all waiting for long when the King made his presence from the top of the stairs. Kurt could tell his father wasn't pleased with whatever had called this gathering, but the servants were fooled by the regal smirk on his face. To anyone else, he looked quite pleased, but Kurt knew better. Burt stood tall as he gazed down at all of his servants before his piercing eyes fell on Kurt.

"Kurt, son, would you join me up here, please?" He called out.

Kurt wanted to stay with Mercedes, but he knew his father wasn't asking. As much as he really didn't want to, he reluctantly made his way up the stairs to stand at his father's side. He almost felt guilty for standing next to his father. He felt as if standing next to his father signified that he believed in everything Burt was doing, which could be further from the truth.

"What is this about, father?" Kurt asked with no response from Burt. Instead Burt extended his arms out to the crowd waiting beneath and commenced with the speech he had prepared for everyone.

"Good evening, servants," Burt began boisterously. He was definitely up to something, Kurt could tell. "It was necessary to gather all of you here this evening as I need to make something clear," He pulled a piece of paper from his pocket and unfolded it. "I received this letter an hour ago and wish to read it to all of you."

Kurt glanced down at Mercedes who looked back up at him with the same amount of confusion etched in her expression. Kurt looked back over to his father who began to read the parchment.

"This letter is addressed to The King of McKinley, Burt Hummel:

We are formally requesting the release of Prince Blaine Anderson. We know that he is in your possession and that you were the one who purchased him at the auction today. This boy is no slave, he is our prince and we hereby wish to offer you whatever you wish in exchange for you to return him to Dalton where he belongs.

As you know, we remain in opposition to you and your rule. Our allegiance still remains to King Anderson. You will notice no return address on this envelope, and another paper stating how to register your response to us. As you know, we can't risk you discovering our location.

Please consider our offer, you have no use of the prince, he has done nothing wrong. He belongs here with us. We would advise you to hand him over unless you wish to face consequences most dire.

We will await your letter of instruction,

Sincerely,

The League of Dalton"

Burt looked angrier the more he re-read the letter, but then he finished, he glanced up from the letter and down at the servants calmly. Many of them were fidgeting uncomfortably and some were shocked to learn that Prince Blaine had been captured.

Kurt knew this was trouble. The League of Dalton were the last remaining Dalton rebels who had not been captured. There was no telling how many of them there were, but they were growing stronger, that much was clear. Their location still remained a mystery and Kurt was sure that he didn't miss the look of hope that was written clearly on some of the servant's faces, Mercedes and Rachel being the most evident.

"I brought you all here to make my point very clear. I know that many of you were from families of Dalton supporters or The League of Dalton. The fact that those cowards would even request this of me is an insult. They risk being captured and imprisoned. The fact that they wrote this is very irresponsible, indeed. It astounds me that there is even still a group out there that opposes my rule.

I will make it plain that they will be found and brought to justice soon. I have no intentions of following their demands. Blaine Anderson is my property and I will not back down to a group who opposes me. Once I received this, I found it quite the opportunity to instill an important lesson on all of you," At this moment, Burt made a gesture to Will who was down the stairs and out of the room in a flash, two guards had followed suit.

In a few moments time, the two guards returned with none other than Blaine himself. Each of the guards had Blaine's arms in their grasps as they made their way through the room. He didn't look at anyone as he was lead through the maze of servants and staff members, not until he heard a voice.

"Blaine...no, please...no."

He looked up and saw Mercedes who was standing in the crowd with her hands clasped to her mouth. Tears were springing from her eyes. His eyes grew even sadder from what Kurt could make out from the top of the stairs. He didn't say anything as he was practically dragged up the stairs. Many whispers were coming from down below.

Not all of the servants had been sure that Blaine was really in the capture of McKinley, but this confirmed it. Mercedes and Rachel were both silently crying together as Blaine was brought up and thrown to his knees in front of King Burt.

"Yes, you are looking at the newest addition to our McKinley family," The King announced with a grin. "He is the lesson I wish to teach to all of you."

It was at this time that Will returned which caused everyone in the hall to gasp. In his right hand was the whip that he had almost used on Blaine earlier. Everyone stared in disbelief wondering if this was really about to happen. Will made his way to the top of the stairs with a grin on arrogance saddled on his face whilst he waited for Burt's instruction.

"Father, you said you weren't going to do this and I've done nothing wrong," Kurt insisted. "Stop this right now!"

Burt pretended as if Kurt hadn't spoken at all. "This boy is no ordinary servant to me, he is also the whipping boy for my son, your prince," Burt spoke with more gasps from below.

Kurt looked down at the floor in shame. The servants knew that Kurt had nothing to do with any of it. They trusted him. Kurt bestowed kindness to them everyday. They knew that it had to have been all the king's doing. Whispers were still heard from below along with sobs.

"Now," The King began making all the whispers cease. The tension in the air hung thick. "Let's get to the point then, shall we? Kurt," He shot his gaze over to Kurt who had still been staring at the floor. Once their eyes were fixed on each other, Burt continued. "Son, I want you to keep Blaine in place for this, make sure he does not move. We cannot do this in the drawing room as I want it to be made public, so there are no chains or wall to bind him to."

"No, father," Kurt spoke clearly. "I will not be any part of this."

Burt stared Kurt down. "If you don't do what I tell you, I'll have one of the guards do it and the beating will be much worse. You're the only thing stopping that from happening, so if you wish for Blaine's whipping to be less extreme, I advise you obey me, son."

Kurt glanced down at Mercedes for guidance, she was mouthing, "Just do it," he could tell that she still couldn't believe this was happening. Kurt really had no other option.

"Father...you can't do this! You weren't going to do this today remember? From earlier? Also, shouldn't it not be here in front of everyone? He's their prince-"

Burt cut Kurt off instantly, "Will one of the guards come forward to hold the boy in place? William, I'd get that whip ready for a long session if were you-"

"Stop! Father...I-I'll do it," Kurt volunteered hastily. He couldn't risk Blaine getting even more hurt. He wanted to argue with his father on this, but anything else he said was just going to hurt Blaine even more, so for once in his life, he would have to listen and get Blaine through this however he could.

"Very well, son. Bring the whipping boy closer," Burt announced triumphantly.

The guards stood Blaine up and brought him closer to Kurt. Blaine still kept his head lowered not looking Kurt in the eye. Will promptly stepped forward as soon as he got the go ahead from Burt.

"Raise your arms up," He instructed Blaine who slowly but surely complied. His shirt was ripped over his head, leaving him standing in the presence of many of his former subjects shirtless. Blaine was very well-toned that was for certain. His arms were enough for Kurt to wonder if he was actually going to be able to keep Blaine in place at all. Sure, Blaine was a tad shorter than him, but he definitely had more as far as muscles go. Blaine was positioned so that his back was exposed to the crowd below as Will stood waiting at the side.

"Kurt, take Blaine's hands in yours and do not let them go. This is as much a lesson for them as it is for you. This is to show your obedience son, take his hands now."

Kurt shakily did as instructed. All of this felt so wrong. His stomach wouldn't stop threatening nausea. Blaine's hands were cold and clammy in his, likely from nerves.

"Now my faithful servants, I want you to take in all of this. I want it to be known from here on that this boy standing here awaiting his punishment is not a prince. If I hear any other servant or anyone for that matter referring to him as such, I will whip him myself until I hear those lies cease, do I make myself clear?"

No one spoke. Every servant stood in shock or in tears awaiting the inevitable. This was their prince, everything they had known and no one knew how to process. When Blaine and King Anderson had gotten away, it was a sign of hope for them and that was being destroyed here and now.

"Hold his hands tightly, Kurt. Do not let go," The King threatened.

Blaine's hands were shaking so much that Kurt had to hold on as tight as he could without hurting him. He hoped that somehow Blaine was getting a supportive message from Kurt as well. Kurt didn't know how else to comfort him at this time.

"Begin."

That's when for the first time since this all had happened that hazel eyes finally met blue. Blaine looked up at Kurt and made eye contact. Blaine looked terrified, sure, but Kurt also saw defiance and confidence in his eyes.

"I'm so sorry," Kurt whispered as he saw Will raise the whip behind Blaine. Kurt held Blaine even tighter. "Please don't let go."