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Percy woke up startled. A tall blond guard who was holding a candelabra stood at the foot of the bed.
“Your majesty, the invaders have breached the castle walls - you must flee!” he warned breathlessly.
Percy frowned. He barely had the time to register what was happening before the guard grabbed his arm and pulled him out of the bed.
“What - where? What is happening?” he asked.
The guy didn’t respond, instead, he focused on dragging him across the endless corridors of the castle. Percy didn’t know him, in fact, he didn’t know anybody who works in the castle, except Grover, his personal servant who was nowhere to be seen.
However, it wasn’t his type to flee battles. He couldn’t abandon the castle while it was under attack. He needed to protect his parents, his sister and his people who were probably being torn apart by the enemy.
“I need to get my armor,” he said while pushing the guard away.
“I’m sorry sir, be we cannot. I have strict orders, I need to protect you. We must leave the castle, it’s too dangerous.”
Percy refused to stand there with his arms cross, while people were being slaughtered, while his sister was in danger, so he did the only thing he could think of: he ran away. Because he didn’t have his armor on, he quickly disappeared out of the guard’s sight. He heard the man swearing and knew that the guard was going to get in troubles because of him, but if Percy had the time to get his weapon and put on his armor and helmet, he was sure that he could save some people’s life.
He ran across the corridors and went to the royal armory. He knew he wouldn’t be able to put on his full armor, not without Grover’s help, so instead, he only grabbed a coat of mail and put it on. He was about to put on his helmet when the door flew opened and he was face to face with two enemies, much more protected than him. Percy backed away to the nearest door and found himself trapped at the top of one tower.
Why hasn't he took his sword? It should have been his first move while entering the room. The Prince started praying under his breath. He had never been a strong believer but in this desperate situation, he hoped some miracle could save him.
He sucked in a startled breath when one of the men was hit from behind. The second one immediately reacted and tried to fight Percy’s saver, in vain. The man was stronger than him and in a few moves, he had gotten rid of both the enemies. Percy looked at him up and down, surprised. It was the same guard who had awakened him. He hadn’t noticed the scar on his cheek.
“Thanks” the prince muttered.
The guy nodded.
“We need to get out of here”, he reminded Percy. “Before it’s too late.”
“I can’t leave without my sister! I can’t just abandon my people” he protested.
“If you really want to help, you need to flee.”
Percy wasn’t having any of that. He returned to the armory to get his sword.
“I won’t leave this place while there are intruders!”
“Please my prince, don’t make me do that”, the guard whispered.
Percy raised an eyebrow questioningly. The blond guy looked at the floor so Percy turned his back to him to grab his sword. However, before he could do anything else, he was hit in the back of his head and everything went black.
Percy’s awoke for the second time with a headache. He slowly took in what was surrounding him and was surprised to find himself in a forest. He quickly stood up, his vision blurred because of this sudden move, but it quickly became clearer and he noticed the guard sitting at the foot of a tree. Immediately memories flood back to him.
“You knocked me off!” Percy hissed.
“I did what I had to do”, the man answer without even looking up.
“You kidnapped me!”
“Please”, the man muttered “shush.”
“Don’t shush me!” Percy fumed. “I’m not a coward I should be on the battlefield! I should be protecting my people! My sister is still there for fuck’s sake!”
The man growled and rose in a swift move. Percy took a step back, surprised.
“How would you do that? You’re in a fucking nightgown! You almost died to get your weapon. You can’t even protect yourself, how could you protect other?”
“Who do you think you are?” Percy spat. “I’m the Prince, you’re just a guard so don’t talk to me like that.”
“I may be a guard, but I was sent by the King to protect you while my friends are probably dying on the battlefield. If you hadn’t been so stubborn, maybe I could have returned to the castle and helped them. Instead, I’m stuck here in this forest, listening to your complaints.”
Percy lowered his head. He was a Prince, he wasn’t used to people talking to him like that and he felt humiliated. With a sigh, the brown-haired guy decided to sit against a tree, quite far from the guard and stared into space.
A few hours passed. Percy was bored as hell. He couldn’t stop thinking about his sister. Where was she? Was she okay? Was she still alive? Maybe Grover had protected her, it would have explained why he was missing. The Prince looked at the guard, he seemed tense. He realized that he didn’t know anything about him.
“What’s your name?” he asked.
The man stared straight into his eyes, he looked ready to kill, which was quite scary.
“Luke Castellan, sir,” the man answered.
Percy nodded. Great. This discussion wasn’t going anywhere.
“When will we be moving?” he inquired
“Please, not again” the man grunt.
Percy stood up with a sigh. He wasn’t going to stay there forever. He started wandering around under the careful eyes of the guard.
Suddenly, an idea popped into his head. He looked at the guard who wasn’t paying attention to him anymore, then, as quietly as he could, he fled into the forest. Where? He had no idea, but sure enough, he was going to find his way back to the castle. He was unarmed, but he could probably steal a weapon on a dead body.
However, he never got that chance. After long minutes of walk, he understood that he was lost. He shouldn’t have left the guard’s side. What was he thinking? He was unarmed, he could be killed by anybody. The Prince tried to retrace his steps but he had the impression to sink deeper into the forest. Then, he heard a noise, no a growl. Whatever it was, it wasn’t human.
Percy’s reflex was to try to grab his sword but he didn’t have it. He swore under his breath and tried to carefully pick a huge piece of wood. His heart was pounding madly in his chest. He was moving slowly, not to scare the animal which was behind him. Suddenly, he turned with his “weapon” and was ready to hit the beast but it was faster than him and in a few seconds, the Prince had been pushed to the ground by a wolf. He wasn’t going to make it.
“Luke!” he yelled. “Luke!”
He protected his face the best he could with the piece of wood, but he knew he couldn’t last long. The beast was going to kill him. Percy had never been so scared in his entire life.
Suddenly, the wolf collapsed on top of him and Percy looked up. The guard was standing there, his sword deep into the animal. Percy inhaled, reassured. He was safe, Luke had saved his life - again. The guard knelt next to him.
“Are you okay?” he muttered, worry in his eyes.
Percy nodded and the man extended his hand which the Prince gladly took. They stood up and Percy realized he was shaking.
“I’m sorry” he muttered.
The guard smirked.
“It’s okay, you’re safe now, but please don’t try to run away again. I’m just trying to protect you.”
Percy nodded once again. This wolf had taught him a lesson, he wasn’t going to leave Luke’s side again.
Luke was moving easily in the forest as if he knew it by heart. Percy was impressed, to say the least.
“If things go well, a patrol should meet us there,” he said.
“Where is my father?”
“On the battlefield and before you start complaining, it was our priority to get you out of there. You are the only male heir, you are the King's successor to the throne. We cannot risk your life like that. The Kingdom's destiny is in your hands.”
Percy rolled his eyes. What kind of King fled battles?
Percy sat in the grass with Luke. They had nothing to do apart from waiting. The Prince, who was bored started questioning the guard. He learned that he was only 18, so a little older than him. Time past by quickly and Percy realized that Luke was nice when he wasn't starring dagger at him.
As predicted, a group of men arrived a few hours later. They warned the Prince that the enemies had been killed and that his family was safe. Finally, the Prince was able to return to the castle, escorted by Luke and the patrol.
6 months later
Percy laughed at Luke's face.
It was now his responsibility to look after the prince. He needed to follow him constantly to ensure his safety. Unfortunately, it also meant that when Percy was sneaking out of the castle to flee his responsibilities, he needed to go with him. Luke tried his best to keep up with him, but the young prince loved to wander in the weirdest places.
“Come on,” Percy smiled. “It's just water!”
The blond guy stared at the lake fearfully, he had never been taught how to swim and knowing that many soldiers died drowning because of their armor, he wasn't willing to.
“I cant,” he confessed.
“What? Why not? You can't swim?” he mocked.
The blond lowered his head, ashamed. It was ridiculous, he knew that but he couldn't fight his fear. The smile on Percy's face disappeared and he swam in Luke's direction.
“I can teach you,” Percy offered.
Luke shook his head.
“Come on…” the Prince pleaded.
“I will drown!”
“No, you won't! Take off your clothes!”
“What if someone sees us? I won't have my weapon to protect you,” Luke blurted.
Percy rolled his eyes.
“It's dark, nobody will see us! Trust me.”
“Last time I did, you were attacked!”
“Yeah, but you saved me!” Percy shrugged.
“Like I always do. I'm your lifesaver, you know?”
The Prince smiled.
“I know,” he winked.
Luke hesitated. He looked at Percy, the lake, then behind him and finally, he took off his clothes. He hesitantly put a foot into the water but Percy grabbed his arms and pushed him in completely. Luke swore.
“It's cold!” he yelped.
Percy laughed.
He had fallen in love with the guard quickly. When they had returned to the castle, he had asked the King if Luke could become his protector. He didn't know why, but he trusted him. The blond hadn't understood why the Prince had asked that, but he hadn't questioned his choice. They had many common points, Luke wasn't like Grover, he was more daring. He knew how to fight and they trained together a lot.
Percy looked up at him. Luke's life hadn't always been easy, his mother was crazy and his father had abandoned them when he was a kid. Still, Luke was trustworthy, careful and protective. He was always there to protect Percy. He was even jealous when the Prince hung out with other people, especially Grover.
Percy knew he could never marry him. Heck no, his father wouldn't let that happened. He would have a heart attack if he learned that his son had fallen in love with another man. Percy was supposed to marry Annabeth, a girl he had met a few times. She was nice and wise, but she wasn't Luke.
“Percy?” Luke asked.
The brown-haired guy looked at him and smiled.
“Sorry, I was thinking about Annabeth.”
Luke frowned, he didn't like the girl at all. Which was strange because when he had first met her he did. Still, when Percy had told him that she was supposed to become his wife, the blond had started to avoid her.
“I don't want to marry her,” Percy confessed.
“Why?”
The Prince looked at Luke, his scar was barely visible at night. Percy was still holding onto Luke's arms, the blond was tensed in the water, even if he was standing ankle-high in the lake.
The Prince looked at his lips, he wanted to confess his feelings, wanted to touch him, to kiss him. Luke, as if he understood what Percy was thinking about, leaned in and pressed his lips to the Prince's. Their kiss was shy but quickly escalated and became messier. When their tongues brushed together, Percy's body started shaking. Luckily, Luke's hands were on his waist, keeping him close and steadying him. They broke apart, out of breath.
"Don't leave me," Percy pleaded.
"Never."