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Princes don’t get kidnapped. At least, that’s what Arthur kept telling himself. Although it was hard to stay in his state of denial when he currently felt crushed in the grip of the dragon’s claw. It wasn’t tight enough to restrict his breathing or hurt his internal organs, but it still felt uncomfortable. Then there was the air blowing against his face as the dragon carried him away from his kingdom, which caused his eyes to water. In the effort to blink the tears away, Arthur looked down. He immediately regretted it once he saw how high up they were. There was no way he would survive the fall should the dragon drop him.
Fear replaced Arthur’s denial as his mind finally caught up with the reality of the situation that he was currently in. Arthur looked up again to see that they were approaching a cave embedded in the side of a mountain. He felt the dragon slow down as they neared it. This was the dragon’s den, no doubt.
The light provided by the sun diminished quickly once they were inside. For a moment, Arthur couldn’t see a thing. Then Arthur felt intense heat as the dragon blew out a large breath of fire around the den. Candles that were hidden along the walls lit up, allowing Arthur to see once more. The dragon set the prince on the ground at last, seemingly confident that Arthur wouldn’t be able to escape. Arthur didn’t try to, anyway. At least not yet. Instead, he stretched out his limbs and surveyed the contents of the den.
He was not surprised to see piles of gold all around the den. So much gold that it could bring his kingdom to a state of wealthy prosperity for decades. Other shiny objects laid around as well, which glowed in the candlelight. Even if he wanted to, it would be impossible to get all of the treasure back to the castle. It was also a guarantee for him to get robbed by bandits along the way if such an attempt to bring treasure back was made. As such, Arthur quickly became disinterested in the riches. He found a pile of goods that weren’t shiny at all. There were food supplies, along with blankets and rugs. It seemed that this wasn’t the first time that this particular dragon had kidnapped someone.
“You may help yourself to the food and water that is here.” The dragon spoke for the first time since Arthur’s abduction. “The blankets are also available should you get cold.”
Arthur’s stomach made a noise at the mention of food. Although he wouldn’t succumb to his hunger just yet. “Why did you bring me here?”
At that, the dragon chuckled. “Many reasons, young prince. But for starters, your kingdom had no princesses for me to take, only leaving me with princes. Second, you are the crown prince, next in line for the throne. I am more likely to get what I desire by taking you over the others.”
Arthur didn’t need another reminder of the responsibilities that he will inherit when his father, the current king, passes on. Growing up, he didn’t think that he would ever get the throne of the kingdom that he was raised in: the kingdom of Noblia. Having three older brothers initially put him at fourth in line. But Arthur didn’t mind that, deciding that he didn’t want to become a king anyway. He wanted freedom. He wanted to explore the world. Fate seemed to have other plans, however. Just last year, Alistair died in combat when Noblia was at war. That would have made Seamus the next in line, but he was already married off to another kingdom. Then it would have been Dylan, but he ran away years ago to never return. Thus, upon Alistair’s death, Arthur was made next in line for the throne. And with old age catching up to his father rapidly, Arthur was dreading the day that he became king. The grief he had experienced over the past year hadn’t helped him either.
Still, Arthur was not satisfied with the dragon’s answer. A commoner could have came up with those reasons. “There has to be another reason. What did my father do that angered the dragons?” It was rumored that dragons only kidnapped royals if the king or queen of a kingdom did something to piss the dragon clan off.
“Nothing.”
“Bollocks.”
“Truly, your father did nothing. None of the Kirklands have, as a matter of fact.” The dragon answered truthfully. “All I can say is that in order to act upon your destiny, this had to have happened.”
Not this “destiny” shite again. “I don’t have a destiny. That was surely for Alistair.”
“And yet he is dead. And the kingdom of Noblia is still suffering from the consequences of the war. You’d be surprised, young prince, at what truly awaits you.” Before Arthur could say anything else, the dragon flew out of the den with a roar.
Whatever his destiny was supposed to be, Arthur didn’t think that he would like it.
When the dragon didn’t come back after 10 minutes, Arthur allowed himself to eat some of the food that was stored in a corner. There was some fruit that looked to be picked recently, so he ate that to quell his hunger. As he ate, he thought about possibly escaping the dragon’s den on his own. If the dragon was going to be gone for long periods of time, he may be able to sneak away. He knew that descending the mountain was the only way out, as there appeared to be no other exit out of the den. He would worry about the trek back to his kingdom later.
Arthur walked back towards the entrance of the den. He was able to step outside a few feet before being greeted with the edge of the cliff. He looked down to see the treetops of the forest far below him. Jumping off the cliff was out of the question. Investigating the cliff edge further revealed that the landing he was standing on was shaped like a half-circle. He studied the mountain side to see that it was all smooth. There was nothing for him for grab onto. He was effectively trapped; that is, if he didn’t have a death wish.
“Forget about me getting down, how is someone going to get up here?” Arthur muttered to himself. It seemed that flight was the only way for someone (or something) to get to the den. No wonder why the dragon hadn’t bothered to restrain him or keep him locked up.
With a sigh, Arthur went back into the den. He made himself comfortable on the rugs. There was nothing that he could do but wait for the dragon’s return. Speaking of the creature, Arthur thought about what it had told him earlier. About destiny. In truth, Arthur knew very well the legend revolving around Noblia: “In time of need, a king and his most trusted knight will rise to give prosperity to all.” Ever since he first heard about it, he was sure that Alistair was the king in question. Now he wondered if it actually meant himself. He humored the possibility for a bit, that he was the king mentioned in the legend. But that led to another question: who would be his most trusted knight?
Sir Alfred. His brain supplied an answer without a second thought. If Arthur’s father wouldn’t do anything in regards to his abduction, Alfred would for sure. He remembered the terrified look on Alfred’s face as the knight watched Arthur get carried away by the dragon. Arthur scoffed as an image of Alfred conjured itself into his head: Alfred, as usual, would go on to proclaim to the king that he was the hero Arthur needed, and assign himself to the role as leader of the rescue party. There would be about a dozen knights, all ready to carry out Alfred’s commands as they rode on horseback to the dragon’s den. Alfred would be in front, ready for any kind of danger to appear in their path.
At the same time, Arthur wanted nothing more than to see Alfred right now. Surely, because it meant that he would be able to leave the den. That was all. Not because he enjoyed having Alfred around. Not because he liked that Alfred spoke his mind, even if it led to Arthur being provoked. And definitely not because of the recent revelation that seeing Alfred made his heart beat faster than it normally would.
He tried to think of other things, but Arthur’s mind focused on Alfred. He remembered when Alfred first became a squire years ago. Even then, Alfred had immediately attached himself to Arthur. Arthur reflected on how fast Alfred climbed the ranks of knighthood. Although he never admitted it, Arthur had been impressed by Alfred’s combat skills. With both physical and tactical prowess, Alfred had managed to join Arthur’s squadron of knights. As a result, Arthur saw Alfred nearly every day, and interacted with him a lot. Both on and off the training field.
“What’s on your mind, young prince? You have quite the blush on your face.”
Arthur jumped at the booming voice of the dragon echoing off of the rock walls. He hadn’t heard the dragon come back. He felt the heat in his cheeks, proving the dragon right. “Nothing.”
“I know a lie when I hear one.” But the dragon didn’t push the subject any further. Instead, the dragon put down whatever he was carrying near the food supply corner. “I managed to catch some rabbits for you to eat. You’ll need to keep up your strength.”
For my destiny. Arthur heard the unsaid implications of the dragon’s statement. He used the task of skinning and preparing the rabbit to eat as a distraction from thinking any more about Alfred.
~~~
The next few days were so similar that they blurred together for Arthur. In the morning, Arthur woke up alongside the dragon. They shared some of the fruit stashed away in the corner for breakfast. Then the dragon left, presumably to hunt. To pass the time, Arthur would go through knight training stretches and exercises (the ones that didn’t require a weapon, or a partner, since he was alone and unarmed). After getting bored of those, the prince would explore the treasure that the dragon hoarded. Although he was looking at the piles for the third time now, as being stuck in the den with nothing else to do allowed Arthur to survey everything the first time by the second day of his imprisonment. As tempting as it was to take a small trinket when the time came to escape, Arthur believed that it was a bad idea to anger his captor, considering that the dragon had already kidnapped him once. By late afternoon, the dragon would come back with dead animals for Arthur to prep and cook to eat for dinner.
During the evening, however, the dragon laid around in the den. Arthur took the opportunity to try to get more information out of the dragon. In particular, about his destiny. But the dragon would either avoid answering the questions altogether, or speak in riddles, much to Arthur’s annoyance. The riddles kept Arthur up at night. He often only fell asleep after he got too tired to continue thinking about them. That is, if he didn’t think about Alfred first.
Alfred constantly invaded his thoughts when Arthur had nothing to do but sit around. It was too quiet when he didn’t have Alfred talking in his ears all the time. He realized that he missed the playful banter they would get into on a daily basis. The same banter that would get any other knight in trouble, but not Alfred. Any threat of reporting or dealing with Alfred’s insubordination given by Arthur during then was an empty one. And Arthur was sure that Alfred knew it, based on the grin that the knight would give him.
Other times, Arthur’s mind replayed the more fragile moments he had with Alfred. He recalled the gentleness in Alfred’s hands as the knight bandaged Arthur up after a particular bad fight. He also remembered giving Alfred similar treatment after an encounter with bandits, or training gone wrong.
Then Arthur remembered how vulnerable he felt when news of Alistair’s death reached back to the castle. It wasn’t his father or other brothers that comforted him while grieving, but Alfred. The knight had been practically inseparable from the prince’s side (which was an achievement, considering the time that they already spent together every day). When it was just the two of them in Arthur’s chambers, Alfred made it known that it was okay for Arthur to cry. On several occasions, Arthur found himself in one of Alfred’s hugs. He could feel Alfred’s hand rubbing his back as he remembered sobbing into the knight’s shoulder.
The trust that the two had with each other was something that Arthur came to treasure greatly. His heart ached from being separated from Alfred for so long. Arthur couldn’t deny any longer that he was in love.
~~~
It has been 10 days since Arthur was stolen from his castle. The prince could feel the stubble growing on his face. It seemed like this day was going to be the same as the others. He ate breakfast with the dragon, tried to ask about his destiny (which to no surprise, he got no straight answers), and then was left alone in the den.
However, a few hours before the dragon would return, an intense rumble shook the mountain that the den was carved from. The force knocked Arthur off of his feet. His breath was knocked out of him as his back harshly collided with the ground. Arthur waited for the mountain to settle before attempting to get back on his feet.
The prince made no effort to dust off his clothes, as they were well-soiled at this point from being the same ones that he’d worn on the day of his kidnapping. Curiosity struck him as he searched the inner walls of the den. Maybe a hidden passage opened itself up, giving Arthur an attempt at freedom. His hopes were quickly squashed when no such passage presented itself. He sighed, not wanting to resent himself to more days of being trapped here.
“Hello?”
Arthur’s eyes widened when he heard a human-sounding voice resound within the den. A very familiar one at that. He crept along the wall. He had to make sure that this person was who he thought it was. He peeked his head around a pile of treasure to see a figure standing in the center of the room. Sure enough, Arthur recognized the figure as Alfred. The knight had his armor on and sword drawn. But the man was not in a defensive position. He wondered why Alfred was by himself.
“Anyone here?” Alfred looked around the den once more.
Tentatively, Arthur stepped out from his hiding place. His voice was softer than he intended for it to be as he called out to the knight. “Alfred?”
“Artie!” Alfred dropped his sword, which landed with a loud clang. He ran directly for Arthur, engulfing the prince in one of his many hugs. “I’ve finally found you.” He sobbed with relief.
Arthur ignored the atrocious nickname and embraced Alfred back. “It’s about time too. I wondered if you’d ever get here.” He forced his blush to stay hidden.
The two stood in each other’s arms for a few minutes. Neither of them wanted to lose the other by letting go. When it settled on both of them that yes, this was real, they pulled apart.
“Are you hurt anywhere? That dragon didn’t do anything, did it?” Alfred looked into Arthur’s eyes with a bit of concern.
“No. The dragon kept me in good health during my stay here.”
“That’s a relief.”
“Anyway, why are you alone?”
Alfred had a sheepish expression on his face upon hearing the question. He rubbed the back of his neck. “Well…I may have defied the king to come here.”
“What did you do this time?” Arthur barely held back the annoyance in his voice.
“I left the castle a few hours after the dragon took you. The king wanted to discuss strategy and all of that with the knights. He seemed like he wanted to take his time trying to get you back. I couldn’t wait for the king to make his decision. So I may have just up and left the castle instead of staying like I was supposed to.” Alfred’s voice trailed off at the end.
“My father had every right to be cautious. And you just blew all of that into the wind.” Arthur huffed. Then he sighed. “But also knowing my father, he would take forever to come up with a plan to get me back. You would not have found me today if you obeyed his orders.”
“My point exactly. You’ve been here for 10 days, Artie. Who knows how much longer you would be here if I listened to the king.”
Arthur felt touched. He could grasp just how dedicated Alfred was to ensure that the made it back safely. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but thank you, Alfred, for going against my father.”
The knight grinned. “You needed a hero sooner rather than later. Come on, let’s get out of here.”
They stepped out of the den together. Alfred turned right, towards a set of stairs that were embedded in the mountain wall.
“Those stairs weren’t there before.” Arthur blinked a few times to make sure that the stairs were real.
“They weren’t. Until something happened within the mountain that caused them to show up a few minutes ago. And I bet that if they were there previously, you would have fled from here long ago.”
Arthur was able to connect the dots to when the stairs came to be. He followed Alfred down, one step at a time. “So you didn’t do anything to make them appear?”
“Not that I was aware of.”
The climb down wasn’t difficult. Although Arthur felt more out of breath than usual by the time they made it to the bottom.
Alfred noticed Arthur’s dilemma. “Are you okay there?”
“Just need to rest for a little bit.” The prince leaned back against a tree. He felt relief at feeling dirt and grass underneath his feet again. He took a few moments to adapt to being at a lower elevation. He hoped that falling on his back earlier didn’t do anything to his lungs without his knowledge.
“My horse isn’t too far from here. We can ride together if you wish.”
A few minutes later, they were riding Alfred’s horse together back towards the castle. Arthur sat in front, with Alfred holding the reins behind him.
Alfred broke the silence that had developed between them. “So what happened while you with the dragon?”
“Not much. I mainly was left sitting around the entire time.” He told Alfred about his findings in the den, which wasn’t much aside from the treasure.
“I did notice just how much the dragon was hoarding. It knew what it was doing.”
“Indeed.” Arthur’s mind reminded him about the discussions he had with the dragon about his supposed destiny. He didn’t want to think about it right now. “Did you see the dragon at all on the way?”
“Nope. But I’m not gonna complain. I was expecting to fight it in order to rescue you. But the dragon just not being there made everything easier. Now let’s hope that it doesn’t try to hunt us down on the way back.”
Arthur had a feeling that the dragon would not bother trying to get him back. But he didn’t say anything about it. Instead, he turned the conversation towards Alfred. “How was the journey getting to the mountain?”
“The first day or two was quite boring. As it was just traveling through lands within Noblia’s borders that get traversed during regular patrols. But then starting on the third day, things got interesting.”
Apparently, it would have taken Alfred 7 days to reach the mountain originally. But he had been forced to take a detour when a bad storm flooded the trail he was on. It took an entire day to get back on track. Two days after that, Alfred encountered bandits. He successfully fought them off, but not before getting wounded in the leg. He was forced to recover at a nearby village for two days before riding out again.
“I’m assuming that you managed to heal.”
“Mostly. The lady said I should have rested an additional day, but I didn’t want to wait any longer.”
Arthur only shook his head. Sometimes he wondered if Alfred’s dedication can go too far. But his heart still fluttered nonetheless of Alfred doing it for him. And him alone.
~~~
That night, the two stayed in the same village that Alfred had visited the day before. The innkeeper smiled at Alfred, recognizing him. “You found your friend. I’m glad.”
“I knew he wasn’t too far from here.” Alfred gave them one of his signature grins. He paid for a room and a bath to be brought up.
Arthur noted how the innkeeper didn’t seem to recognize him as a prince. It made sense, since they weren’t in Noblia. He remembered Alfred saying that he did cross kingdom borders. Now he saw that Alfred was noticeably lacking anything on his person that signaled he was a knight of Noblia. It was one of the many moments that showcased Alfred’s hidden intelligence under the guise of acting like an obnoxious git 95% of the time. And the intelligence was also one of the things he loved Alfred for.
Inside the room, Arthur looked around. It was small, with limited space to move around and not a lot of furniture. At least there was an attached bathroom for the chamber pot. Although he had mixed feelings when he realized that there was only one bed.
The prince was distracted from his musings from the noise of clattering metal. Alfred had started to remove his armor. The pieces were lazily put in a pile in the corner of the room; the source of the noise. He watched Alfred struggle a little with getting one metal piece off of his leg, which reminded him that Alfred was still technically injured. Before Arthur could say anything, inn workers showed up to their room to prepare the bath. He was left with sitting on the bed as he waited for them to finish.
“Perfect timing.” Alfred commented when the inn workers left. His chainmail was put with the rest of the armor. “No offense, Artie, but you stink worse than the stables when they haven’t been mucked in a while.”
“None taken.” He knew that he stunk like no tomorrow. “Although you should go first. You need to check on your leg.”
“That can wait. You’re more filthy.”
“Alfred. Get in the bath.”
“But-“
“That’s an order.”
Alfred caved and went into the bathroom. He took off his shirt with no problems. The trousers came off with more difficulty. The knight quietly hissed in pain as the cloth made friction with the bandages. “There’s bandages in my bag.”
Arthur scoured through the bag for the bandages. He found them quickly, along with a jar of cream. Both of them in hand, he approached Alfred, who was now only in his underwear. Although Arthur’s gaze immediately went to Alfred’s bandaged leg. He set the clean bandages and cream down on the counter. He went down on his knees to get better access to Alfred’s injury. His hand touched Alfred’s leg for a moment before the prince looked up at the knight.
Alfred gave a short nod, and that was the permission Arthur needed to carefully remove the old bandages. They weren’t red with blood, which was a good sign. Arthur held his breath as the last layer of bandages came off. The wound had healed a bit, but still needed treatment. It didn’t look as bad as Arthur thought it would be.
“It needed stitches. Hence why I had to rest.” Alfred said quietly. The stitches were small, but visible.
Alfred’s voice shook Arthur out of his stupor. “Do you need help cleaning it?”
“No. I can do that. And the cream. Although I would like help with the bandages afterwards.”
Arthur nodded. Now his eyes roamed across Alfred’s body. He wanted nothing more than to feel the warm skin with his fingers. Carress every muscle that laid underneath. His body against Alfred’s.
An awkward cough from Alfred brought Arthur back to reality. He looked up to see Alfred blushing. Soon he felt his own face heat up to match. “Right. Sorry. Uh. Just call me back, when you’re done.” He went back to sit on the bed while he waited for Alfred to finish cleaning himself.
A few minutes later, Alfred’s voice summoned Arthur back into the bathroom. Arthur had managed to calm himself down by then. This time, he didn’t blush when he looked at Alfred. The knight had on a different pair of underwear, but the same shirt from earlier. He sat on a stool next to the tub. The cream that Alfred had applied sat on his leg, shining in what little light there was in the room.
No words were spoken between them as Arthur applied clean bandages to Alfred’s leg. He wrapped them securely, but no too tight. When he was done, the extra bandages were set back on the counter.
“You should take a bath too.” Alfred said as he put his trousers back on. “While the water is still somewhat warm.”
Arthur didn’t care that the water had gotten cold. He was that desperate for a bath. He barely noticed Alfred leaving the room to give him some privacy as he undressed. It was only after that his private bits were covered by the water did Alfred put some clothes next to Arthur’s discarded ones. They would make do for the time being. His own were torn and too soiled to be worn again. He made quick work of scrubbing the dirt off of his body.
With his body clean and dressed in cleaner clothing, Arthur joined Alfred in the main room. He sat next to the knight on the bed. He was reminded of his earlier musing: there was only one bed, but two of them. Although the bed looked big enough to hold two people.
“I’ll sleep on the floor.” Alfred said as if he could read Arthur’s mind.
“I think we’ll both be able to fit. Not much different than sharing a tent.” And totally not because of his desire to feel Alfred’s body against his. They just needed to help each other stay warm. Nothing more.
“When you put it that way...”
The two of them tried to get comfortable next to each other in the same bed. It seemed like the tiniest of movements caused some part of their body to make contact with the other. It was a tight squeeze. Arthur was grateful that the dark hid the blush that resurfaced on his face. He tried to fall asleep, but slumber wouldn’t come to him so easily.
“Why did the dragon take you?” Apparently, Alfred was still awake too. “I don’t remember anything that Noblia did that would make the dragons angry.”
Arthur didn’t know if he should tell Alfred about the destiny thing yet. “Well, I am the crown prince. And there were no princesses to take instead.”
“I get that. But I think there’s more to it.” He sighed. “Dragons don’t take royals without a good reason.”
Arthur hummed in agreement. He was taken aback by suddenly feeling Alfred’s hand in his own. Holding hands with Alfred felt nicer than he thought it would be.
“I was terrified when the dragon snatched you up.” Alfred confessed. “And during the journey…I feared the possibility of never seeing you again. It hurt me to even consider that.”
The prince took a few seconds to gather the courage to say the thoughts plaguing his mind. “I’ll admit, after so many days of being in the den, I wondered if my father had actually done anything to try to rescue me.” He paused, smiling at Alfred in the dark. “But one thing kept me hope. If there was someone that would be willing to get me back, it would be you.”
“Thanks for having faith in me, Arthur.” Arthur could hear Alfred smiling with the sincerity of the gratitude.
“Even when you should have been resting, you continued to look for me. But I also couldn’t be more grateful for it.”
“I would do anything for you, and not only because I’m a knight serving his prince.”
Arthur felt that Alfred meant it. If singlehandedly rescuing him from the dragon wasn’t enough, then Arthur didn’t know what was. Alfred was too good for him. He squeezed Alfred’s hand. The dragon’s voice kept replaying in Arthur’s head, talking about his destiny. At the same time, his heartbeat picked up as the feelings he had for Alfred came back in full force. Maybe they were destined to be together in another way aside from bringing prosperity to Noblia? If he didn’t take the chance now, who knows when he would get another opportunity. “Alfred?”
“Yes?”
“There’s something I need to tell you.” When Alfred didn’t respond, Arthur took that as his cue to continue. “While trapped in the dragon’s den, I’ve had time to think. And I’ve come to realize that while it may not seem like it at times, I want to let you know that I’m grateful for all that you have done for me. From things you have done as a knight, but also as a friend.”
“About time I get a ‘thank you’ from your highness.” Alfred chuckled.
“There’s also another thing I want you to know.”
“Oh?”
Arthur swallowed as nervousness came upon him. He refused to let himself get scared out of this. “Being alone for so long…I’ve come to realize just how much you are in my life. I don’t know how different everything would be if you weren’t there.” The prince paused to gather his thoughts. “Basically, what I’m trying to say is…” He got frustrated with himself. Why couldn’t he just say what he was feeling? “I care a lot about you, Al. More than as a knight. And more than as a friend.” He cursed his voice for trailing off while saying the last sentence.
Alfred had turned himself so that he was facing Arthur. The prince could feel his breath on his face every time Alfred exhaled. “I feel the same about you. You’re more than a prince to me, Arthur.”
Arthur didn’t know who started it, but he was now kissing Alfred on the lips. The kiss was soft and gentle. It was as if they wanted to show the other just how much they cared for them. Arthur felt sparks inside of him as he kissed Alfred. Just as quickly as the kiss began, the kiss ended.
“In case it isn’t obvious by now. I love you, Artie.”
“I love you too, git.” Arthur smiled.
Now they did not mind the closeness to each other when it came to sharing the bed. They already began to cuddle. The burden of hiding his feelings for so long finally left Arthur’s shoulders. It was a bonus that those feelings were mutual.
The only thing left for Arthur to tell Alfred would be about what the dragon said about his—their—destiny. He was confident that Alfred was the knight mentioned in the legend. Somehow, he and Alfred will bring prosperity to Noblia. Arthur let out a silent yawn. The destiny conversation could wait until the morning. Either way, he would have to find the way to thank the dragon later for helping him truly realize how he felt with Alfred.
Maybe my destiny won’t be so bad after all. That was Arthur’s last thought as he fell asleep in Alfred’s arms.