A tired sigh escaped Prince Conifer as he shifted in his scratchy ropes. Once again, he’d gone on a normal outing. And once again, he’d been chloroformed, tied up, and blindfolded in a dark room. At this point, he didn’t even scream. Didn’t cry like he did when he was eight, the first time he’d been held for ransom. He just tilted his head back against the spine of the uncomfortable chair and waited. In a matter of minutes, he heard a phone ringing, and someone picked it up. He recognized the voice—the kidnapper’s voice. There really wasn’t any resentment left in him; and it wasn’t like he didn’t understand. It was all about money—whether to feed their families or buy luxury clothing, it didn’t matter. That was all it ever was. 

       “Hello? Who is this?” the kidnapper spoke into the telephone with a rough voice. The other line rambled for a few moments. The criminal laughed smugly. “Hell yeah. Send it over to Canopy Street.” They didn’t wait for more words before they set the phone down with a clatter. Connie stayed still. He heard footsteps by his side, then felt the rope loosen to fall completely. The prince didn’t stand up immediately, unsure if this was some sort of sick test. He heard the kidnapper kneel in front of him. “Well, princey. You’re free to go,” they said to him, their warm breath uncomfortable on his face. Without a word, Connie stood up. His hands were still tied behind his back, even though they’d untied the rest of him. The kidnapper clapped their hands together. “Cobra, take him over to Canopy. We just got ourselves a successful trade.” Once again, the prince was sold like an exotic pet, and his family clustered around him, sobbing, as they ‘thought they’d lost their baby boy forever’. No, you haven’t. Not for the hundredth time. Why are you even surprised, anymore? Connie thought but didn’t say. Later he lay back on his bed, reading a biography on someone the villagers referred to as the “Father of Alchemy”.

      “Yeah, right…” the prince muttered to himself, a snicker in the back of his throat. There was a knock at his bedroom door. “Come in,” Connie called. His mother, Queen Sequoia, walked in. The warm light in his room illuminated her fair skin and made her cunning green eyes—something Connie’d gotten from her—shine brightly. He gave her a polite smile but nothing more. “Hi, Mom,” he mumbled, eyes still fixated on the novel in his hands. Sequoia smiled softly, walking over to her son’s bed. She sat on the edge, her mint-colored dress splaying over the blankets quilted by Granny Maple.

     “Good evening, Connie. I see you’re actually reading instead of plotting for once,” she laughed, stroking his brown hair. “I won’t lie. I thought you were actually going to do it this time.” Connie let the book fall on his chest as he gazed at the ceiling. Soon. Soon, he would. His mother left the room, finally, though he pondered a long while before he drifted into slumber.  The next morning, he ate breakfast in the palace dining hall like normal, his father ruffling his hair as he would on the average day. Though only Connie, and perhaps his mother, knew it would be anything but.  Clouds drifted over the afternoon horizon with the breathy promise of rain when he went out for another “outing”. His family insisted he bring guards and a carriage, but the prince refused and only carried his leather bag. “I’ll be back by sunset,” he reassured them; though he glanced at his mother and gave her a slight nod. She simply smiled knowingly. As expected, the moment he passed the sign for Grove Avenue, someone snuck behind him and pressed a rag around his mouth and nose. He woke up in a dark room again. The criminals had already gagged him (though it was likely he wouldn’t have spoken anyways), but he had no blindfold. A figure stalked out of the shadows. He didn’t seem to bother with hiding his appearance like the others. His thin, dark hair fell just below the nape of his neck, and his brown eyes glinted with greed.

      “Well, ‘Conifer’… It’s a fine afternoon. Happy you’re gonna, you know, do something for your people, finally? Get us a fat wad of cash?” he laughed, striding over to Connie’s chair leisurely. The prince looked up at him with indifference. The dark-haired man gestured sharply and another, burlier man stepped out from the shadows. “Hey, Gus. Take off the gag; it’s not like he’s gonna bite me or nothin’, heh,” the first kidnapper ordered, followed by a “‘kay, Mercury…” from ‘Gus’. He promptly untied the gag on Connie’s mouth. The prince flexed his jaw but didn’t say anything for a moment. ‘Mercury’ stepped forward with a slow grin, before his hand shot out and grabbed Connie’s hair. He pulled the prince’s head back, his face inches away.

      “Alright, little princess, here’s what you’re gonna do—“

      “Stop,” Connie suddenly interrupted. His breath hissed through his teeth, his heart pounding. He wasn’t ready. But when would he ever be? “I can make a deal with you.”

     Mercury stared at him for a moment, looking both offended and surprised. Then intrigued. He pulled a chair from the side of the room and sat down in front of Connie. He leaned forward with his elbows on his knees. “Hahaha… Well, well, well. And the others ‘round this area say you’re the quiet one. But you have my interest piqued. What’s a ‘deal’ to a prince?”

      “Take me out of the kingdom. Make them think I really got kidnapped and that you’re going to… export me or something.”

      Mercury raised an eyebrow. “What, and get mauled by the royal family? Yeah, right. At least I’d just get arrested if I got caught selling you here—”

      “I’ll pay you a hundred-fifty percent.”

       It was the slightest widening of Mercury’s eyes. That was all Connie needed to see. The criminal let go of his hair slowly, and Connie leaned forward, his voice turning conspiratorial. “Two. Hundred. Percent. Of whatever your original ransom fee was,” he enunciated, his eyes looking straight into Mercury’s. The kidnapper’s eyes darted away. It took him a moment of careful thought before he clicked his tongue.

      “Fine. Where the hell are you trying to go, anyways?” he jeered.

      “I don’t know. Anywhere. Take me anywhere, but do it quickly and quietly,” Connie hissed.

       “Yeah? What, finally sick of your illustrious, grandiose life of royalty? Trying to go on a journey? Romantic getaway with your kidnapper?” snarked Mercury. That earned a hard glare from Connie. Mercury shuddered and looked away again. “Don’t… look at me like that. Jeez, I’ll take the deal.” A pleased look slipped onto Connie’s face. Gus untied the prince carefully with a weary sigh. Stretching his arms, Connie stood and smiled politely at Mercury.

      “Shall we go, then? I already have a cloak in my bag; wherever you put it.”

       “Uh… sure.” And so they departed. As expected, Mercury knew much about the streets. Connie had only learned as much as he could through books and distant observation. He’d never made it this far into the city alone, and whenever he went with his family, his mother, father, and sister (and, you know, not to mention the actual guards) would all cluster around him like greyhounds. Connie held his kingdom of Arvum close to his heart. He was ashamed he didn’t know it well on a personal level. He, clad in his cheap cloak and usual stoic expression, followed Mercury outside of the castle city. The prince paused where stone bricks transitioned to gravel. From here on were just dirt roads, horse-drawn carriages, and travelers from other kingdoms. Mercury looked back at him and raised an eyebrow. “Hurry up,” he nagged, kicking a pebble with his boot. Connie looked up at him for a moment, almost finding comfort in having someone—even a person like Mercury—there. Then he breathed deeply and moved on. After nearly half a day of travel, they reached another city. The moon was glowing at its peak in the night sky. The air smelled faintly of salt. Crickets chirped from behind their blades of grass, and Mercury, who had previously gotten rid of his black jacket and hood, squinted at the horizon. “Did we seriously end up in Anemona?” he muttered under his breath. Connie wasn’t paying attention. His eyes lingered on the sparkling ocean that spanned out before him, his feet planted in the grass. Mercury seemed to catch the look in his eyes. Tentatively, he stepped next to Connie. “…Why are you staring like that? It’s just the big ol’ blue,” he laughed. Connie was quiet for a moment. For that moment, his shoulders seemed looser, his eyebrows weren’t so furrowed, his eyes weren’t so dark. It was like the weight of the world was lifted off his shoulders for just a little while.

      “I’ve only ever seen the ocean in books,” he whispered, voice filled with an uncharacteristic awe. He turned to the brown-eyed man and actually grinned. “Isn’t it beautiful, Mercury?” The man blinked at the prince. Looking back at the ocean, he tilted his head as if to look at it from a different perspective.

     “Yeah, I guess it is.” Yet their peace was not long-lived. Somewhere off in the distance, Connie heard something… a howl? A scream?

      No, it was a horn.

      And the galloping of hooves.

      Connie felt Mercury shaking his arm and heard him yelling, but he stood there frozen. How had they already found them? What had he done wrong? He’d been planning this for months. But he… failed. Everything felt like a blur as King Willow grabbed Mercury and knocked him on the side of the head, rendering him unconscious in one blow. Then the guards slung him over the back of a horse carelessly, as if he were some worthless cargo. Connie was wrapped in a blanket and put onto a saddle behind his father. The prince started crying halfway through the ride home as what had happened truly sank in. I’m a failure, he repeated to himself silently. When the horses reached the castle of Arvum, the soldiers escorted Connie back into the castle. His sister, mother, and some other relatives had all been waiting for him, looking exhausted. Connie paid them no mind, dodging their relieved hugs, and trudged up to his room. His mom visited him later that night. He was curled up on his bed, face pressed into a silk pillow. The king followed the queen in, not long after, and they both sat on either side of his bed. They glanced at each other before trying to console him. The king leaned forward with a fiery look in his eyes. “I swear, Conifer, I’ll make that horrible man pay for what he did. Nobody’s ever had the guts to actually take you away… And I’ll make sure nobody else does again,” his father reassured him. A laugh nearly bubbled in Connie’s chest. Not because it was funny, but because it was so misplaced. “Seriously, Connie! Why are you laughing?! I’ll put him in the stocks! Embarrass him out of his mind!” his father bellowed, punching his son in the shoulder lightly. Connie sighed and glanced at his mom. She smiled with solace, knowing that his plan failed. The king still rambled on. “I swear, I’ll—”

      “Dad!” Connie interrupted, grabbing his arm. A look of surprise flashed across Willow’s face, but he calmed himself down and listened. “Dad, I’m—It wasn’t him. I was the one who formulated all this. I’m tired of not being safe. Our people are tired of not being safe in their own streets. I just… I just thought that maybe if you thought I wouldn’t come back for once, you might actually do something. But you just—go on a manhunt?” His father looked hurt. But Connie had to do this now. If Plan A didn’t work… He straightened himself out. “Father, I’m sorry. But I’ve made a… decision.” Even his mother raised an eyebrow at him. The words nearly stuck to the walls of his throat, but he forced them out. “I would like to take my place on the throne. Early,” the prince declared.

      …

      Mercury slowly awoke on a marble floor, his head pounding. “Ugh… What the hell…” he slurred, rubbing his temples. He nearly jumped when he saw Prince Conifer crouching in front of him. Waiting for him. Why would a prince even be paying attention to someone like him? “Uh… Hello, prince. Thought I’d be in, uh… prison,” he laughed nervously, scratching the back of his head.

      “Yes, ah… Good morning, Mercury. You’re in my room. You have been… pardoned for your actions.”

      ”Huh? Oh. Great?”

      “In matters of your… payment,” the prince started, reaching into the pocket of his white coat, “I, ah—” he started, fishing for something. 

      “Wait, wait, you already pardoned me, ha, you don’t need to pay me—”

      “—I can’t pay you. Not with money, at least,” Connie sighed, eyes avoiding Mercury’s. The former criminal’s gut churned… for some reason.

      “Am I supposed to ask why not or something? Did the royal bank get robbed? Because I swear it wasn’t me.” Connie gave him an annoyed look.

      “No, no. Just listen to me for a moment.”

       “Okay.”

       “I need another favor. It will benefit me, the kingdom, and perhaps even yourself if you do it right. Great benefits. Wonderful, splendid benefits.”

      “…Uh huh. You’re scaring me, princess.”

      The prince pulled out a rectangular box, lined with golden velvet. Hands shaking just enough to be noticeable, he opened it. Inside was a jade pendant decorated with leaves and flowers, on a chain braided with the finest of platinum. Connie sighed and held it out to Mercury. The kidnapper looked at it with confusion before his heart stopped. Before he realized what type of traditional jewelry that was. His eyes met the prince’s with horror. “Uh, please just—listen. I need a spouse. And I believe that a prince’s… hand in marriage is worth more than a couple grand,” Connie concluded with a sheepish grin.Mercury’s jaw dropped to the floor.

       “WHAT?!”