It only took seconds for the foot steps to thunder past us. I watched Stone's head turn, following their path before snapping back towards the camp, silent as he waited for something. Then he gently eased off of me, his hands coming down to rest on my shoulders.

"Are you alright?" He whispered with concern.

I didn't like this tension between us, and I didn't have the energy to play any of his games. I wasn't going to keep switching from hot to cold, especially when he made me feel chilled all over. He didn't get to be concerned. He didn't get to make little comments and gestures towards me, then switch off and leave me alone. I was beginning to wonder if he even knew how to feel a regular emotion without slapping on a facade to cover it up. Couldn't he just turn on his act and stay that way? Selfish thief I could handle. Concerned and friendly was making my head spin.

"You delivered me to a monster! She tried to kill me." I declared. I shrugged his hands off of me and slapped at his chest, trying to put a large amount of space between us.

"Shut up." He growled low, sitting back, looking down at me in disbelief. "You left your coach. It's not like I invited you for tea!"

I scooted back from my place between his legs. "Oh no? If I recall someone came to 'fetch me for dinner'! Ring a bell?"

He ran a hand over his face, sighing softly against his palm. "I know. I had no idea something was going to happen. Until-"

"Until when?" I hissed, trying to move back more, but he caught my knees through my dress and pulled me closer, back into the bush, away from the trail that people would surely be traveling on. I felt on edge, and itched to get up and continue running. I hadn't escaped yet.

"Until, the Aunt's left the party to go see her." He muttered, passing his hand through his hair. "Then I knew something bad was happening."

"The Aunts?" I repeated.

"Three old ladies. About this big, and this wide." He said, giving exaggerated measurements with his hands to describe the women as short and fat. Which wasn't too far from the truth. "Wicked mean. Do some dark magic when they think no one is looking. Everyone they involve always ends up the same. 'Oh, so-and-so is missing? Must have moved to the village ten miles back'."

I nodded dumbly, because they had been there, doing dark magic indeed.

"The Baron tried to kill me." I said, and I sniffled, loudly, as fresh tears began to make their way down my cheeks. "Do you know what else she did?"

I felt him tense in response. His hand drifted to my neck and he rubbed my black hair between two fingers, his look hard to read. "It must have been bad, Princess."

I nodded, pouting my bottom lip. His arms opened and I forgot what I'd just cautioned myself from doing and curled into them, wiping my nose along his sleeve and burying my face against his chest. I was waiting for his arms to wrap around me, to comfort me with the concern that he'd just shown. When he gripped my shoulders and shoved me off, I landed back on my elbows and sniffed disbelievingly up at him.

"Woah, woah. That was not a cuddle invite, Princess." He said, discomfort in his tone. "That was a, 'hey, we should get going' gesture."

"How rude!" I scolded loudly, embarrassed, flinching from the volume and looking around to make sure no one had heard me before I redirected my anger towards him. "Have you no sense of chivalry? When a Princess is crying-"

"Then the thief should get her to suck it up and stop making noise because it's going to get them killed." He raised both eyebrows at me, and I huffed in response.

"You should be flattered that I'm even letting you near me!" I hissed, and when I tried to roll away this time, he scooted back and let me.

"You should be glad I don't turn you in to the Baron."

I froze on my knees and looked his way. All he offered me was a shrug, communicating, 'I don't know what you expect', before slipping quietly free from our hiding spot. I stumbled to my feet, my skirt catching on the bush. I bit my lip and tried to tug it, and whispered softly a foul word as I let go of my handfuls. Hot and cold.

"May I?" Stone said, bowing, surprising me. I nodded smugly, glad to see him making up for not comforting me as I turned away from my skirt. I was expecting to feel some tugging as he did his best to free me. I wasn't expecting him to draw a knife and slice through the back of my gown. He pulled it from me and let the bush have it before spinning me around and leading me through the forest in practically nothing. My under clothes were made from dainty white material, and left me more exposed than I'd ever been outside of my bathing chamber before.

"My dress-"

"Don't yell."

"How dare youuu-"

"Shush. It would only slow us down more in the long run."

"My. Dress."

"Princess." He grabbed me suddenly, pointing around me with his other hand, and I flinched at how warm his fingers were through my shift and against my arm. I had been touched many times before in my life by a man. Baileywick adjusting my skirts, Daddy hugging me, even noblemen who became handsy on the dance floor.

I felt real heat settle on my cheeks. I knew it wasn't him. Selfish brute. No. It was just being touched without layers of silk and velvet that made me feel embarrassed. Heated. Maybe it was the warm summer night?

I realized I was staring at his chin, and the scruff there, and I recovered by squinting my eyes and looking where his finger pointed to. A small structure made from sticks and twigs rested against a tall tree, housing three horses who stood quietly in the dark.

"What is that?" I asked, and he looked down at me incredulously. His hand dropped from my side, and leading with his shoulder, he pushed past me.

"The stable. Where horses are kept."

"I know what a stable is." I growled, following after him, wishing I still had my shoes. "What's your point? I can't drive a carriage."

His hand pressed to his forehead and smoothed down his face. "We.. we're not taking a carriage."

"Then what am I supposed to ride in?" I asked, scrunching my nose up at him in disdain. How simple could he be?

Stone didn't respond with more than a huff of agitation before turning. He began to hunch down as we skirted the tents on the far edge of the camp, and I copied him. I must have looked ridiculous. No shoes, no dress, sneaking around after a thief who still smelled like alcohol and dirt. For a second I feared he was leading me back into danger, because he paused once to look around, then sped away. I came to a stop behind a dark tent, trembling and alone.

What if this was a trap?

I took a deep breath to steady myself. Stone was a selfish ruffian. But he wouldn't let me die this way. Would he? No. I shook my head and fisted my hands, digging my nails into my palms, trying to keep my head clear by sheer force of will.

When he came around the corner, leading a plain brown mare by her reins, I clapped excitedly. He waved his hand at me angrily before looking over his shoulder to check that nobody had heard. As he got closer he motioned for me to come forward.

"Stop making noise." He hissed into my ear before grabbing my hips and flinging me up and into the horse's saddle.

"Oh!" I cried, landing on my stomach, my rump in the air as my hands scrambled to find something to pull myself up on. I ended up with a handful of mane, and the horse let out a loud whiny in protest.

"Hey! What was that?"

I froze, tilting up, looking past the black hair that hung in my face. Two men were right at the lean-to that served as the camp's stables, and now up on the saddle they had a clear vision of me. I couldn't have screamed even if I wanted to.

"Go! Go!" Stone shouted, now taking hold of my hips and situating me. He attempted to swing up behind me but fell back, right as the two men came running around the corner with their blades drawn.

"Get up, damn you!" He growled, smacking my backside.

"I'm trying!" I snapped, flustered by the contact. I managed to right myself and turned at the clang of metal against metal. Stone was moving easily through the two. Slashing at one while swinging his fist at the other. When their blades met the sound rang through the air, and I dreaded the possible arrival of more men. The whole fight looked sloppy and was different from the tournament battles I was used to watching. I tried to turn the horse around with a meek tug, but she wouldn't move, and finally I gave the reins a yank, and she snorted and spun the other way. Stone was waving his hand at me, his eyes catching mine every time he'd dodge or turn.

I took the waving as a sign and dug my heels in, finally getting the mare to move.

"I'll never forget your sacrifice, Stone!" I called over my shoulder, and he punched one of the men clear in the nose, the cracking sound sickening. He turned and began running after me.

"What? No! Wait for me!" He yelled. The second thief had doubled back through the tents to yell for more help. Stone caught up to me quickly and grabbed the reins before smoothly mounting behind me. His arms came around me and he flicked them, clenching his legs. The horse jolted under us and began to take off through the woods.

"You were going to leave me?" He asked angrily, his mouth close to my ear.

I gripped the saddle firmly with both hands and said confidently, "Of course! You were going to stay and fight so I could escape."

His forehead suddenly dropped onto my shoulder in exasperation and I shrugged him off with a hiss of disgust.

"Pay attention to where we're going!"

"You're trying to get me killed." He groaned. I settled back some, choosing not to answer. As long as I made it home alive, I told myself, it didn't really matter. I was trusting him to guide us through the darkness. He maneuvered us onto what felt more like a path, and we barreled through the trees, neither one of us pointing out that the sounds of movement through the forest behind us was growing.


Thank you to everyone who reads and reviews. =)