Disclaimer: As always I own nothing but the original characters and the situations all characters find themselves in. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoy and let me know what you think!

Note: There will be no updates next week, I'll be on vacation.

Trees and Towers

Eggsy was furious. Put his fist through a wall, beat the shit out of anyone who messed with him, multiple swear words passing his lips every couple of minutes furious. And when he got his hands on one Harry Hart Eggsy was going to have plenty to say to the man about the way he'd left things. The way he'd just said that he'd fix things when he got back and then had left him at his house while he went off on his stupid mission. Left, after Eggsy had failed to become a Kingsman after refusing to stand by and watch his dog be killed. And okay, J.B. wouldn't have really died, it had all been a spell to just make him think the dog's life was at risk, but he hadn't known that and who in their right fucking mind would just stand by and let his dog be murdered in front of him?

Harry had, apparently, and then had stuff poor Mr. Pickles as insult to the injury.

If they'd just been student and teacher Eggsy would have told Harry to go fuck himself and his offer to 'fix' things, but he'd thought they were on their way to becoming more than that, which was why he was so fucking angry at the moment.

It was also why he'd borrowed a horse from a friend, and had decided to undertake the journey across the land to confront Harry about them. Cause as much as it hurt, the fact that he'd failed to get into Kingsman, the pain of that failure was nothing in comparison to the wounds his fight with Harry had left him with. He loved Harry, there wasn't a doubt in Eggsy's mind now, and he wasn't about to wait around, twiddling his thumbs while he waited to find out just how Harry felt about him.

Common sense said that he was mental for doing this, he was aware, but Eggsy was a man on a mission. Which was why, when his horse finally broke through the trees, it was with the mindset that he was going to tie Harry to one of the forest giants around the property if necessary.

But as he surveyed the grounds in front of him, wanting to make sure that he'd arrived at his destination, Eggsy could feel his rage ebb away a little as he caught sight of a small group of people standing around in front of the simple wooden building Harry should currently be visiting. Even from his current position Eggsy was fairly sure he recognized two of the individuals. The clothes of the man, and the metal legs of the woman were what tipped him off and had a cold chill running down his spine.

The people Harry thought were responsible for the death of a Kingsman. Who were responsible for nearly blowing his man up before. And they were just standing there, probably waiting for Harry to leave so that they could kill him.

Over his dead body.

Sliding off his horse's back, Eggsy tied the reins to a branch and then using the trees and bushes between him and his target got himself into a position where the bad guys couldn't see him before he ran full out towards the building where several horses were going a little nuts at their hitching posts, as though they knew bad things were going to happen.

Spotting a whip attached to a saddle, he hadn't come well-armed and every little advantage might help, Eggsy retrieved that and then rushed over to the nearest window, his eyes going huge and his jaw dropping at the madness in front of him.

The people in the building had lost it. Completely and totally lost it. They were screeching and carrying on like rabid animals, ripping into everyone in their vicinity without hesitation or a hint of remorse. The dirt floor was actually littered with bodies, and in the middle of the fray was Harry.

Harry wasn't making any sounds that Eggsy could hear through the glass, but he was killing people. He was bleeding and his expression was just as wild as the others as he moved from victim to victim. Harry. His Harry. Destroying everyone in his path like some monster or dark creature from a nightmare. An unstoppable killing machine.

Slapping his hand over his mouth as he fought his gag reflex while blood, limbs, and brain matter continued to fly in front of him, it took longer than it should have for Eggsy to remember the people waiting to pounce of Harry, and the fact that something had to be compelling these people to act like this. They must be bespelled or something, and as long as Harry was in the equation everyone else in that room was going to die. They wouldn't be a match for him.

White hot fury coursing through him as he realized what was being done to Harry, what the man would have to live with now, Eggsy forgot about being sick and scared. None of that mattered.

Forcing open the window Eggsy boosted himself up and swung himself inside the building, just barely managing to avoid being impaled with what he thought was the remains of Harry's umbrella. Ironic.

Taking stock of the room in a flash Eggsy ran at Harry, knowing that the man wouldn't be stopped by him when he saw the predatory intent when their eyes locked.

Refusing to back down Eggsy ducked under the blow Harry aimed at him, Eggsy using the ring he'd 'borrowed' from the training center to deliver an electric shock to incapacitate the other man before Harry killed him. The jolt of it was enough to seize the man's body up long enough that Eggsy could throw his mentor over his shoulder, Eggsy then running from their would be attackers as he let the whip he still carried unravel. Praying for deliverance, he just had the one shot, Eggsy sent the end of the whip flying up to wrap itself around a rafter, using it to sail over towards the wall and then push off that, flipping them around to send them flying into the branches of the sacred tree the worshippers had built the building around.

Leaving Harry in the branches Eggsy hopped back down to knock unconscious those still fighting, no easy task, but eventually he was the last man standing with multiple cuts, bruises, and a couple cracked bones to show for it.

Climbing up the tree to get back to Harry once he'd done what he could for those still living, Eggsy wasn't surprised or pleased to find Harry conscious, though obviously still dazed and out of it as he struggled to get away from Eggsy and return to the ground floor.

Not about to let him, and at his wits end as to how he could help Harry, Eggsy's thoughts frantically turned to the lessons he'd been given about potions and bespelled people while he climbed down the tree as Harry attempted to do the same, Eggsy grateful for the fact that the man was obviously not an experienced tree climber.

He didn't have a wizard on hand to help Harry, and Eggsy doubted that the people outside would just hand over the antidote for this, if there even was one. And call him crazy, but Eggsy figured that they'd kill him on sight. And while he had faith in his own abilities, and it went without saying he wanted to kill them all, Eggsy knew he couldn't risk it anyway because he couldn't take Harry with him, and he certainly wasn't about to leave the love of his life in here either.

Oh.

Eyes widening as a possibility occurred to him, an old wives tale that he'd heard about in countless stories when he was a boy and his mum had still read to him, Eggsy looked into Harry's blank stare as he considered for a moment the pros and cons of putting his trust in the one thing that was supposed to be stronger than any man made magic, before saying to hell with it.

Launching himself forward Eggsy cupped Harry's face and pressed their lips together while Harry's fingers wrapped around his throat, the man obviously intending to choke the life out of him.

And they did, for a few very scary couple of heartbeats, and then Harry's fingers suddenly eased their grip, Eggsy breaking off the kiss and pulling back a little to see Harry blinking back at him, like he was struggling to wake up from a very deep sleep.

"Harry? Harry, can a hear me?"

"Eggsy?"

"Yeah. Yeah, it's Eggsy." And apparently the myth about the power of true love's kiss wasn't an old wives tale after all. Thank heavens.

Wrapping his fingers around Harry's wrist Eggsy brought the man's hand up and then pressed his other hands against it, lining their fingers up for a moment before linking their fingers in a tight grip. "Ya with me, Harry?"

"Yes. I…what happened? I was in a jungle, being attacked by countless ape like creatures and then…what are you doing here? Where are we?"

"I don't know. But we gotta get out of here now."

)

Sitting in the cold, unhospitable room he'd been given in the tower, Harry contemplated his impending death with cool resignation. He knew that his fellow Kingsmen would attempt to change the king's mind about executing him, but Harry didn't hold out hope that Arthur would change his mind. The old man was convinced that Harry had had a psychotic breakdown, which had led to him murdering a whole building full of peasants. And in truth Harry hadn't really been in any condition to argue his case when Eggsy had gotten them back to their kingdom. He still couldn't wrap his mind around what had happened, what he'd done, and frankly Harry feared closing his eyes and trying to sleep, knowing that the nightmare of what he'd done was just waiting to haunt him.

Logically he knew he had been bespelled, though he had no idea how Eggsy had managed to remove the spell given that the boy had no experience or training in that sort of thing. He'd faded in and out of consciousness during the trip home due to blood loss, and when he'd been awake he'd concentrated on other things, not wanting to think about what had happened.

If he was given the chance, and he prayed that he would, Harry wouldn't ask for his own release, but beg instead that the king spare Eggsy. Harry knew that the boy had been arrested along with him, Merlin had informed him of the boy's fate, and the idea that his boy might be jailed or even executed when Eggsy had done nothing but save him and the few survivors of the massacre…

He would let no harm come to his boy. He didn't know how but he'd find a way.

He wasn't going to fail to protect Eggsy on top of everything else.

A scrapping noise interrupting his thoughts, Harry got to his feet and braced to defend himself as he watched as one of the rectangle shaped stones that made up his floor slowly rose up and then tipped backwards, a yellow mage light flying up to illuminate the room as a very familiar head and then shoulders popped into view.

The boy's back to him, Harry had just opened his mouth to say Eggsy's name when the boy in question twisted around to look in his direction, a grin on his bruised face.

"Ah, thought I heard someone up here." With his usual grace Eggsy pulled himself up and then started dusting off his clothes, which certainly looked the worse for wear. "I have to say that being held prisoner here rather bites the dust, Harry. Are there rats in here?" Eggsy looked around for them. "Not that the scare me or nothing, cause we got plenty of them in my neighborhood, but I hate when they jump out at you."

Struck dumb, Harry could do nothing more to shake his head, having mercifully not spotted a single rat in his cell yet. If he lived he'd have to compliment housekeeping and the castle cats for their excellent work there.

"So you ready to get the hell out of here, then? The king's been bespelled by that Valentine bastard, that's the real reason he locked you up in here. I heard all about it from Princess Tilde; the bastard locked her up and plans to force her to marry his son tomorrow. Real nice bird, she offered me a kiss and more if I got her out of her cell." The eyebrow wiggling Eggsy treated him to made it clear just what kind of reward the princess had offered his boy.

The mental images he was getting were enough to jolt Harry into recovering his words. "A gentleman does not demand favors from damsels in distress, Eggsy."

"Well to be fair all I asked for was the kiss. She offered the rest."

"I see." And so his day just got that much worse, Harry acknowledged, accepting the crippling pain that was the news that he'd destroyed any chance of happiness with Eggsy the day before. Between the harsh words they'd spoken to each other and what Eggsy had seen him do at that temple…

"I accepted the kiss, I mean who wouldn't want to be able to brag about getting a kiss from a real princess, but I told her I had to regretfully decline the rest. I turned her over to Roxy before comin to find ya. After I'd briefed Merlin and her on what was goin on of course."

"You…you declined." Harry repeated, his stupid heart shuddering with the faint hope he couldn't seem to extinguish where Eggsy was concerned.

"Yeah. And we can talk about why after we save the kingdom and all that shite. It's you, me, Roxy, and Merlin at the moment. He says there's no telling who's under Valentine's control and who ain't." A worried look in his direction. "I know you ain't up to it, really, so stay close ta me, okay?"

Inclining his head Harry took a controlling breath and then stated that they better get going, watching Eggsy hop back down the hole he'd come up through earlier.

Harry didn't protest when Eggsy's hands locked onto his waist when he carefully lowered himself down after the boy. He was well aware of his barely treated injuries, and given the battle ahead Harry knew he needed to be as careful for as long as possible. Eggsy's life might depend upon it.

Being touched by Eggsy was certainly not a hardship either.

Together they headed down the tower steps once the reached it, it occurring to Harry as he watched Eggsy hurry down the steps that the boy didn't even have any obligation to do what he was doing. The boy wasn't a part of Kingsman or even the guard, had no sworn duty to serve and protect the way the rest of them did. Eggsy actually had every reason to tell them that they were on their own. But no, here his boy was, doing what was right and just. Proving again that he was Kingsman material, just as Harry had known him to be.

It was those thoughts that reminded Harry of the harsh words that had been spoken between them the last time they'd conversed before he'd left for the mission from hell. He'd said some horrible things to Eggsy, and owed the man both an apology and thanks for once again saving his life.

And given that he might end up dead before dawn rose…Harry reached out to take Eggsy's hand as they ran down a hallway, the boy looking over at him questioningly.

"Eggsy, I'm so very sorry for the harsh things that I said after your Kingsman training was over. I was upset that you didn't get in, but I shouldn't have taken that out on you. You deserved to get in, and I'm…I shouldn't have made you think that I thought less of you for failing that final test. That you would put the welfare of your pet over something we both know you wanted more than anything…I should have been proud that you have such a loyal and true heart."

Looking shocked and then cautiously hopeful, Eggsy smiled at him a little even as he asked him if he was just saying that because they might end up very dead before the night was over.

"I mean it regardless of our ultimate fate."

A wider smile. "Good. I'm sorry for the shite I said ta ya too."

Both of them grinning at each other like idiots, no more words said as they conserved their energy for the fight ahead.

As planned the new Lancelot and Merlin were waiting for them, both armed and ready to do battle.

"The odds are the worst we've ever had." Merlin stated bluntly when they came to a stop in front of his friend, the older man aiming a dark look in Eggsy's direction. "And since Eggsy won't tell me how the hell he managed to wake you up from the spell-"

"I told ya, it won't work on no one else!"

"And I told you that you don't have enough knowledge about spells and potions to know that!"

The two glaring at each other fiercely, Harry was out to sea about why Eggsy wouldn't want to tell Merlin what he'd done while Roxy smirked and rolled her eyes at the two.

Picking up on that Harry asked her if she knew what Eggsy had done given her reaction.

"Well that should be obvious, Sir." When Merlin and Harry gave her questioning looks while Eggsy went pink cheeked, the girl gave them a patient look. "Like Merlin said Eggsy doesn't have more than a basic understanding of spells, and we already know that whatever Valentine has cooked up is so advanced that even the most advanced magical shields were penetrated. There's only one power at Eggsy's disposal that could override that spell. A power that can only work on one person, and one person only."

It took them a moment, but Harry could see his own realization echoed on Merlin's face as they both turned to look in the direction of the furiously blushing boy beside them.

True Love's Kiss

"Eggsy."

"Ah, there you are. I was thinking I was gonna have to go up to that nasty tower to get you two. Thanks for sparing me that!"

And that was all the warning Valentine gave as he ordered his men to kill the Kingsman they'd stumbled across.