Being stranded alone in the middle of the woods was never a good thing. Being stranded alone in the middle of the woods while wearing a large ball gown, three-inch heels, and a corset was even worse.

I sighed, standing up and brushing the dirt off my dress as well as I could. After glancing around for immediate danger - whatever made that noise was still out there - I turned around and made my way back in the direction I had come, crown in hand. Of course, without a horse, it would take much longer to return to the castle.

Not even two minutes later, I heard footsteps behind me. I whirled around, dropping my crown, and was greeted by a shadowed figure that looked to be around six feet tall. Once the person realized I had spotted them, they rushed forward. I stepped back, hiking up my skirt in an attempt to find my dagger, but only succeeded in tripping over a root on the ground and landing on my back. I scrambled back, trying to get up, but the anonymous person stepped on my dress, restricting me.

I grumbled and yanked the fabric back, causing a large tear. I stood up and ran away, screaming for help, but the person was much faster than me, especially seeing as I was in heels and had trouble breathing. They wrapped their arms around me and pulled me back.

"Stop!" I shouted, struggling in their hold. "Leave me be! Do you know who I am?"

I heard a deep chuckle. "Why indeed, I do," the person, apparently a man, said.

"If you're going to kill me, please do it quickly," I muttered.

His grip loosened and I spun around in his arms. He was wearing a mask that only revealed his eyes and lips. He gripped my wrists behind my back and wrenched my crown out of my hand.

"What makes you think I'm going to kill you?" he asked.

I rolled my eyes, looking into his surprisingly green ones. "I'm a princess, you're a creepy guy in the middle of the woods. Isn't that what always happens next?"

His pink lips curled up into a smirk. "Try not to expect the expected, love. Boss wants you alive."

I scrunched up my face. "Don't call me that," I scolded, before switching gears. "Who's your boss?"

"You'll find out," he drawled. "Do me a favor and turn back around. I would like to do the least amount of manhandling possible."

I scoffed and did a one-eighty. He loosely tied a piece of rope around my wrists, barely restraining them. He slipped my crown into a shoulder bag he was carrying. I kept those facts in mind as he held the crook of my arm and guided me deeper into the woods.

We walked mostly in silence, although my heavy breathing could be heard. Ten minutes hadn't even passed and I was huffing like an asthmatic.

"You're either very nervous or have anger issues," my captor commented.

I rolled my eyes. "Neither."

"Then what's the deal with the dog panting?"

"Stupid corset," I mumbled. "I don't usually wear them, but today was a special occasion."

"How so?" he asked.

I couldn't tell if he was being sarcastic or not, so I answered, "It's my eighteenth birthday."

The man winked at me. "Happy birthday, Princess."

"Oh, shut up," I hissed, elbowing him in the side.

He must have not expected it because he careened to the right, flailing his arms out for something to keep steady. Sadly, I was the nearest object, and he sent me flying to the ground with him.

We landed on the hard ground, half on top of each other. I felt a rock scratch my knees and my dagger embed itself in my thigh.

I screeched and my captor gave me a bizarre look. "What is your deal? It was just a small fall."

Tears flooded my eyes and I rolled to the side. Blood was sprouting through my dress from my wound.

The man scanned me before focussing on the wound spot. "What on earth..."

He lifted my dress to reveal my legs. I was in too much pain to do anything about it. My knees were red and scratched up, and blood was flowing from my right thigh.

The man's green eyes widened. "You have got to be kidding me."

He carefully loosened and removed the holster from my thigh and tossed it aside. Then, he ripped off a large chunk of my dress and wrapped it around the wound, doing his best not to touch my dagger. Blood was still flowing, so he added another strip of fabric and tied it tightly.

"You've got some guts carrying a dagger around, Princess," he told me.

I groaned. "Yeah, I guess. It would have come in handy earlier, but the circumstances weren't in my favor."

He chuckled, his eyes twinkling. "You can say that again. Can you sit up at all?"

I stared at him blankly, and he rolled his eyes before standing up. He grabbed me beneath my armpits and brought me over to a tree to prop myself up. Then he dug through his bag and squatted down, passing me his water bottle.

"Drink," he ordered.

I glanced at the bottle before looking back into his eyes. "How do I know it's not poisoned?"

He muttered something under his breath and took the bottle back. After swigging a bit of it, he wiped his mouth and handed it back. "Trust me now?"

I took the bottle sheepishly and said, "I'd trust you a lot more if I could see your face and knew your name, but, hey, this is a start."

I closed my eyes and slowly sipped the bottle. When I reopened my eyes, I saw the man tugging off his black mask. He revealed a head of perfectly messy black hair, arched eyebrows, and a ruggedly handsome face.

"The name is Percy, and I promise on my life that I do not intend on harming you or putting you in harm's way."

"Then why are you kidnapping me and where are we going?" I asked him.

Percy sighed. "I'm taking you to do some negotiating in a small village in Olympus."

I smiled a little. "Thank you."

He smirked. "Of course, Princess. How's the leg feeling?"

"Not the best," I admitted. "But I think it'll be fine."

"Great," he commented. "Now, while we're down here and all cozy, I'm going to take that wretched corset off of you."

My eyes bugged. "What?"

Percy chuckled. "In the least sexual way possible, darling. You need oxygen more than ever right now. It's in your best interest to let me take it off."

I slowly nodded, agreeing. He stood back up and slowly moved me away from the tree. He knelt behind me and unzipped the back of my dress. I felt his nimble fingers unknot the string and unhook the pieces from each side, slowly restoring the breathing capacity to my lungs. Finally, the corset was undone. I took a deep breath. Percy's hand brushed my side as he took the corset completely off my body. Once it was gone, he rezipped my dress. He quickly untied the rope restraining my wrists before coming to sit beside me.

"That wasn't that bad, now was it?"

I looked up at him, still breathing shakily. "Y-yeah. Thanks, Percy."

He nodded. "You won't be able to walk anymore, so I'll carry you the rest of the way, okay?"

I shrugged. "You could always leave me here to be eaten by wolves. I'm fine either way."

Percy scoffed. "With the way you were screeching over a stab wound, I don't think you could handle wolves shredding you to pieces."

I gulped. "Um, yeah, you can carry me," I told him sweetly.

He laughed and fell to his knees. He tucked my corset into his bag and swung it over my shoulder. Then he hooked his arms under my knees and lower back before standing up and continuing to walk deeper into the woods.