"Kat? Kat! Where are you?" My body jolted awake and nearly fell off the branch. Looking down, I could see Sora searching for me. The time had got away from me and I ended up dozing off a bit. The sun had started to go down and the sky was starting to turn orange.

I yawned some then preceded to climb down the tree. Sora was a few feet away from the base of the tree. Sitting down on the last branch and jumping off as quietly as possible, she still had not seen me.

"Kat, the dinner will start soon! Where are you?"

"Here I am!" I jumped up behind her and she squealed.

"Do not do that! That's mean!" She was doubled over with her hand clutching her chest.

"Yeah, but it's fun." I laughed.

"Look at you. You are a mess. You will have to have another bath." She said when she straightened up. I pulled a face like a toddler.

"What? I just took one! I look fine!" She shook her head.

"It is my job to make you presentable. And so I shall. Come on." I followed her back to the palace.

"By the way, where were you?" I shrugged.

"Oh, just hanging around." We both busted out laughing and continued on our way to my room.

"What dress would you like to wear?" Sora yelled from the bedroom. I was currently washing my hair, once again.

"I don't care. Why don't you pick it out?" I yelled back. The warm water drained away along with the pine-scented bubbles. I stood up and grabbed the towel, drying my hair a bit then my body. The towel was wrapped around my body when I went out to see what tonight's torture dress looked like.

Sora was smiling like a little kid when I came out. She pointed to the bed.

"What do you think?" She asked and followed behind me. The dress she picked out was deep green, full length with the side cut up to mid-thigh. A gold chain sat next to it. She told me it would sit around my hips. The shoulders were gold fabric.

"It's really pretty. You picked out a nice one."Her smile got even bigger, if that was possible.

"Go put it on! Loki will be here for you soon!" I faltered on my way to the bathroom.

"Wait, what?"

"I thought you knew? He'll be your escort tonight."

"Oh, well that's great." I huffed and stomped into the bathroom. After wrangling around with the dress for about five minutes, I was finally in it. That's pretty sad.

The dress fit well. The fabric clung to the right places, as people sometimes put it. The chain hung around my hips and a strand fell down the middle. It clanked and rattled when ever it moved. That would be annoying. Surprisingly, it wasn't heavy.

"Oh, you look so beautiful. Come here, I need to do your hair." Sora patted the seat and I sat down.

After I fussed to her about not doing my hair up, she finally settled for a braid. A gold and green ribbon was braided throughout it.

By the we were finished she had put some makeup on. Mostly eyeshadow. In green and gold. Go figure. I asked her about it.

"Why is everything in his colors?"

"Prince Loki?"

"Who else wears green and gold?"

"It is like protection. If people see you wearing Prince Loki's colors, they are more likely to leave you alone. Everyone knows what he is like when he gets angry. Believe me, you don't want him as an enemy." She said very seriously. I laughed.

"Too late."

"What do you mean?" She asked.

"Well, we aren't exactly friendly. Rather, we've got it out for each other."

"Oh that's not good. But he knows he can't hurt you. Odin said he is responsible for you."

"He also figures I'm not one to run and tell. As long as it doesn't show, he can get away with it."

"You will tell me if he hurts you, right?" I scoffed.

"Right." Sora reached out and hugged me. It caught me off guard but I hugged her back. I hadn't been hugged in years. It was sorta weird.

"You're a good friend Sora. It would have been nice to have had a real friend back home."

"You are a good friend too, Kat."

Suddenly there was a light rap at the door. Sora looked at me with wide eyes and ushered me up. She kept pushing and pulling at my hair and making sure my dress was right.

"Cut it out! I look fine!" She stopped me at the door and opened it a bit.

"Yes, sir?" She asked. She was back into servant mode, keeping her head down.

"Is she ready?"

"Yes, sir. She is." Sora opened the door wider and stepped back.

Loki was dressed in formal clothing. He wore greens and golds much like my own. A green cape fell behind him, and his hair was slicked back like usual. In short, he looked like royalty. His eyes flitted up and down my form making me shift slightly.

"May I?" He held his arm out for me to take. I reached out and folded my arm underneath his. He smiled and we started to walk down the hall.