A/N: Hey guys! This chapter is dedicated to Fireball maddie, for her birthday! Make sure to thank her for forcing me to finish this chapter as her present, because if she didn't then I probably would have procrastinated a lot longer...anyway! Happy birthday!

Cass was four when she received her first whipping.

She doesn't remember what had caused her to get it. Perhaps, like Kaola, she had tripped and broken a glass or a plate. That was probably it. She worked mainly in the kitchens, and she vaguely remembered hearing a fear-inducing shatter of glass. Her heart had jumped in panic.

And then pain followed.

She had seen other slaves being whipped before. She saw them fall to their knees or on their stomaches, covering their faces but in the process leaving their backs wide open. Sometimes the overseers forced them to lie facedown, arms crossed over their chests, so they couldn't defend themselvs. It didn't matter. They all had the same product.

Sometimes they were only given a few taps before they were allowed to scurry off. And yet sometimes the entire slave quarters were treated to a grisly spectacle: lashing after lashing after lashing, each scream seemed to have been rent from the air. Usually they didn't scream coherent words, although sometimes they begged through tears for it to stop.

There would be blood on the floor. And on the whip. And sometimes it would splatter onto the face of the overseer. One time a slave had been whipped right at her feet, and by the time it was over, there were scarlet stains on her toes.

But that horror was nothing compared to her own whipping.

She was supposed to receive fifty lashes. She lost count around seventeen. Everything kind of blended together at that point, just becoming a red haze of pain and- was that blood on her hands? Or maybe there was just blood on her eyes, and now everything seemed red.

Someone was screaming in the background. Then she realized that that someone was herself.

Am I going to die? she asked herself.

Soon, the answer came: No.

That would be merciful.

It took a good few minutes to discover why she dreaded the morning so much.

Dread was not an unfamiliar emotion. Oftentimes she felt dread in the mornings, thinking gloomily of the tasks to be completed that day, the blows and taunts to be endured, or the scathing comments to bite back.

But this was a different kind of dread. It filled her gut with weights and her heart with fear. Something lodged in her throat, making it hard to breathe. Her breaths came quick, not quite panic but definitely not calm either.

She forced herself to calm down, clamping down a hand over her nerves (which were officially shot to hell, and she had barely been awake for a few minutes).

Almost cautiously, she rose from her mattress, as if she was expecting to be attacked as soon as she did. Kaola - sleeping beside her - stirred in her slumber but did not wake. Cass felt a twinge of pity. Let her sleep another few minutes, she decided. If anyone deserved it, after all, it was her.

Slaves did not get sick leave, especially when their sickness was "their own fault." The drivers did not care if a young girl was at risk of dying because she was whipped to the point of death. "She shouldn't have broken the glass then," they would have said.

Cass clenched her teeth and crept out of the room. Don't think about it, she thought. Don't think about what you have to do today, don't think about the fake smiles, the hidden frowns, anything.

She sighed. Too late.

Kitchens first. She strolled down the corridor, enjoying the silence. Things were always so busy and loud during the day, people pushing past each other to get where they need to go, servants and slaves ducking through secret passageways to get to places unseen, the nobles running about squawking about some political issue or another.

Despite the quiet in the hallways, the kitchen was already bustling with activity. Breakfast, of course, and then they had to prepare an larger meal than normal for dinner, considering that there was going to be a prince dining with them today. (Cass tried to swallow and then realized that there was a lump in her throat.) Morwena waved the girl over.

"How's Kaola?" She asked softly, sadly, motioning wordlessly for her to start with the bread.

Cass shrugged. "Better than yesterday."

"That's not saying much."

"There isn't much to say."

The woman nodded in grim understanding before going silent on the matter, barking at the rest of the kitchen hands to "hurry up!" or "bring that over here!" Cass was thankful for the lack of conversation; she didn't have the energy for one right now.

Cass watched as Lenora casually adjusted her hair again in a little painted hand mirror. Needless to say, her outfit had been most carefully chosen this particular day, and her hair and makeup had been arranged in the same delicate manner. Despite the confidence she had in the outfit, the girl still examined herself critically in the mirror, moaning about how ugly she looked and how she needed more time to get ready but there was a smile on her face. Cass wanted to gag.

She had tried to get out of it, but Lenora would hear none of it. She wanted her "most faithful and reliable" servant on hand just in case things "went wrong" because the others would definitely "mess things up if they tried to help."

"He'll be arriving any minute now." Lenora spoke more to herself than to her. Again, the automatic flip of the hair. "Any minute."

With a slight jolt of surprise, Cass realized that Lenora was nervous. It was only a slight jitter in the way she sat, a tremor of the hands, but still. Lenora was nervous. About meeting some guy. Yeah, it was a prince of Asgard, but Lenora was nervous about meeting a guy.

...that was new.

Brace your shoulders. Stand up straighter. Don't smile, but don't frown. Look passive. Look submissive. Look eager to serve but not restless.

Lenora had ordered Cass to stand at the door on welcoming duty. Anna stood next to her, looking a little bit nervous (probably about serving a prince) but otherwise quite normal.

Cass found herself feeling sick.

No matter how much she had steeled herself for this moment, it had not helped. She wanted to run from the room. She wanted to scream and maybe throw up. She could not handle this. She would not handle this.

Get a hold of yourself. She tried to straighten up even further. Get a hold-

There was the sounds of a carriage outside. Cass's heart threw itself against her ribs in terrified anticipation, over and over and over again, making her entire body shake. No, she couldn't handle this, couldn't handle this, couldn't handle this-

"Cass." She forced herself back to reality. Anna was peering at her, brow furrowed, looking concerned. "Are you okay?"

No, her mind said. Her mouth did not oblige.

"Yes."

"Hey." Anna put a hand on her arm. "Don't worry about Kaola, okay? She's going to be alright. You've already done so much for her. And we've gone through worse; she'll make it through." She smiled reassuringly.

Kaola. The thought of the little black-haired girl somehow managed to clear her mind. Kaola. Think of Kaola.

There was a polite knock at the door.

She took a shuddering breath, trying to calm herself. Remember Kaola.

Anna opened the door, stepping immediately to the side as she did so to remain out of sight. Standard slave procedure. Both of them bowed low as Prince Loki of Asgard walked through the door.

Cass tried to keep her eyes on the floor (as she was supposed to) but she couldn't stop herself from glancing up.

He was taller than she remembered, handsomer than she remembered, which made her chest twinge dangerously close to her heart. It gave another throb at the sight of him, but she bit her lip and bowed her head even further as he glanced at them.

She could feel his gaze on the back of her neck. Surely he knew by now...?

But her wonderings were interrupted. "Loki!"

He looked up at the staircase automatically at the sound of his name. Lenora descended from upstairs as gracefully as a queen, confident smile back in place, wearing a new dress Cass knew had been painstakingly made just for this occasion. It was made from deep scarlet brocade, patterns of gold clip in her hair completed her image, making her seem almost otherwordly in her beauty.

His back was to her, so she couldn't see his reaction (all the better, she supposed) but she could hear his words and they pierced her deep. "Ah, Lady Lenora!" The Silvertongue. "It's a pleasure to see you again."

She batted her eyelashes and glanced at him slyly as she reached the bottom of the stairs. "The pleasure is mine. Please make yourself at home; I know you're probably used to much more, but I do hope you find your visit enjoyable."

That was her cue. Cass moved forward to remove his cloak (dark green) as he said. "Oh no, I find your house quite lovely. . . "

His words petered out as she gently took the cloak from his shoulders. He had already been the middle of taking it off, so their hands met almost awkwardly over his shoulders. Her fingers jumped away from his, shying away, and she was a little bit surprised to see the same reaction in him. Her skin burned at the contact, however brief.

The pads of her fingers oh-so-slightly ghosted over his neck as she unfastened it, and she couldn't help but notice how he tensed at her touch. But then she pulled the cloak from him, moved away, and it was done and she had imagined it. She turned her back on him to hang it up.

He didn't even look at her once.

Cass didn't know what she expected. A smile, maybe? A frown? Perhaps she had even dared to hope that he would say something to her, even if it was as something so casual as a hello. Just something that would tell her that he knew who she was and he wasn't just going to throw it all away now.

Just one word. A smile. Anything.

But she received nothing.

He kept his attention completely on Lenora. And, Cass thought bitterly, who wouldn't? What was she compared to Lenora, beautiful high-standing Lenora. With looks and social standing to boot.

The two were sitting opposite each other on the couches in one of the living rooms. They were smiling as well. Lenora laughed at something Loki said - was it a joke? She hadn't been paying very much attention to what they were saying - and leaned over, casually, placing her hand on his knee for a brief moment. Something flared in Cass''s chest.

She bowed her head to hide her face, because she couldn't be sure that some of her emotions wouldn't show up.

Anna came back into the room silently (she had been sent for snacks) bearing a silver tea tray laden with food. Maybe it was her imagination, but Cass thought that she looked a bit...panicked. Her suspicions were confirmed when after she set the tray down on the coffee table, she leaned over to whisper in Lenora's ear. Lenora frowned and then stood up.

Cass looked at them both curiously, grateful for distraction. Lenora was already removing her frown, smiling again at Loki. "Would you excuse me for a second? There's something I need to attend to. Won't take a moment." She started to leave and Cass began to follow. Then she heard, "Cass will get you anything you need." And then she left.

Silence. Cass froze, suddenly aware that she was in the same room, alone, with Loki.

She tried to breathe. Failure.

Slowly, very slowly, she turned around.

Now he was looking at her. His green eyes looked right into her own hazel orbs, staring her down. He said nothing, just looked at her. It took all her willpower to straighten her shoulders, not look away, and force herself to say something.

"Is there anything you would like, my lord?" She croaked out. Was that her voice? She sounded like she was going to cry.

He picked up a tea cup and looked thoughtfully into its contents, as if contemplating the ingredients. Finally he spoke. Softly.

"I would like an apology."

Cass blinked. "Pardon?"

"An apology," he repeated, looking up at her again. "For abandoning your poor desperate prince so hastily at the ball."" He looked deadly serious. ""I didn't even get a goodbye, did I? But. . . " He got up from the couch. ". . . considering recent circumstances. . . " He headed towards her. She was frozen. She could not move. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to move. ". . . I think I can overlook it."

And then his arms were around her, one hand coming to rest at her back, the other cradling the base of her neck. Pulling her towards him. Holding her. Keeping her there. Cass was sure she made some sort of sound, some sort of yelp, but she didn't know if her voice was working.

She tried it out. "W-what?"

She could feel his fingers against her spine. Her skin burned. His whisper tickled her ear, made her even more aware of their it didn't come close to the warmth she felt when she heard his next words. "Found you, Cassie."

A/N: And our favorite couple has made it back together again! But what took him so long? What about Lenora? Stay tuned to find out...I don't know what I'm doing here...

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