Sora hadn't been sure how to leave the palace. Kairi had disappeared, but she'd told him he had three wishes, so she couldn't be gone, right? For the moment, he was pressed tight against some masonry above Prince Riku's balcony, avoiding being seen. But it was still bright out, and if he didn't find a way out soon, well, there would likely be no tomorrow.

He reached into his clothing and pulled out the lamp, poking at it. "Kairi? Are you still there?"

A puff of smoke came from the spout, and Sora had to stop himself from almost dropping it again. A yawn as Kairi's shape appeared in midair. "I was napping. Also, you don't have to knock so loud, you know? Just call me, next time." She took in Sora's position, clutching to the side of the palace. "What are you doing? I thought I put you inside the palace."

Sora blinked. "Well, you did, but I had to leave. I didn't think I should go out the front door, if I didn't come in by it."

Kairi giggled. "I see."

"Uhm. Can you help me out here, before I get caught?"

Kairi hummed. "I don't know, you look pretty silly up there."

"Please? Or do I have to wish—"

"No, no, don't waste a wish on that!" Kairi shook her head, and Sora found himself clinging to air, before toppling to the floor of his hideaway.

"Hey, ow!"

Kairi winced. "Sorry! I didn't mean to do that."

"It's okay." Sora smiled. "It's better than landing in the palace dungeons."

The genie smiled back. "So, did you find your friend?"

"Yes! But, you know, I really want to see him again. But I can't, not the way I am. It would cause a lot of trouble, I think. Because, Kairi, he's the prince!"

"Of course he is, why else would he be in the prince's room?" Kairi rolled her eyes, as if it had been obvious.

Sora raised his eyebrows. "I didn't know he was the prince!" He bit his lip. "Now it kind of makes sense, some of the things he said before. Anyway. I want to be a prince, too, so I can go see him whenever I want."

Kairi leaned against the wall, eyes distant as she thought it over. "Being a prince…is a little complicated. It's not just a title. There's much more to it."

Sora's face fell. "Yeah, that's pretty much what Ku told me. I didn't know why he said that, back then. I still don't really know what it's like. I don't think he likes it, but I thought, maybe I could stick around and cheer him up. You know?" Kairi nodded.

They were both silent for several minutes, each trying to work out a solution for Sora's problem. Sora wasn't stupid: between Ku's warning and Kairi's input, he knew that wishing to be a prince wouldn't be the best solution. If he pretended to be a prince, he could be discovered and arrested. If he became a real prince, well, Sora wasn't sure that he wanted that. Not if it would cause too many problems. All he wanted was to be near his friend, really, but Ku made it seem almost impossible.

Kairi, on the other hand, had some ideas. There were many ways to help Sora into the palace, aside from magicking him directly in. It could be easy, if Sora didn't insist on being a prince. It could also still be tricky—magic was fickle, if one wasn't clear with their instructions. But Kairi knew her way around wishes.

"Master Sora," she began. "Your first wish was to find this person, so he must be very dear to you, right?"

Sora nodded. "He was my best friend!"

"And you want to be able to see him whenever you want, right? So, why can't you?" It couldn't just be that Sora would have to be a prince, she thought.

"He said they only let royalty and nobles near him. Only people that his father approves." Sora turned his eyes to the ground suddenly. "I thought—I thought, if I was a prince, I could marry him and we could always be together." The last was spoken low.

Kairi's eyes widened. "Marriage isn't—it's not like that, Master."

"I know," he mumbled, face growing pink.

"Oh." Kairi pursed her lips. "I see. Well, he is very beautiful, your prince." Sora's blush deepened.

"He's not my prince. He's the prince."

Kairi's hand on his shoulder startled him. "Of course." Her eyes sparkled with amusement. "Well, I can give you a reason to be with the prince, and stay there, if you so wish. The rest would be up to you. And the prince."

Sora's face brightened. "What do I have to do?"

"Wish it, of course!"

"For you to give me a reason to be in the palace and stay there?" Kairi bobbed her head. "Okay. So. I wish for Kairi to give me a reason to be with Ku and stay there!"

Kairi clapped her hands. "You got it!"

Except nothing happened, other than Kairi's disappearance. "Uhm? Kairi? Where'd you go?"

She didn't appear out of the lamp when he called, so he tapped the lamp, then polished it like he'd done earlier. Still nothing. Sora bit his lip.

Two days passed, with no sign of Kairi. Sora tucked away the rich garments she'd given him and donned his rags again. He pawned his trinkets, but kept the lamp. Just in case. It was between the folds of the silks, in a small chest in a broken part of the wall in his hideaway. He began planning his next burglary, but it didn't bring him excitement like it had before.

He'd already found Ku, and he was beyond Sora's reach.

He wondered what happened to Kairi. Had she lied, or played a trick on him? He didn't know much about genies, but he'd heard that magicians, at least, were tricksters. Perhaps genies were the same. But she hadn't seemed that way. In fact, she'd been eager to help Sora.

On the third day, Sora's old friend Tidus paid him an unexpected visit. Sora wasn't even sure how the blond knew how to find him, until Tidus announced that he'd been sent by Princess Kairi, whose caravan he had been hired to protect. Sora's eyes widened, but he didn't hesitate to dress in his blue silks and drop the lamp in the hidden pocket. Tidus raised an eyebrow at the attire, but didn't ask how Sora had gotten it. He probably thought it was stolen, but they came from the same background. He wouldn't be bothered.

Kairi offered an apologetic smile once they'd ducked into her litter. "I should have told you, it takes some time, to get an invitation from the sultan."

Sora took in her clothing—much more suited to the current fashions than before. "But—you're not a princess! What if you get caught?"

Kairi winked. "Who told you I wasn't a princess? Shows what you know!" Sora stared. "Anyway, I don't usually get to be a princess, so I thought this would be fun."

Sora blinked. "Okay, but, how does this grant my wish?"

"Well, as a guest, I am to present the sultan and his son with gifts." Sora cocked his head. "You're my present to the prince!" She clapped her hands together. "Normally I don't approve of such things, but I think this will work."

Sora considered this. "So…I'll be a…slave or something?"

Seeing his frown, Kairi shook her head. "I don't think it will be like that. It's just the reason. The rest is up to you. And the prince." She patted his hand. "Trust me. I'll make your wish turn out right."