James looked up as the door clicked. Cat entered, but she was looking very different. Tiny clear jewels were sparkling in her short, curly hair and light green paint accented her eye color.

A long white dress reached the floor. It was trimmed with gold and a gold belt with a painted dragon on it was wrapped tightly around her slim waist.

James smiled and said, "A dress…I'm in shock."

Cat rolled her eyes and stepped into the room. Her foot slipped off her high golden heels and she cursed. "I told her not to make me wear heels," she growled, stumbling over to the chair next to James and Nathan.

"You look beautiful," the prince said sincerely.

"I'm not here to be beautiful," Cat said, "I'm here to protect you—looks like you'll need it with all the royals around."

Behind her, the maid who had taken her to get the dress was examining her nails uncomfortably. Nathan stood up and walked over to her. "I believe I missed your name," he said softly.

"I'm Starella," the maid said softly.

"Starella," Nathan repeated. "A beautiful name for a gorgeous lady." Cat and James watched the interaction curiously. James had never seen Nathan show interest that openly in any girl before. "I'm Nathan."

She smiled. "Nathan," she said. The name sounded very elegant with her Malvintian accent.

"We'd better get down for dinner," James said, taking Cat by the arm and leading her to the door.

"Will you walk down with us, milady?" Nathan asked Starella with a bow.

She giggled and tossed her red-blonde hair out of her face. "I would love to," she said, smiling.

Cat and James walked in front and the others walked behind. Every once in a while, Starella would giggle or Nathan would chuckle, but, other than that, James could not hear their conversation.

"How does it feel?" James asked Cat as they walked down the silver halls.

"How does what feel?" she asked, looking up at him. Her dazzling green eyes met his and he was blown away by her feline beauty.

"Wearing a dress," he replied.

She rolled her eyes. "Completely ridiculous. If something comes up, I'll simply have to rip off the bottom so I can fight. These things are so impractical, I can barely… Well, I just can't understand why people wear these!"

"You look wonderful in it," James told her. As usual, her face stayed calm, but, for the first time, James thought he saw a light blush color her cheeks. She smiled at him, and they walked on in silence, each consumed by their own thoughts.

When they finally reached the door to the Dining Hall, a butler said, "You made it just in time. The royals will be arriving soon."

"I'll talk to you later," Nathan was saying to Starella. She nodded and went back up the corridor.

The butler opened the door and the trio entered warily.

Wow. I wasn't expecting such an angry response. Since one of you said that you didn't care about the wait, I'll keep Cat up. Just don't hurt me when the updates don't come for a few weeks. Please review.