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The hurdy-gurdy began to play, and the couples took to the dance in a confused frenzy, their laughter stronger than their dedication to rhythen in careful circles, twirls, and dips, pulling her closer each tiic of the caravan swirled around theiddy deliriu the stars, and a wild breeze ary sweetness of candy floss with Henry’s sharp tang of leather and e, ever been held--at least, not since she was an insensible child The way he held her now, as they danced with the crowd, th, exciteh other dancers swirled around them in a riot of color and a burble of sound, all she heard was the thu feet and her dizzy heart All she saere his eyes, unles When he looked at her, she felt like the only thing left in all the world If the dance had proper steps, she forgot the her so low she feared the tails of her jacket would puddle in the dirt The strength of his ar, and her eyes locked with his, unblinking, as he bent toward her mouth It was a shock, when the cold leather of his mask touched her lips Only then did she notice that the hurdy-gurdy had stopped and the croas clapping andaway, toward refreshive ht, and she found that her feet felt as if they were no longer connected to her body

"Such delightful che beside them with an exhalation of bliss "You ain Oh, it is delicious"

"Thank you, Made on"

He ain but stopped hierous" He all but sto, "Yes, thank you," to the bemused daimon before she stumbled off in his wake, red with embarrassment

Of course, she was a horrendous dancer, as clumsy and clueless on her feet as she ith her heart But she couldn’t begin to understand why he was so upset Her father’s dark te, and she had never discovered exactly what it was about her or the world that set hiard’s moods had been disconnected, cold as an empty hallway, and she had felt like an object whenever he was near

But Henry’s disposition was altogether different in flavor and tiifted mind, she didn’t understand why he seemed to be so often annoyed with her She would have to find a book onwith hirow any closer to hier She did not want tofrom her father’s house to her professor’s ht into the arms of a mysterious and reclusive mechanist, and yet she found herself drawn to hi up her skirts, she sprinted to his black, flapping coat and caught his aric of the caravan not te his ar loose her arm in the process "Merrier Is this not enough to satisfy you?"

"I am not a fool, Henry, and I have already admitted to you that I know very little of interpersonal behavior, but I must confess that you confoundissue that drives you? Or am I simply so unlawful, uncoordinated, overeducated, and plain-spoken that you find yourself thoroughly disgusted by ? You?" He took her shoulders in his hands and held her both too closely and not closely enough "Are you ed lared at each other They had paused in front of a clockwork tiger, which roared at them fiercely, but neither of them so much as turned a head

"Very well, madam You wish to talk? We will talk But I won’t be responsible for the consequences"

He walked directly toward the tiger, diverting his path at the last possible reat back It turned its copper and silver head, and he rapped it on the nose and said, "Quadrangle obtuse peraht in its eyes extinguished and the grinding within its , Henry helped her step up onto the pedestal and over the tiger’s back, releasing her hand quickly A velvet curtain the color ofbehind the clockwork like a solid wall, and he held it aside and leaped to the squashy ground Without looking beyond, she landed lightly beside hien saw for the first time what occurred under the tent in the eons

11

"What is this place?" Ien asked, and he chuckled

"Inquisitive as you are, you never thought to look past the clockworks’ curtains? I’m surprised"