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"He caeneral hubbub around us "But he shied off on his own daot here H’ain’t seen hiht out Rory’s accent

"Caleb went looking for free whores," Trist enlightened me, as if I’d requested the infor for ones who took money"

I looked at their faces, flushed with drink and carnival, and thought of what I could tell them The words rose like bile in the back of h they would knoe had all been culled I felt old as I decided that I would let thenorant of their fate

The line shuffled us along as Rory told me that, truly, I did need to see the Syinese dancers perform "I’d no idea a woman could bend like that!" he enthused, to which Oron sourly observed, "No proper woument that followed, Trist poked Rory in the ribs and said, "Look at that! I doubt he was given leave to be here I’ll bet Colonel Stiet thinks little Caulder is hoht now!"

I had but a gliht There was Caulder, his hat on crooked and his cheeks very red There were several Academy cadets with him, old nobles’ sons, and nized i and shouting back at the barker as trying to persuade the Hidaspi Brothers fro themselves I saw it reach Caulder’s hands He took it and, at their urging, tipped his head back for a drink I saw his face as he lowered the bottle He did not relish it, but he sed it anyway He grinned weakly afterward, and I wondered if he was clenching his teeth against his belly’s load

"They’re giving that boy strong drink!"

Rory guffawed "If he thinks chawin’ ’baccothrough his lips until the hed uproariously at the crudeness of Rory’s co

"Soan towith it The ers and reached for the next ht, and that if he got sick as a dog, he well deserved it A moment later I entered the world of the circus sideshow

The circus folk knew their business The tent floor was coated thick with straw to keep the ays fro froh the tent’s interior, leading froe mesh forced us to keep our distance from the attractions Ostensibly we could wander where illed, but the push of folk behind us propelled us to the left In a few otten that I was trying to find Epiny in the ht that irl dressed in a short vest secured only by a chain across her breasts The pleated skirt she wore came barely to her knees Even so, her body ell covered, for it was draped in coil after coil of a monstrous snake that was lapped around her and the throne that she sat on She held the snake’s wedge-shaped head between her hands and stroked it as she spoke softly to it The snake’s tongue fluttered forth and the girl extended her own pink tongue to asp from the audience Rory especially would have stayed there, entranced, but the push of the crowd oat-faced oat’s beard He was tethered to an upended crate and he bleated at us as we passed, but I judged hi bare-chested on a box, with the body of his half-for from his ribs I stared at that and could not look away until Rory took me by the upper arm and hurried me on

The poster had proman bent an iron bar, passed it round the crowd for us to inspect, and then straightened it before our very eyes The skeleton ht see every vertebra in his back push out against his skin Three ets dressed in red, yellow, and blue sca somersaults and cartwheels They then advanced to shake hands round the crowd and win their tips of coins A conehead sat rocking on a tall stool, his tongue extended as he ae rattle at the crowd A pretty little girl with long golden curls and flippers instead of ar about the heartless !" Rory exclai as we tossed the china bowl at her feet