easy to plumb,' exclaimed the magician, bending over as if to listen with one ear to the message of the coin. Raistlin's face was terrified. He squirmed a bit, but he stayed rooted to the spot, awaiting the revelation.
Probably no one but Raistlin noticed the surprise that flickered over the man's face as he strained for the insight that did not come. The yellow-robed magician bent closer, and so did the crowd as it listened for what he would say. There was a suspense of nearly one minute.
'Candy!' declared the magician, straightening up with an impressive gesture. The spectators cheered and applauded. 'Candy,' repeated the magician, turning back to his array of objects and stealing another furtive glance at the pretty young girl.
Nobody paid much attention to Raistlin. 'I wasn't thinking of candy,' he said irritably under his breath. But he had to admit the old professional was a crowd-pleaser. The boy moved closer, for the illusionist was already in the middle of his next stunt.
The man was waving his hands gracefully now, chanting a few words. He opened drawers and doves flew out, opened pockets and discovered sparkling trinkets, tore and shredded colored paper and then reconstructed the scraps. Raistlin knew, somewhere inside of himself, that it was only hocus-pocus, not very difficult, certainly not very meaningful magic. But in his almost five years, the boy had never seen such a wondrous show. The crowd watched in respectful silence. Raistlin himself was mesmerized.
'There you are, Raist!' Caramon came up beside him, huffing with importance. 'Kitiara asked me to find you and bring you back right away.' He looked over his shoulder, a little disoriented. 'Although I'm not quite sure where 'back' is right-'
'Shhh!' Raistlin gave him a stern glance, and then paid his brother no further attention.
Caramon looked up just in time to witness the climax of the traveling magician's performance, probably the apex of the man's knowledge and skill. As far as Caramon could tell, the tall, thin mage was juggling several balls of light in the air. Big deal, he thought. In all, Caramon was about as fascinated by magic feats as Raistlin was by his twin's wrestling matches.
Caramon was glancing over his shoulder, looking for Kitiara, when a huge hurrah went up from the crowd. He looked back, but he was too late. The finale was over, and the mage was packing up his stuff. Another man-almost a ringer for the magician. Caramon thought with a frown- had begun passing a basket for donations.
'What did he do?' Caramon asked Raistlin. 'What did he do?'
But Raistlin said nothing, and the expression on his face was almost beatific.
'There you two are!' said a hearty voice, and one hand clasped each of them on the shoulders. 'You should be home. And where's Kitiara?'
It was Gilon, Amber yipping at his heels. He gave both his sons a squeeze and hoisted Raistlin easily to his sturdy shoulders. 'C'mon!' he shouted to Caramon. 'Where's Kit?' he asked again, looking around hesitantly.
'Uh,' said Caramon, looking behind him. 'Back there. Or back somewhere. We got separated because Raist-'
Gilon scolded Caramon affectionately. 'You've got chores to do, and you shouldn't leave your mother at home alone. You know that.' He looked round again. 'Well,' he shrugged, 'Kit will catch up.'
Gilon set a vigorous pace. Caramon had to run to keep up. Raistlin, bouncing on his father's shoulders, twisted his head to get a last glimpse of the magician in the faded yellow robe. But he and his look-alike had already vanished.
Peeking out from behind a tent, Kitiara and Aureleen observed their going. Aureleen pondered the situation, biting the nail of her thumb.
'I should really go,' began Kitiara.
Aureleen held up one of her decorated pouches and shook it so that Kitiara could hear the coins jingling inside. 'I've got enough for both of us,' she said invitingly. 'They're selling sausage sticks and custard pies and…'
Kitiara frowned, feeling the tug of her family responsibilities.
'And over there,' Aureleen pointed out slyly, 'they're setting up the sports and contests. Girls can enter too!'
Kit didn't need much convincing. 'Well, just for a few hours!' she said.
More than one teenage boy was dismayed that spring day in Solace when a girl who was several years younger than many of them took first place in the vine climb, barefoot sprint, and wiggleboat races-juvenile category.
Aureleen, her cheeks flushed, once again tried to explain to Kitiara that she ought to get in the habit of letting a man beat her occasionally, if she ever wanted to attract someone when she grew up and get happily married. But Kit was in a good mood. Aureleen could not faze her.
Bronk Wister was hanging around with his little brother, Dune, just watching the games. They jeered whenever Kit's name was announced. Aureleen-because, after all, she was Kit's booster-got in the spirit by cheering her friend on from the sidelines.
Afterward, they shared a prize-bag of chits from Kit's victories that could be swapped for food and trinkets. They stuffed themselves with sugary sweets until their stomachs ached. Then they played a couple of the games of chance run by unsavory characters inside tents, but they had no luck. Aureleen thought the games were probably rigged.
They browsed the traders' booths where Aureleen bargained for a shiny copper bracelet and Kit bought a pouch of magnets whose geometric shapes pleased her.
After several hours, low on energy, they sprawled on the grass in one corner of the fairgrounds, idly watching the crowd. A sign on a small striped tent she had not noticed before caught Kit's eye: 'Futures Foretold, The Renowned Madame Dragatsnu.' A stout, important-looking man left the tent with a satisfied expression.
Kit was intrigued, but when she counted up the tickets in her hand, she realized that they only had enough for one fortune-telling.
'Go ahead,' said Aureleen, gesturing wearily. She had guessed Kit's mind. 'My future is right here for the moment.'
When Kit ducked under the tent flap, she came face to face with Madame Dragatsnu, a small, swarthy woman, ancient, with salt-and-pepper hair and whiskers sprouting from her nose and chin. Sitting on a woven rug, wearing a simple brown dress, the fortune-teller appeared rather unimpressive. Glancing around, Kit saw none of the mysterious paraphernalia she associated with the job of fortune-telling-no crystal sphere, cup of bones, jars of leaf crumbs, or the like.
'Sit down, child,' said Madame Dragatsnu, some irritation in her thick voice. Kit could not place her peculiar accent.
Kit settled herself with crossed knees in front of the fortune-teller. Madame Dragatsnu's glistening eyes seemed to reach across the space between them and rake her over.
'It's not for me,' the girl said softly, looking down, suddenly abashed. 'The fortune, I mean.'
'Your boyfriend then?'
Kit looked up defiantly. 'No.' She put down the chits she had been clutching and pushed them over to the old woman, who nodded.
'You have something that belongs to this person?'
Kit reached into her tunic and brought out a carefully folded piece of parchment-the Solamnic crest from her father. She had brought it along today in hopes of seeing people from that region who, if she showed the crest to them, might be able to give her information about Gregor or his family.
'It's-'
'Your father,' said Madame Dragatsnu, cutting her off.
Kit watched the fortune-teller hopefully. Madame Dragatsnu turned the parchment over and over in her hands, feeling its surface in an almost sensuous way, as if the paper were a rare textile. While doing so, she gazed, not at Gregor's Solamnic symbol, but at Kit herself. The impassive look on Madame Dragatsnu's face didn't tell Kit anything, but oh how her eyes burned!
'I was hoping,' Kit said, softly again, 'that you might be able to tell me where he is.'
'I don't reveal the present,' said Madame Dragatsnu sharply.
