"You know, I do love the sound of your voice, Mr. Carter."

Elizabeth's head tilted to the side as she glanced at the table across from the magician. William cleared his throat. It was noisy, after all, and he needed to speak up, something that he'd always had trouble with.

"Well, thank you, Elizabeth," he stammered.

"Where exactly did you say you were from?" she asked, tracing her finger around her glass.

"London."

Elizabeth's eyes lit up, somehow more so than they already were.

"London, England?"

"Yes, miss."

"Wow . . . I've always wanted to go there," she replied, her voice lowering. "Is it just as beautiful as they say?"

"Mostly, I would say so. It does get dreadfully foggy in the winter."

"Foggy?"

"Yes, very much so. The London fog is serious business."

Elizabeth shifted in her seat.

"I suppose you're much smarter than the tourist advertisements we see all around," she giggled.

The brief pause that ensued gave someone the opportunity to tap the tall man on the shoulder from behind.

"Edgar," William greeted. His agent smiled at both him and the young girl sitting across from him. "Are you having a good time?"

"I was gonna ask the same thing, kiddo," the agent said, placing a hand on Will's shoulder. "I'm doing fine."

"As am I."

"And you, sweetheart?" Edgar inquired, directing his gaze to Elizabeth. "Is this fella giving you any trouble?"

"None at all, thank you," she answered, a sly grin on her face. "We're having a marvelous talk regarding the London fog."

"So that's what yer deal is, kid," the agent teased, pulling on William's ear. "You're full 'a fog."

"Oh, really, now," the magician said, blushing. His agent let out a haughty laugh.

"Only foolin' around," Edgar said.

A wild song began playing from the piano in the corner of the room—almost every American (roughly 99 percent of the bar) recognized the tune and gleefully started to get up and dance. Baffled, William watched as couples all performed steps that he had never seen before. He looked to Elizabeth, expecting a coherent explanation.

"C'mon, Will; we gotta dance! It's a Joplin rag!"

"A what?"

The girl stood up, pulling the nervous man from his seat and leading him in a few wild steps. Only slightly panicked, the man frantically tried to watch everyone, including Elizabeth, and breathlessly attempted to kick his legs out in sync with the other guests of the club. His face flushed red as he felt the others in the whirlwind of people giggling at his steps. Elizabeth laughed even when he slipped up, clearly having the time of her life as they hopped and skipped around the floor to the tune of the song. Eventually, as the song drew to a close, William had only just gotten the hang of the two-step dance. Breathless, he and Elizabeth returned to their seats.

"Scott Joplin, Swipesy Cakewalk!" the piano player shouted over the cheering people. William clapped.

"Nicely done, kid!" Edgar exclaimed. He hadn't participated in the dance, but only watching was enough for him to be entertained. "I knew you had it in ya!"

"Well, I—thank you," the young man wheezed.

"You just need a little practice, but it ain't hard," Elizabeth said, her voice also thick with heavy breaths.

William took a swig of his drink—a foamy root beer. Elizabeth giggled profusely as the man revealed a foam mustache just under his pointed nose. Before any more conversation could be had, another wild song played from the corner. Just like that, William found himself dancing on the floor again, led by Elizabeth. The night went on, with an array of frilly dresses and rolled-up sleeves bumping together in merry movement. It can be said that the magician hadn't had this much fun in years.

A/N: Soooo the chapters are a teeny bit short now, but moving on, they'll be getting significantly longer, don't worry. Thank you! ^_^