The following day was my first day of the festival to spend as I liked and I wanted to see the town as it celebrated. I was completely free to do so as Giselle and Victoria were off somewhere with their group of friends. I did not know where I would go first because there was just so much to see. The inn was holding a party of sorts for their important guests and their friends, but I was tired of formal parties. I wanted to be out where the common people were with their loud songs and wild dancing. I had seen the nobility's side of the celebration and now I wanted to see the other. I dressed comfortably in my brother's old clothes and left the inn. I received many strange looks when I hurried past the people in the main hall. It was unusual to see a woman in man's clothes in general and I was at one of the richest inns in the city. I just ducked my head and ignored their stares. In the streets I was less conspicuous. The road that the Gilded Leopard occupied was not as boisterous as some of the other streets around the palace. All the people who were around this street were not the types to party in the streets. There were still some people walking about and making merry, but I was sure that if I were to travel farther away from this place that I could find streets filled with happy people. Those were the streets I set off in search of.

I figured that a square would be a likely spot for finding people celebrating and I was correct. In the nearest square that I knew of, there was a carnival with game booths and vendors and peddlers. People shouted their wares to me from every side and children dashed around between them. There were musicians that were playing a variety of instruments for money everywhere as well so there was music and song everywhere. In the very center of the square there was a high pole with long ribbons hanging from the top. Children would hold the ribbons and dance around the pole so the colored streamers made a rainbow around the pole. The atmosphere here was different than it had been at Etvor. Here the air was buzzing with unbridled excitement and people of all ages were laughing loudly and without reservation. While looking at the things around me I accidentally bumped into a man who was going the opposite way.

"Excuse me," I said but the man ignored me and just walked on.

"People aren't as formal as that around here, you know." Standing near a game booth was the tall blonde with the strange eyes. Kol looked much different in the sunlight. His face was less devilish without the added shadows, but his lips still held a wickedly playful curl even when he wasn't fully smiling. "You may want to get to know the locals before wandering their town."

"Good morning to you too," I stated bluntly and walked on.

Kol smiled and moved to walk beside me. "You missed a superb party the other night at the lamp posts, Ebb. There was food and dancing and a few brawls – everything a party should have."

"Fights do not make for a good party and I had to get back that night because I attended the royal ball." I bragged. Surely a ball was more exciting than some street party. I previously had no one to talk to about the ball and I was near bursting with not being able to talk about it.

"Oh, the first royal ball to start off the celebration. You were lucky to merit an invitation. Good friends with the royal family then are you? From what I hear, the royal balls are somber affairs with stuffy old codgers trading war stories and women giggling behind their lace fans. It all sounds rather boring to me." I watched as Kol nimbly lifted two apples from a barrel with one hand and handed one to me.

"You shouldn't steal. What if you were to get caught? And the ball was nothing like that. It was wonderful. There were plenty of handsome gentlemen and beautiful ladies. It is not boring at all. I am in fact friends with Prince Christian and I had a wonderful time at the ball." I debated going back and paying for the two apples that Kol took from the vendor then decided against it. If I were to go back the man might have thought I had stolen them and alert the guards.

We were walking aimlessly through the crowds now and I did not know whether or not I minded that Kol had decided to walk with me. One the one hand, having someone who knew the town could be helpful. Then again, he was nearly a perfect stranger. I decided that it would be alright to walk with him here in this crowded place where nothing too bad could happen. He didn't seem a very bad sort, but I couldn't be too cautious.

"Ah, so the charming Prince Christian made the ball exciting for you. I'm sure many young women share your opinion of him. Did you dance with him?" Kol teased.

"That is none of your concern. I am not some love-struck twit who grasps at even glimpsing the prince. He is truly my friend and that is not some fanciful imagining that I came up with." I tried to defend myself. He was treating me as if I was just boasting about some imagined connection with the prince.

I noticed Kol's side long glance and his mischievous grin. "Of course you are friends with the prince; I do not think you are making it up. So do you have designs on marrying him and becoming a princess then? I know many girls who are planning something similar. If you are planning on becoming a princess, then you are quite a bit better off than others I know of seeing as you have already met him."

I ducked my head to hide the color that was rising to my cheeks. I did not entertain any underhanded schemes to somehow wed the prince, but the thought had crossed my mind a few times. How could it not? The prince had shown a particular interest in me and it seemed that the more I saw him the more possible that outcome became.

When I did not answer, Kol went on. "It's of no matter to me. A woman's secrets are her own. You came here for the celebration; just like everyone else. Well, you have chosen a fine spot to be sure, but there are much better places than this in the city."

"How do you mean?" I knew the city held many wonders during the princess's marriage celebration, but I did not need to see the biggest and best so soon. To me the square we were walking now seemed perfect for today. Still, seeing something incredible was horribly tempting.

Kol shrugged. "This square is adequate if you are small child who is looking for cheap thrills. Personally, I prefer something a bit more intriguing. As a matter of fact I was heading to a place not far from here to see one of those things when I happened across you."

"Well, don't let me stop you if you are going somewhere."

He laughed and quickened his step so he was now walking backwards in front of me. I could not get over the blackness of his eyes, still dark in the bright sunlight. His face was just so devilishly handsome; so different from the traditionally handsome men. Even his blonde hair fell over his forehead in a roguish way. "Would you like to join me? The place is only a few streets over and I've even arranged for Tim to give me a lift on his hay cart. I'm sure he has room for one more."

Should I go with him? He did seem to know the town better than me after all. Perhaps he could show me something more fascinating than this square. On the other hand, what did I really know about him? He was a boy who ran wild in the streets. He had admitted to being a thief already and who knows what else he got up to in crowded squares and dark alleyways. "What is this fascinating thing you are going to see?" I asked slowly.

Kol smiled brightly showing bright white teeth in a curling grin. "That's the spirit, Ebb! I am going to go see Tibbar the Magnificent. He is a famous magician that travels throughout all the kingdoms performing. He has even been to Mekt and was successful in a place where magic is common place. He has not been to Pharyss in nearly eight years and if we don't hurry then the venue will be too packed to watch the performance. Oh, look, there's Tim now."

I looked to where a tired looking grey horse was hitched up to a small hay cart. A man in a floppy straw hat sat in the front of the cart and waved when he saw Kol. He waved back in return and grabbed my hand to lead me to the cart. I quickly pulled my hand from his and stopped following him causing him to turn and face me. "I never said I would join you on your little trip. The square is quite to my liking."

Kol rolled his eyes playfully and took my hand once again. "Don't be ridiculous. You came to Pharyss for adventure, not to see the perfunctory amusements that are available anywhere. Live a little."

Live a little. In a hasty decision that I did not let myself think through, I allowed him to pull me onwards and I hopped up in the cart next to him. He was right; I would never have adventures staying in the easy places of the town. I told myself that Kol meant me no harm and that Tibbar the Magnificent would be worth taking tiny risk to go see.

"There now," Kol grinned as the cart began rolling over the cobblestones. "That wasn't so hard."

"I really hope you are not taking me away to kidnap me or commit some other outlandish offence." I half joked.

Kol winked and adopted a crude accent when he answered, "Aye, wee lassie, 'ah bees takin' yer off to the tower dungeon an' holdin' you for a 'andsome ransom." He even closed one eye and hunched his back to look more menacing. The end effect was more comical than frightening and I found myself smiling.

"Oh my, oh my, what ever shall I do," I responded in a breathy high pitched voice. I even went as far as to put a hand to my forehead as if I were about to faint.

Kol chuckled at my performance and I felt a little more at ease with him. Now I could feel excitement rising at seeing the great magician I had heard about. I doubted there was a person in all the kingdoms who had not heard of Tibbar. I was sure that the rumors of him I heard far off in my little town were greatly exaggerated for it was all passed along from traveling bards and traders. Nevertheless, for a man to have such a reputation then he must have lived up to his title of magnificent. Kol seemed to know about the last time the magician was in town. "Did you see Tibbar when he was last in town?"

Kol shook his head. "I tried, but no one would let a scrawny thirteen year old through the crowd around the stage and I was too short then to see over people. I did try to find something to stand on to see over the crowds but to no avail. All I heard was the amazed gasps from the people who could see him. Not this time though. This time I will see Tibbar the Magnificent no matter what."

"You seem very determined; at least you are tall enough now to see over the crowds if you cannot get through them."

"Oh, I intend to be right in front of the stage. I don't want to look over people's heads from far away. I will make sure that we have a good view from front and center." Kol asserted.

"And how do you intend to get to the front of the crowd so easily? People are probably still as against letting people push past them and they were when you were younger. Are you going to fight your way to the front?" I teased.

Kol nodded in mock solemnity. "If I must I will box the whole of the crowd to get to the front. Hopefully you are good at the sport so you can help me cut through the crowd."

I shook my head. "A lady does not fight with her fists."

Cheekily, Kol glanced down at the man's outfit I was wearing. "And you look very ladylike today, Ebb. But if you insist on not fighting alongside me, then I suppose I will just have to use my incredible talents of a thief to expertly dodge around people and maneuver my way to the front. Would that be a more ladylike thing to do?"

"You aren't going to steal from the people are you?" I lectured. "I don't want to be part of any crimes while I am with you."

"Don't worry, dear Ebb. I only steal from the best sort of people like you. Actually after meeting you, a person who was the victim of my thievery, I have done my level best to kick the habit altogether. I think I have made fine progress. In these few days I have only nicked one or two small baubles from people on the streets and one of them was when I took my friend Roark's reading glasses. He can't actually read you see and had just found the things lying in the street one day. But don't fret; I gave them back within the hour."

"I am not joking, Kol, no stealing from people today. I saw you take the apple in the square and I don't want you taking anything else."

He nodded seriously when he answered. "I promise that I will not pick pocket anyone today if it really means that much to you."

"Thank you," I said hoping that he would keep his promise. It was in the moment of silence that followed that I looked around at where we were. There were less people around which was strange since the entire town was celebrating. It looked as if we had gone more than a few streets away. "Where are we? I think we have gone too far."

Kol looked around and turned to speak to Tim who was still leading the horse forward. Kol whistled to get his attention. "Tim, where are you taking us? I thought we were going to see Tibbar."

The man turned around halfway and looked at us from under his floppy hat. "I thought you were going back to the lower town today. I thought that I could make a stop up this way before I took you down into the lower town. You know how Mrs. Gerber likes fresh hay to stuff a bed for her crazy dog."

Kol smiled at the mention of the dog. "You've gone too far from where we wanted to go so instead of going into the lower city, you can just turn and return the way we came to the square. I think you would not mind the shorter trip." Tim nodded and stopped the cart before one of the small houses that sat back from the road. Then Kol turned to address me. "I'm sorry, Ebb, it seems I poorly communicated my intentions when I spoke to Tim this morning. Hopefully we will be able to see Tibbar still. I think we can still make it. However, Tim was not kidding about Mrs. Gerber's crazy dog and I would much like to not see the beast today. Would you care for a stroll to stretch our legs?"

I jumped off the cart after Kol but was wary of wandering too far from the cart in a part of town I had never seen before. Then I heard the deep barks of what sounded like a massive dog from behind the door of the house. I looked to where Tim was climbing off the cart and approaching the house. The barks got louder and I could hear a woman's shouts telling the dog to be quiet. The door opened a crack and I glimpsed a massive brown dog going wild on the other side. "Maybe just around the corner," I conceded, I did not want the 'crazy dog' to get lose and attack me. It looked nearly half as tall as I was and an animal that size could easily cause a lot of damage especially with the frenzied way that one was acting.

"Fluffers isn't a mean dog, he's just too overenthusiastic." Kol explained above the barks as we quickly walked away around the corner.

Ooh, a (comparatively) long chapter...

Just so you all know, I have slowed down on posting this story, not on writing it. I just want to write it at the moment and not proof read it so there's been less of the latter going on.