past with a
piece of scenery—which explained why the corridors were wider here, if things were
stored on this floor.
Suzie handed over the costume to Katie, who took it reflexively, and the two of them
went back up the stairs and to the dressing room. “Here,” Suzie said, sitting Katie
down at one of the tables. “This is mine, and you might as well have it. We can share
until you’re trained and I can leave.” She showed Katie where and what all the makeup
was; Katie already knew more than enough about the matter to know what to do with
it, and said as much. “I worked in a circus—” she began, and Suzie laughed.
“Well, as long as you weren’t a clown, then you should be all right.”
Then they got Suzie into enough of her costume for a rehearsal, and Katie into the
page boy outfit, which consisted of a pair of red bloomers and a billowy yellow blouse
with a red vest all embroidered with spangles that snugged tight around her chest
with front lacings. Like most acrobats she was . . . rather flat. When she looked
at herself in the mirror, with her hair up, she
did
look a good bit like a page boy. Certainly not like pretty Suzie, in her slave girl
finery . . .
“There, that looks good enough,” Suzie said.
“Is this going to be all right?” she asked, doubtfully. “I look like a boy.”
Suzie laughed. “Lionel is more than good enough that he doesn’t need a pretty assistant
to distract the eye,” she said proudly. “A page boy will do as well as I will. Come
on then—Lionel will be waiting, I can promise you. He goes to rehearsals more than
a preacher goes to church.”
Katie followed her mentor back into the cramped corridor, and from there to the stage,
and sure enough, there was the magician, in ordinary clothing with his shirtsleeves
rolled up, fussing with the sword-basket.
• • •
Lionel had been utterly astonished to see one of Jack’s salamanders riding along on
the would-be assistant’s shoulders when she had turned up to audition. And within
moments, it was quite obvious that
she
was utterly oblivious to its presence.
It seemed that the fates or the Elementals had decided to dump an entire barrel of
good fortune on him at once. The girl moved easily and freely, she was small and lithe,
and—
Well, that certainly explained why Jack had been so eloquent in his insistence that
Lionel run his eyes over this new applicant immediately. He’d even stumped his way
up to Lionel’s dressing room to insist on it, though Lionel had (as usual) had people
hanging about, and Jack had not been able to be specific about why he was so anxious.
There was no doubt, whatsoever, that if there was
any
chance she was suitable, he should take her on no matter how long it took her to take
to the act. An unawakened Fire magician was certainly not going to turn up at the
stage door every day.
He was delighted to see she was clearly a dancer—her costume told him that. Typical
little gauze skirt and bodice, useful for a thousand roles, depending on what you
decorated it with. Not only was it fitted to her, personally, it was far too worn
for her to be anything but a dancer with plenty of experience. Her little routine
was quite good—to be honest she was better than every other dancer currently working
here at the Palace, although she was not going to set the world on fire at the Paris
Opera Ballet. He was even more delighted when she performed some acrobatics and contortion.
She was better than those blasted Italians, and he had been getting so desperate he
had been thinking strongly of recruiting one of them, though he preferred female assistants.
She was smart, willing and flexible—and quite desperate for a job, desperate enough
to jump right into the sword-basket and let him run the trick on her without a moment
of hesitation. By the time she was done, he was convinced, and hired her on the spot.
piece of scenery—which explained why the corridors were wider here, if things were
stored on this floor.
Suzie handed over the costume to Katie, who took it reflexively, and the two of them
went back up the stairs and to the dressing room. “Here,” Suzie said, sitting Katie
down at one of the tables. “This is mine, and you might as well have it. We can share
until you’re trained and I can leave.” She showed Katie where and what all the makeup
was; Katie already knew more than enough about the matter to know what to do with
it, and said as much. “I worked in a circus—” she began, and Suzie laughed.
“Well, as long as you weren’t a clown, then you should be all right.”
Then they got Suzie into enough of her costume for a rehearsal, and Katie into the
page boy outfit, which consisted of a pair of red bloomers and a billowy yellow blouse
with a red vest all embroidered with spangles that snugged tight around her chest
with front lacings. Like most acrobats she was . . . rather flat. When she looked
at herself in the mirror, with her hair up, she
did
look a good bit like a page boy. Certainly not like pretty Suzie, in her slave girl
finery . . .
“There, that looks good enough,” Suzie said.
“Is this going to be all right?” she asked, doubtfully. “I look like a boy.”
Suzie laughed. “Lionel is more than good enough that he doesn’t need a pretty assistant
to distract the eye,” she said proudly. “A page boy will do as well as I will. Come
on then—Lionel will be waiting, I can promise you. He goes to rehearsals more than
a preacher goes to church.”
Katie followed her mentor back into the cramped corridor, and from there to the stage,
and sure enough, there was the magician, in ordinary clothing with his shirtsleeves
rolled up, fussing with the sword-basket.
• • •
Lionel had been utterly astonished to see one of Jack’s salamanders riding along on
the would-be assistant’s shoulders when she had turned up to audition. And within
moments, it was quite obvious that
she
was utterly oblivious to its presence.
It seemed that the fates or the Elementals had decided to dump an entire barrel of
good fortune on him at once. The girl moved easily and freely, she was small and lithe,
and—
Well, that certainly explained why Jack had been so eloquent in his insistence that
Lionel run his eyes over this new applicant immediately. He’d even stumped his way
up to Lionel’s dressing room to insist on it, though Lionel had (as usual) had people
hanging about, and Jack had not been able to be specific about why he was so anxious.
There was no doubt, whatsoever, that if there was
any
chance she was suitable, he should take her on no matter how long it took her to take
to the act. An unawakened Fire magician was certainly not going to turn up at the
stage door every day.
He was delighted to see she was clearly a dancer—her costume told him that. Typical
little gauze skirt and bodice, useful for a thousand roles, depending on what you
decorated it with. Not only was it fitted to her, personally, it was far too worn
for her to be anything but a dancer with plenty of experience. Her little routine
was quite good—to be honest she was better than every other dancer currently working
here at the Palace, although she was not going to set the world on fire at the Paris
Opera Ballet. He was even more delighted when she performed some acrobatics and contortion.
She was better than those blasted Italians, and he had been getting so desperate he
had been thinking strongly of recruiting one of them, though he preferred female assistants.
She was smart, willing and flexible—and quite desperate for a job, desperate enough
to jump right into the sword-basket and let him run the trick on her without a moment
of hesitation. By the time she was done, he was convinced, and hired her on the spot.
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