Free Castle Walls by D Jordan Redhawk

as she watched Ros teach the girls a simple trick. How can she be so sweet and so vulgar at the same time?
    When each of the children had mastered the act of a disappearing coin, Ros appeared to pull a piece of hard candy from each one's ear and present it to them, smiling and commending their magical abilities. As they scampered off to their parents, she rose, winked once more at Katerin and returned to the center of the square. Tommaso and Martim finished their act, waving at the scattered applause as they backed away.
    "Township of Hodsin! You've seen but an insignificant offering here. Tonight, you will witness such wonders that only the courts of kings and emperors have seen." Ros turned in place, eyes raking everyone present with a mixture of mystery and glee. "You will be able to see aerial feats of daring, magic, juggling and much, much more!"
    "Do ye still breath fire, lass?" a woman called from the audience.
    The blonde turned and bowed, a grin on her face. "Aye, I do. I've yet to lose an eyebrow from it."
    Laughing, another spoke. "And do you still have dancers?" He wiggled his eyebrows, a friend guffawing and thumping him on the back.
    "Aye!" Ros answered. "Lucinda and Habibah are preparing for your… entertainment, even as we speak." She smiled at the murmur of anticipation. Bringing things to a close, she bowed with an elegant flourish and stepped back, her troupe taking her cue and boarding their transportation. "Join us
tonight, good folk of Hodsin. We will be awaiting you."
    Katerin found herself being hustled up the wagon, the blonde in close pursuit. Settling in their seat, Ros grabbed up the reins, quickly untangling them. As the horses began the trek back through town, she murmured through smiling lips, "Smile! Wave at them, Katerin."
    Doing as ordered, the princess watched as the people drifted along with them, children running in excitement until they reached the edge of town. From there, they continued on unescorted. Once around a bend in the road and out of sight, the princess dropped her arm and faced forward again.
    "That went well," Ros said. "I expect we'll get quite the turnout tonight."
    Heartened by the attempt at conversation, Katerin asked, "Is it like that in every town?"
    The blonde head shook in the negative. "No. Not always. During good years, we receive good bounty. In bad… Well, suffice it to say, when the crops suffer, so do we. People are less willing to be kind-hearted." After a thoughtful pause, she said, "It's been a good year so far, and we've only just begun the season. Any extra foodstuffs we'll receive will go into the stores for the winter."
    Conversation halted for a few moments, the only sound the steady clop clop of hooves in the road. "What happens now?" Katerin asked.
    "Now? We return to camp, prepare to greet our guests and put on the best show ever."
     
    Tending the firepits was a filthy job. Katerin, a smudge of dark ash decorating her right cheek, added more kindling to the iron brazier. As the flame caught, she adjusted the mirror, directing the light towards the makeshift stage. She kept low, moving to the next pot to repeat her actions. Nearly a dozen braziers circled the center of the tent, providing illumination for the performers. It had fallen on Katerin and Ilia, the least skilled of the troupe, to keep them blazing. Currently, the dark young woman was alone in her task, as her handmaiden was needed to play the lute for an upcoming act.
    Around her, the crowd burst into laughter. Glancing at the cleared center, she saw Usiku pulling what appeared to be a long string of colorful cloth from his breeches. That the material turned out to be several pairs of smallclothes tied together only made the audience laugh harder. An exaggerated look of embarrassment when he finally peeked into his breeches forced a chuckle from Katerin; she shook her head at his antics, stoking the small fire before her.
    Scattered around the edges of the audience were torches to light