“Come on, Nadya! We’re gonna be late and you know how your mama gets…”

“Alright. I don’t want her to be mad at you. Mama’s scary when she’s mad.”

“Yeah, she is.” Vita and Nadya weaved their way through the crowd, their small stature coming in handy as they easily passed below the notice of all the adults.

“Oops! Sorry, mister!” Vita yelped as she stumbled against a tall, fair-haired young man leaning against the fortune-telling tent. She reached up to adjust her head wrap but stopped suddenly as she caught a glimpse of the man’s face. In her world of dark hair and darker eyes, Vita had never seen the pale blue color that stared out of this man’s face.

Nadya squealed delightedly as she too saw the man’s face. “Wow, mister! You have funny eyes. And funny hair! Where did you get that from?”

Vita poked her small friend angrily. “Nadya!"