Eleven grinned, looking out over the din of the crowd. He had to lean close to hear her over it.

"I like it," he confessed, content to wait. "This sort of place is what I'm used to. Gondoliers are just workers in the end."

Unlike the nobles they had to pretend to be at court or around the palace, but he didn't have to say that for Lily to understand what he meant. "I think the people live more vibrantly without costumes."