Ace is older now, and she will let the reader know before she knows herself what she will do after she discovers the Magic behind the magic. More than the sawdust and animals, greasepaint and sweat, Ace learns that Circus is a tight subculture which travels long and weary roads. She embraces a community that she finds is held together by competition and showmanship, jealousy and deceit. What sees her through her initial disillusionment is not the ability to shill or juggle but daily practice of the oldest and surest magic: the ability to love.