minutes, they ignored each other. Georgie continued messing around with her cigar box and her black tape, and Milo sipped his hot chocolate, acutely aware of the paperback tucked in his back pocket.
When heâd emptied his mug, he finally spoke up. âHeyâMiss Moselle?â he asked awkwardly. âCan I get you anything? More hot chocolate?â
âNo, thanks,â Georgie replied. âDonât worry about me. And you can call me Georgie, if you want.â
Milo paused on his way to the kitchen and looked at the box she was occupied with. âWhat is that, by the way?â
She held it up. âPinhole camera.â
A camera? Made out of a cigar box? That was enough to distract him from both the empty mug in his hand and the book in his pocket. âWhatâs a pinhole camera?â
âYou can make a camera out of just about anything,â Georgie said as she handed the box to him. âAs long as thereâs an opening for light and a surface to capture it and turn it into an image. Do you know anything about photography?â
âNope.â Milo turned it over in his hands. Georgie had taped up all the edges, but there was a hole cut into the front of it. He tried to look inside, but all he could see was darkness.
âThereâs nothing to see right now,â Georgie told him. âWhen Iâm sure Iâve sealed up all the light leaks, Iâll put photo paper in there. That hole will be the aperture.â She took the box back and smiled at it. âIâve always wanted to make one. Iâve just never tried before. Of course, this one isnât finished yet, but I think . . . yes . . . I think itâll work. It needs a name, though.â
Milo laughed. âA name? For a camera?â
âSure. All the coolest ones have great names. Hasselblad, Rollei, Voigtländer, Leica . . .â She held up the box between them as if her palm were a pedestal and declared, âI shall call it the
Lansdegown.
â She gave Milo a sharp, mock-accusing look. âUnless you think it doesnât
deserve
a name. Unless, in your vast cigar-box-camera wisdom, you think itâs not
good enough.
â
âNo, no, it does, it does.â He forced himself to look solemnly at the box. âLansdegown it is. Whatâs it mean, though?â
âLansdegown?â Georgie tilted her head. âDonât you know?â
He thought hard. âNope.â
âI bet you do,â she said with a little smile. âI bet youâve just forgotten. See if you can remember what
lansdegown
means, and then you can tell me if you think itâs the right name for my camera.â
Milo reached into his pocket and held out the paperback. Surely she wouldnât be angry. She would understand it had only been a mistake. âI took this when we were cleaning upâI didnât realize I had it in my hand. I meant to bring it back to you earlier,â he said, âbut I forgot. Iâm awfully sorry.â
âAha! I thought Iâd forgotten to pack it.â Georgie smiled. âNo problem. You ever read it?â
How odd. All that running around with this book, and he hadnât even noticed what it was called. The cover was plain, just heavy red paper with the title stamped on it in gray letters. â
The Raconteurâs Commonplace Book,
â Milo read, pronouncing the unfamiliar word carefully. âI donât think so. Whatâs a raconteur?â
âItâs an old-fashioned word for a storyteller. This is a collection of folklore from hereabouts. You might know some of the stories.â Georgie took the book and flipped through it, then handed it back open to the second chapter. âKnow this one?â
ââThe Game of Maps.ââ Milo shook his head again. âI donât think so.â
He held it out to her, but the blue-haired girl just waved her hand. âRead a few. See what