“It’s scary!” he protested when he and Maisie went to retrieve the masks and clothes at Sandro’s studio. “You know I don’t like scary costumes.”
Maisie sighed in frustration.
“I don’t understand you, Felix,” she said. “A great Renaissance artist makes you a mask, and you’re complaining because it’s too scary.”
“It’s the Plague Doctor!” Felix said, exasperated.
“But it’s great,” Maisie insisted. “When will you ever get a costume like this again?”
“Well, I don’t understand you,” Felix said, putting the coat and hat on, the mask tucked under one arm.
“Fine,” Maisie said.
“Fine,” Felix said.
The streets were so crowded that it was hard for Maisie and Felix to stay together. People pushed between them and behind them, and more than once Felix lost sight of Maisie. Her blond hair made it easy for him to spot her, but as the crowd thickened it became more and more difficult.
This time, even on tiptoe he couldn’t find her.
“Maisie!” Felix called, to no avail. The sounds of the crowd combined with music and the clopping of horses’ hooves drowned out his voice.
He was walking along the Arno, still on tiptoe, when a strong hand clasped his shoulder, halting him.
Felix glanced back and up into the face of a red-robed priest scowling at him.
“It’s almost time for the vergognosi to begin,” the priest said, yanking Felix from the crowd.
Priests have a lot of power here, Felix thought as the crowd separated for them.
The priest kept a firm hand on Felix as he maneuvered through the streets. With a sinking feeling, Felix realized he and Maisie were getting separated again. At least this time they knew to meet Leonardo at the start of the procession.
“You weren’t even heading toward the Piazza degli Innocenti, were you?” the priest said when they reached a piazza.
“No,” Felix said, “actually my sister and I—”
Boom!
The priest slapped Felix on the side of the head.
“Don’t be impertinent!” he barked.
“Ouch!” Felix said, rubbing his head, which earned him another slap.
“Now join the others,” the priest said, giving Felix a shove.
The others appeared to be . . . boys. More boys than Felix had ever seen in one place, all of them lined up beneath flags, their hands joined together.
One of the boys made room for Felix to join them.
What else could he do?
Slowly, Felix took the spot the boy offered, taking the clammy hand of one boy and the rough hand of another.
They all faced a church with a statue of a saint or something in front of it.
The clammy-hand boy whispered, awed, “Our Lady of the Annunziata.”
The priest mumbled some prayers.
The boys repeated whatever he said.
A trumpet sounded, and as if that was their cue, all the boys got in formation and began to march.
They marched out of the piazza to the Arno River, crowds following them as they moved.
Felix tried to do exactly what the others did so as not to get another slap on the head. Still, he fell behind as he searched in vain for Maisie and had to scurry to catch up.
Finally, they arrived at San Marco cathedral.
Trumpets announced their arrival, and people threw flowers in their path. For an instant, Felix felt special, even though he had no idea why these boys were doing this, or why everyone had come out to see them.
Inside the packed cathedral, people reached out and began to give the boys things: silverware, veils, and coins. At first, Felix said, “No, thank you,” when someone tried to thrust something into his hands, but eventually, afraid to stand out, he, too, accepted their gifts.
The coins would at least come in handy, he decided as he jammed them into his pockets. One of the problems with time traveling was never having any money. Now he and Maisie would be able to buy food if they got hungry. But he had no idea what he would do with the enormous silver candlestick or the elegantly carved spoons.
A voice cut through the racket.
“Felix?”
Felix turned toward it, and there stood Leonardo looking as puzzled as Felix felt.
When Leonardo stepped from the crowd to rescue Felix, a murmur spread through the cathedral. Already, Leonardo was considered an artist to pay attention to, someone whom the Medicis had taken under their wing. Even the priest allowed him to escort Felix from the group of boys and lead him out of the cathedral.
“Do you need that candlestick?” Leonardo teased.
“Uh, no,” Felix said, setting it down on the steps of San Marco.
“I see the cardinal thought you were one of the vergognosi,” Leonardo said as they walked through the cobblestone streets.
“That’s what he said!”