All her people, she informed him gravely, she christened out of stories. It was much nicer than calling them by their real names. They were so much prettier and lots easier to remember--didn't he think so?
Yes, he had made answer. He quite thought that Prince Charlie was an improvement on his own name. But Gracie betrayed no anxiety to know what that was. To her henceforth he was Prince Charlie. That was quite sufficient--she was a godmother of the most self-satisfied type.
Turning to Miss Mivvins the child continued, with a trace of reproach in her voice--she felt she had been defrauded:
"Besides, your giants never had three heads!"
A trinity of that description--unity is strength--appeared an unanswerable argument; seemed to her to clinch the matter. She climbed down from Masters' knee, and jumped her way down the steps to the sands, with bucket and spade rattling in her little hand.
As she disappeared, Masters took his courage in both hands; a trifle nervously continued the conversation:
"I shall have to prescribe a course of Grimm's _Fairy Tales_, if you wish to resume your position as story-teller-in-chief."
His speech was at random. The ice was broken; they had spoken; he did not want the coldness of silence to freeze it all over again. Having got in the thin edge of the wedge he proposed to drive it right home--if possible. Hence his speech.
Miss Mivvins laughed. The child liked him--so did she. Fearful of driving her away, he had not attempted to force conversation. She had curled up a trifle because of his reserve--hence they had spoken but little. Unknown to themselves their communication had been more subtle than that of words, perhaps had paved the way for them. They came easily enough now.
"You also," he said, "seem to have a taste for fiction of a pronounced type. I see you are reading one of my books."
"Your books?" Her query was uttered in a tone of surprise. "Oh, no! This came down from Mudie's with other volumes yesterday."
He laughed openly at her concern--a hearty, resounding laugh, a trifle loud, but with a pleasant honest ring in it; continued:
"I don't doubt that the library people acquired it honestly. My claim was not made in a possessory sense. I meant that my name figures on the title page."