The same but backward, thought Ruby. This meant that although Lacey, like Ruby, occupied the room on the second floor opposite the top of the staircase, it was in fact on the other side of the house, and because the Morrises lived in one of the coveted end-of-the-row houses, Lacey had a corner bedroom featuring not only a window facing the front yard but one facing south as well. It was a bright, airy room, and Ruby was slightly jealous of it — a fact she did her best to hide. “You know,” said Ruby one afternoon as she and Hilary Nelson and Lacey sat in Lacey’s sun-filled room, “we should really make a decision about our Halloween costumes right now and get started on them.” “Especially since we might need help with them,” said Lacey. “Yeah. We should give Min and Flora and your parents plenty of advance warning. Your parents, too, Hilary.” “Don’t we want to make the costumes ourselves?”
