When they first arrived in the inkworld, Meggie could talk of nothing but her father. She worried he would be permanently angry with her for leaving him for the world he had come to despise. Her love for her father, though strange to Farid, was understandable, hadn't he done all of this just to get to Dustfinger? Farid never knew his parents; he was raised by thieves, who were sparse with affection and very cruel. Dustfinger told him the thieves here were different, at least the ones he associated with.
Farid tried to reassure Meggie that the old man she read in here would be able to send her back, but she fretted still. He hated seeing her like this, her blue eyes watery with the tears she fought to hold back, filled with apprehension and regret. It was stupid of him to bring her; she would only distract him from finding Dustfinger and her father would be furious. Still, he was glad she came with him. It would've been a lonely journey through the Wayless Woods without her.
The first night, when Meggie worried that they would be eaten up by a monster and she would never be able to apologize to her father, Farid caught a fairy and told her how Dustfinger had talked about nearly nothing but this world, and that his knowledge was more than sufficient to protect them for a few days.
"But what about the Adderhead's men, or the remainder of Capricorn's fire-raisers?" We can't fight them off, Farid. Resa's told me about this place, too." But Farid brushed it off, claiming no one would travel this far into the woods, that's why Dustfinger picked this place.
"But once we get to Lombrica, you'll have to stay with Dustfinger and me, at least until we find Fenoglio. So you're safe from them." Meggie looked down, her face tinged red but smiling, hopeful the fire was too low for him to see her face clearly. "It might take a while. I doubt he'll be very well-known, writers probably aren't very important here." Her voice was smooth, but overly casual. Most people wouldn't have been able to detect it, but her father, her mother, maybe Elinor, and now Farid, could tell. Farid, of course, took it the wrong way. He was too forward and scared her off, or maybe she didn't like him at all? He had seen her blush, and that blush had made his heart race with a nervous kind of excitement, but maybe it was just out of embarrassment. Meggie was significantly pretty; she'd probably had tons of suitors already. It was likely she only thought of him as the strange boy who followed Dustfinger around. Yet he was sure he had seen a smile creep up on her face… So he went on.
"That'll be fine. You can come with us to perform in the market; maybe you'll attract some more watchers." Meggie gave a quiet, nervous laugh and blushed even deeper red.
"I'd rather not stay in the market the entire time… Resa told me wonderful stories, about fire elves and fairies, trees that grew up to the sky and waterfalls that reflected all of the colors of the rainbow. I'd like to see all of those places, before I go home." Meggie glanced up at Farid, but looked away quickly when their eyes met. If her face wasn't still pink, she may've blushed again. Farid drew his eyes away from her, blushing a bit himself. He stared into the woods, and still looking away from Meggie, answered, "We can go there, too, to see the waterfalls and the trees." His voice started to pick up, excitement bouncing off the words. "This place is like paradise, and we can do, we can go, wherever we want."
He turned to Meggie, beaming, his beautiful eyes filled with anticipation. She grinned back, this time not looking away when his eyes met hers. They were beautiful and dark as the night, Meggie had been captivated by them since Farid first came out of the book. "The thieves used to tell stories," Farid continued, "About paradise, and this was the place they described. Streams and pools of water, trees everywhere, food plentiful." At that he popped a few berries into his mouth.
The moon was high in the sky and the fire low when Meggie drifted into sleep. Farid had convinced her to take second watch, but she looked so peaceful sleeping next to the fire, that he wasn't sure he would be able to wake her up .The fire reflected off her hair, making it shine even brighter. Farid wondered at his fortune. He was read out of his old hell hole of a story to an exciting new world, where he met Dustfinger, whom Farid regarded as something between a father and a god, and Meggie, the most beautiful, cleverest girl he'd ever met. The amateur fire eater sighed and ran a hand through his hair. He sighed again and rolled his eyes. The only lesson his old gang of thieves had taught him that he took to heart was never fall in love. But when he looked at Meggie, heard her laugh, heard her read, Farid didn't regret a thing.
When the first beams of sunlight hit Meggie's face, she awoke. She pushed herself up on her arms, then arched her back and stretched her arms into the air. Closing her eyes and breathing in the cool morning air, Meggie soaked in the moment. Regardless of what would happen when she got home, she loved this world. Everything seemed to be brighter, more colorful, lush and full of life.
And there was Farid. It had started with his eyes, but Meggie found the rest of him was just as beautiful. His excitement for life was refreshing and honest, and watching him perform, even in her world, where the flames weren't as cooperative, was like nothing else.
Meggie opened her eyes and leaned back on her hands. She squinted at the horizon and soaked in the warmth of the sun. A glance was cast at Farid, who seemed to have fallen asleep on his watch, but Meggie decided to ignore it. The woods, so far, seemed to be safe from Night-Mares and the other monsters Fenoglio had dreamt up.
Even in sleep, the fire eater looked exhausted. Meggie was reluctant to wake him, but they needed to get moving. She got up, stretched again, crossed over the ambers of the night's fire and sat on the log Farid had been resting his back on. She shook his arm and whispered "Farid!" in his ear. Meggie hadn't noticed before how strong his arms were…
Farid's eye's fluttered open, his lashes brushing under his eyes. He felt a soft hand on his arm and warm breath on his neck… Meggie? He paused for a moment, unsure what to do. What he wanted was clear to him. To reach up, to hold her hand and greet her with a kiss. Instead, he stayed where he was and murmured tiredly, "I'm awake now… What time is it?" Meggie retracted her hand and moved her head away, answering quietly, "The sun is rising. It's beautiful."
Could the sun here shine like her hair? Farid wondered. Was the sky as blue as her eyes? To Farid, Meggie was an angel made from the heavens; nothing could be as beautiful as her. He briefly looked up at her. She was still entranced by the sunrise, and Farid was entranced by her.
"Yes. Beautiful." Meggie turned to him, and when she saw his eyes on her, blush rose to her cheeks again. He looked away, towards the sunrise. "Everything here is so much more colorful. Look!" He pointed to a swarm of blue fairies, flying up into the sky. Meggie's mouth dropped open at the sight. "Look at how the sunlight reflects through their wings!" She exclaimed. "This world is so wonderful, isn't it, Farid? I think the good makes up for the bad."
The fairies twirled through the air, shades of blue and purple dancing off their wings and onto the bright green leaves, mixing with the pinks, yellows and oranges of the sunrise. A confused, mess of a rainbow formed in the air, shifting and twinkling like a kaleidoscope. The pair stared at the enchanting display, in awe of the beauty of the inkworld. Neither had ever paid much attention to nature, Farid had been concerned with staying alive and Meggie had always had her nose in a book. But now, in a book herself, she began to appreciate the real world.
The fairies departed and so did the momentary magic. The two looked at each other, still astonished, then burst into laughter. The fear and uneasiness from the night before vanished as light laughter filled the air. Meggie fell backwards off the log, and, still laughing, Farid pushed himself over as well. He landed on his head, and Meggie laughed harder. She rolled onto her side and gasped out, "This is so stupid!" Farid nodded his head, and they got up slowly, still chuckling occasionally.
/Just wanted to write something nice and plotless... I've continued though, and have plenty of ideas to turn this into a real fic
