Author: Okay, so I've always liked Cornelia Funke's writing, and I particularly liked Inkheart. I've never read Inkspell yet, (getting there) so this is how I would write it.

Inkspell

With Resa, Meggie, and Mo all reunited once again, Meggie thought it felt sort of odd. She never really missed her mother, since she never really had one. Sometimes when Resa hugged Meggie with her father looking on lovingly, Meggie felt like she would burst with all the love. It felt good, too though.

It had been several years since Capricorn and his men were swallowed up by the shadow. Dustfinger had disappeared long ago, and Farid along with him. Meggie missed Farid and his chocolate brown skin, and to her shame, she missed Dustfinger as well. She wanted to remember him that night that he performed for her and Eleanor, with the firelight casting orange shadows on his scarred face.

Eleanor. She had moved long ago, and started up her book collection again. Evidently she didn't want Basta, Flatnose, or Cockerell paying her a surprise visit again. It had wrenched Eleanor's heart out to find only ashes that used to be her, beautiful, priceless books. Meggie didn't ever want to feel like that. Ever.

Those days were just a wrinkle on Mo's forehead. He never spoke of them again, but Meggie would occasionally ask a question, to either him or her mother. Resa was making out very well. Meggie had found some sign language books at the library, and taught the family how to communicate without speaking. Her mother preferred writing to them, since she could still hear them talking to her. Meggie had caught on very well to calling her mother Resa, while Mo still liked Teresa. Either he was coping very well with what had happened, or he had forgotten it completely, and Meggie decided that it wasn't the latter.

Meggie was now fourteen, officially a teenager, as Mo had joked with her. Her hair had lightened a bit, and was now closer to the golden blonde colour that Resa's hair was. She had begun growing the curves of a woman, and was a few inches taller. The angles of her face were now sharper; her babyish cheeks had disappeared to reveal high cheekbones. Mo had grown fond of telling Meggie that she looked remarkably like her mother, and nothing like him.

The worry about Inkheart that Meggie had long ago about the book disappearing had long dissolved. Basta wouldn't show up at her door again, Flatnose wouldn't kidnap Mo, and Cockerell wouldn't lock Resa up again. She had been worried for the longest time about it, having horrible dreams about it. But then the fear just… evaporated. And she was glad for it. For two years, Meggie never thought about Basta or Capricorn again.

And then one night, all the memories were stirred up again.

One night, Resa, Mo, and Meggie were playing a game of Monopoly. The power had gone out about a half hour ago, and Mo suggested playing a game. Candles lined the windowsills, lighting up the living room. Rain was pounding the windows, and Meggie almost believed that the glass would come loose of the frame. A soft knocking could barely be heard above the rain.

"I'll get it!" Meggie hopped up out of her seat and answered the door.

A, drippy-haired, Farid was standing in the doorway. "Farid!" Meggie cried as she flung herself on him, giving him a bear hug.

"Hello, Meggie," Farid said quietly into her ear, hugging halfheartedly back. He was much taller than Meggie remembered, and his voice had deepened slightly, but you could tell he was still a boy.

"Farid?" Mo and Resa got up from the coffee table, Resa smiling brightly. Meggie let go of Farid so Resa could hug him and give him a peck on the cheek.

"How are you?" Mo asked. "Come in out of the rain, it's freezing out," he invited Farid as Meggie ushered him in and shut the door.

"Well," Farid ran his hand through his shaggy, dripping hair, sending droplets flying. "I was just fine up until a few days ago."

Mo cocked his head. "What do you mean?"

"It's a long story."

"We're not going anywhere in this storm," Mo said. "Teresa, will you go make some coffee? And Meggie, go get some towels for him."

Meggie almost rolled her eyes, but saved it. Mo was obviously getting rid of her mother and herself so he could talk to Farid about Inkheart. She walked off to the bathroom to find Farid the spongiest towels they could provide.

When Meggie returned to the living room with the towels, she stayed hidden in the hallway, but close enough so she could hear their conversation.

"…taken some people hostage. Basta managed to get some other boys to join them. The new recruits were mostly runaways drawn in by rumors. You know, the drama and such."

Mo didn't say anything. Meggie strained her ears. "How did you come to hear this?" He whispered.

It sounded as though Farid was shuffling his feet. So he finally got used to shoes, Meggie thought with a grin.

"I heard about some women who mysteriously went missing in this seaside hamlet, so I investigated. Turns out that their new base is another abandoned village, deeper in the woods. I don't think it has electricity."

Mo must have nodded. "How many people did they take hostage?"

"Hmm, maybe, twenty?" Farid guessed. "But here's the worse news. They have Eleanor."

"What!?" The word leaped out of her mouth without her consent. She had grown to appreciate Eleanor during the two and a bit years that she'd known her.

"Meggie!" Mo sounded angry. He turned the corner to where she had been hiding quietly. "What have I told you about eavesdropping!"

"I couldn't help it, Mo!"

"It's fine, Silvertongue," Farid said reasonably, putting a hand on Mo's shoulder. "She would have found out sooner or later."

Mo's nostrils flared once, and the blood that has risen up to his face in anger returned to his pale skin colour. "You still shouldn't eavesdrop, Meggie."

"What are we going to do about Eleanor?" Meggie asked quietly.

Mo sighed heavily, and flumped down onto the couch behind him. "I don't know."

Meggie looked at the still-dripping Farid. "Oh! I completely forgot about the towels!" She took one in her hands, and wrapped them around his shoulders. "Sorry," She whispered, flushing slightly in the candlelight.

"No problem," Farid whispered back.

Mo didn't seem to notice this interaction. "Um," He ran his fingers through his sandy blonde hair. "You want a bowl of soup, or something?"

Farid nodded, and took a seat on the loveseat opposite Mo. "Thanks."

Mo hopped up, but as he did so, Resa entered the room carrying a tray with a steaming bowl of soup and a mug of coffee.

"Thank you," Farid smiled at Resa as she set the tray down in front of him.

"We have a lot of catching up to do." Said Mo, and he, Meggie and Resa began telling their visitor about the years they missed.