Well everyone, here is the second chapter. I got the idea when I went to a fair this past weekend and made some Spin Art.
"Have you ever been to a fair, Iris?" Nash asked.
Iris looked up at him curiously. "What's a fair, your majesty?"
"It's like a large party where people can play games, make arts and crafts, and get food."
"Oh. It sounds like the village bazaar we used to have every year when the merchants would come."
"It's sort of like a bazaar, I suppose. Do you want to go?"
Iris though it over for a moment. She had enjoyed the village bazaars, from what she could remember, and with the Emperor, she would be perfectly safe. "Alright. As long as it's not too much trouble."
"It's no trouble, Iris." Nash smiled tenderly down at the girl. She was always anxious to make sure she wasn't a bother to anyone.
At first, Iris was frightened by the large crowds and stuck close to Nash's side. Not even the village bazaar had ever been this crowded- and they hadn't had all these large, noisy machines either.
"They're just rides, Iris," Nash told the young girl, hoping to calm her fear. "They're supposed to be fun." Iris, however, was not convinced, and so Nash took her to the quieter part of the fair where the games and arts and crafts were. Iris's interest was peaked, but she was too shy to request something of the Emperor.
"Here's something you might like," he said, leading her over to a place people were standing in line in front of a metal box. The person currently at the box was pouring red paint into it. Iris looked up at Nash in bewilderment.
"It's Spin Art," he explained. "You put a piece of paper in the spinner, and while it spins very fast, you pour paint in though the slot. It makes a colorful picture."
Iris was fascinated. "Can I-" she looked up at him hopefully. "Can I try it?"
"Of course you can." The two of them approached the stand where the unpainted pieces of paper were. "How much?" the Emperor asked. Iris gripped his hand tighter. She didn't want to cost him a lot of money.
"Six tickets," the lady behind the counter said. Iris frowned. Tickets? Did his majesty even have some of this currency?
To the girl's very great relief, the Emperor was well prepared and promptly held out a string of 6 paper squares, all attached to each other.
The woman behind the counter accepted the payment, took a white piece of paper from the stacks behind her, and handed it to Iris.
They had to wait in line for a while, but eventually it was Iris's turn to put her paper into the strange box. The girl behind the machine closed the lid and started up the spinner. Iris stared at her blank piece of paper through the glass. It was going so fast that it looked circular.
"Go on, Iris," Nash whispered from behind her. "Pour some paint in." Iris looked at the assortment of colors. There were so many… how could she choose? She looked around for some help. Her gaze landed on the Emperor beside her, who by this time was looking a little worried, and was suddenly struck with inspiration. She reached for her first bottle of paint.
The rest of the day passed quickly. They had to give the Spin Art time to dry, so Nash took her around the rest of the fair. They played several games, including one-on-one floor hockey, which Iris won. (She was suspicious that the Emperor had let her, but he had acted so embarrassed about losing to a little girl that she didn't bring it up.) They had hotdogs and soda for lunch, and then for the first time, Iris got to try ice cream and cotton candy. She wondered later how she had ever gotten on without them.
Towards the end of the day, Iris felt brave enough to try one of the rides. They decided on the mini-Ferris Wheel. At first Iris was nervous about falling out, but eventually she grew to enjoy herself. She enjoyed herself so much that she asked the Emperor to take her again, which he did.
Finally, they returned to the Spin Art stand to collect Iris's art work. As she looked at her final product, Iris beamed with happiness. It was perfect. First, there was a ring of ocean blue, then one of purple, then one of navy blue, and the center of the page was gold. Proudly, Iris presented the picture to Nash.
"This is very good, Iris," Nash told her as they walked out of the fair. "What made you choose these colors?"
"You don't know?"
"Should I?"
"The ocean blue is for your eyes," Iris said, ticking it off on her fingers, "The purple is for your hair, the royal blue is because you're royal, and the gold is for your golden heart."
Nash looked down at the little girl he cared about so much, eyes moist. "So, this is a picture of me?"
"I-in a way, yes. Do you like it?"
Nash knelt down to the girl's level. "Iris, it's perfect."
