Luz rolled her eyes. From the sound of its name, that Field of Miracles must have been something very beautiful and magical. "What is it? I've never heard of it"

"Yeah, me neither" Gus said suspiciously. That woman didn't seem dangerous, but he had a bad feeling about it.

"You've obviously never heard of it, it's a secret" Terra explained. "It is a field located in a town on the other side of this forest. This town was once the poorest in the world, and the people lived in hardship; then, a fairy decided to help them and blessed a field of uncultivated wheat giving it the ability to grow entire money trees. All it takes is for a person to make a hole in it and sow even just a single coin, for example, say, a gold sequin, and then cover the hole with a little ' of earth, he waters it with two buckets of fountain water, throws a pinch of salt on it, and in the evening he goes quietly to bed, and at that point the magic happens: just like a plant during the night the secchino sprouts and it flowers, and the next morning, returning to the field, what do you find? You find a beautiful tree loaded with as many gold coins as grains of wheat a beautiful ear of wheat can have in the month of June"

Luz's eyes sparkled. If she had sown her five coins in the Field of Miracles, who knows how much money she could have gotten! She could have made her mother so rich that she would never have to work again for her entire life!

But unlike Luz, Gus didn't immediately believe that story. He knew magic existed, after all he had literally seen a fairy animate a puppet, so the existence of a Field of Miracles wasn't that far-fetched in his eyes; however, he wasn't convinced at all that the woman was telling the truth. The mere fact that there was the possibility that something existed didn't automatically make it real, and above all it didn't make anyone who spoke about it a person worthy of trust. "If such a camp exists, why does no one know about it? It should be seized by all the poor of the world"

"I told you, it's a secret" Terra answered. "After the fairy left, all the inhabitants of that country became filthy rich, but this wealth began to attract attention: many rich people from other countries began to be interested in how those poor people had managed to accumulate such wealth, and began to spy on them. The kings and marquises and dukes, blinded by greed, imposed increasingly large taxes. The inhabitants of that country understood that if the secret of the Field of Miracles was revealed, then all these people would gather their troops and they would first have completely razed the country to the ground and then they would have waged war on each other, shedding profuse blood in order to possess that field, and what was an altruistic gift from a fairy would have turned into the object of an eternal fratricidal conflict. to take a solemn oath: never to reveal the existence of the Field of Miracles to any foreigner, so that peace could continue to reign"

That version was quite plausible; Gus and Luz weren't certainly people who knew everything about the world, but they had seen first-hand where ambition and greed led people, first with the Principal and then with Adeghast. It was also hardly a secret that humans constantly desired to accumulate wealth, especially men of power such as kings, princes, and nobles. If such a Field of Miracles had existed and everyone knew of its existence, every nation in the world would have instantly gone to war with every other to possess it. It would have been the beginning of an eternal conflict without ever a winner, in which everyone would have fought each other to the end, they would have taken a break to rebuild their strength, and then they would have fought each other again, and so on for the whole eternity. It was normal that the inhabitants preferred to keep the matter secret, given that the alternative was a bloodbath. "But if it's so secret, then how do you know about it?" Gus asked again.

"It's thanks to my friend" Terra said. "His cousin went to live in that town and married a local woman, and so he discovered the truth; and since cousins love each other, he then sent a letter to my friend in which he informed him of the existence of the Field of Miracles and invited him to come without telling anyone about it. My friend, however, wanted to share this secret with me, and now I have shared it with you, Luz, because you seem trustworthy and I think you could do good use of this information. Oh, and you too, little spider"

Gus blushed at what Terra had just called him; he knew he was small even by the standards of his own species, let alone humans, but being called 'little spider' still wasn't pleasant. It made him feel like this woman was looking down on him. He was about to retort when someone emerged from the woods: "Hey, Terra, I found some fruits and... uh, who is her?"

Luz observed the person who had arrived with a fair amount of interest: he was a man shorter than Terra but still quite tall, with a perfectly smooth face and without a trace of beard and well-groomed hair combed back; she was wearing a light blue dress with two wide fur shoulder pads, and had two long black trousers. The singular thing, however, was that from the base of his back emerged a prehensile tail ending in a yellow tuft similar to a paintbrush.

"This is Luz" Terra introduced her. "Luz, this is my best friend and companion, Adrian Graye Vernworth. Sorry Adrian, I know I shouldn't have, but I told her about the Field of Miracles"

Adrian looked confused, but only for a moment; the instant he met Terra's gaze, a flicker of understanding flashed in his eyes. "What!? You knew you shouldn't have! Now she's going to tell other people about it!"

"I would never do that! I promised I would keep it a secret and I will!" Luz exclaimed. She wasn't good at obeying orders from her mother or anyone else, but she would never reveal a secret someone had told her, especially if it was that important.

Adrian rolled his eyes; he looked very angry indeed. "Why did you do that?" he asked Terra.

The woman clasped her hands as if she were very sorry. "Excuse me, but she said that her mother is very poor, to the point that she sold a jacket to buy her a spelling book. She was lucky enough to get five gold coins, but you know better than me how little money lasts. But if she could use the Field of Miracles, then she wouldn't have to worry about certain things anymore!"

Adrian looked at her, then he sighed. "You've always been soft-hearted. Sooner or later someone will take advantage of you" he said, then he held out his hand towards Luz. "But if Terra trusts you, I want to trust you too. As my partner has already told you, my name is Adrian, but everyone calls me the Cat"

Luz shook her hand tightly. Even in that case it wasn't difficult to understand the reason for that nickname: Adrian moved just like a cat, silent and agile, and even his expressions were distantly reminiscent of those of a feline. If Terra looked like a fox, Adrian definitely looked like a cat. "It's nice to meet you. Sorry if I ask, but is that tail real?"

"This? Oh, no, it's just a prop. You know, I'm obsessed with acting" Adrian explained. "And I'm always interested in achieving the highest level of realism. What you see is my best work: a few years ago I created an animal costume to be able to deceive... ehm, to entertain a hunter who was reputed to have received a good heritage. Unfortunately the upper part of the costume was ruined, but this one remained, and since it looked so good on me I chose to always keep it with me. I now consider this tail an integral part of my being"

"Uh, you're obsessed with acting? So you're an actor?" Luz asked.

"Not really. I'm some kind of screenwriter" Adrian answered. "I am the one who writes the stories, who imagines the right place so that immersion is total, who calculates any unexpected events, and so on. But when it comes to taking an active part in acting, it is my friend Terra who... gets dirty hands, so to speak. At most I play the supporting role"

Luz was about to say something, but suddenly Gus jumped on her hand and waved to get the man's attention. "Sir, could you please give me some lessons?" he exclaimed, completely oblivious to any doubts he had had before. "I also make acting my life, I use it to camouflage myself or imitate flowers or simulate the sound of the wind to attract flies!"

Adrian seemed to notice the spider's presence just at that moment, and initially he seemed uncomfortable, but a stern look from Terra immediately made him change his attitude. "Well, I'm glad I met a colleague!" he said. "I have never given advice to a spider, but I would like to give you this: the important thing is that you absolutely do not understand that it is an act. The job of a true acting magician is to make the act seem absolutely real. Every speech, every movement, every body language, even every single word must be carefully planned and calculated so that the spectator ends up completely believing in the play. The lie must replace the truth, in practice"

"The lie must replace the truth?" Gus repeated in fascination.

"Exactly. And the best way to do that is to understand what exactly the other person wants and use it to your advantage" Adrian continued. "All people have desires, and if you are able to take those desires and make them come true, even if only for a few moments, your success will be assured. Obviously the more spectators there are, the more difficult it is to do this, because each person has different desires, so I recommend you start by trying only with one or two people at a time..."

"Uh, I get it! That's kind of what I do with bees!" Gus exclaimed, drumming his chin with his many paws. "I know they want to go to a flower, so I position myself to look like a flower!"

Adrian laughed. "Very good, you've understood the main concept of a play! Of course, with people it's a little more complex, but that's still the basic idea. Keep going like this and you'll make a great career!"

Gus was flattered by the man's words; even though he knew he shouldn't let his guard down, he couldn't help but feel happy knowing that there was at least one person in the world who appreciated his talent as an illusionist, instead of making fun of him and kicking him out because he couldn't spin a web. It was nice for once to feel appreciated by someone other than Willow.

Terra suddenly let out a cough. "Adrian, we have to go. We'll have to walk all night to get there, so we'd better get going" she said, then she looked at Luz. "Do you want to come with us, wooden girl? Those five gold coins of yours could be ten thousand already tomorrow"

Despite being blinded by Adrian's flattery, Gus was still not completely out of his mind, and he knew he had to intervene; so while Luz was already saying "Very willingly!" without thinking twice he jumped on her face and grabbed her ear: "Luz, can I talk to you privately for a moment?"

The puppet looked annoyed. "Sorry, guys, can you wait a minute?" he asked Terra and Adrian. The two nodded, so she took a few steps away and then put Gus in her hand again so she could talk to him face to face: "What's the matter with you? You heard them, we could be rich as early as tomorrow!"

"Luz, you can't go with those people!" Gus said. "First of all, you need to get back to Camila who must be dying of worry right now. And then you can't trust the first people you meet! Who can guaramtee you that those two aren't crooks like Adeghast?"

"But they seem so friendly" Luz protested. Adeghast had turned out to be a deceiver, but his nature as a grumpy villain had always been evident, as was typical of evil people. Terra and Adrian on the other hand were very accommodating and didn't seem dangerous. "And then you find them nice too, don't you? You seemed very at ease while you were talking to Adrian!"

Gus blushed. In fact, he too would have liked to believe that a person like Adrian was good, but that wasn't a good excuse for following him two minutes after meeting him. "Test them" he told Luz. "Tell them you can't go today and ask them to just show you the way so you can go another day. If they refuse and insist on showing you in person, don't hesitate and run away as fast as you can, okay?"

"Ugh! Okay, but for me you're too paranoid. Willow must have infected you" Luz snorted, then she went back to Terra and Adrian and said: "Um... sorry guys, but my mom must be worried about me right now, so I'd better go home. Could you show me the way to the Field of Miracles, so I can go there another day?"

A strange light passed through Terra and Adrian's eyes, which made Gus shiver; his animal instinct warned him of danger. He was already about to yell at Luz to run, but then Adrian nodded with a smile: "Of course, no problem! Look, just go to that little road that I'm pointing out to you, the one in the middle of the trees. Continue until you reach the other one. side of the woods, and you will find yourself in the middle of the fields; continue a little further and you will come to a town known as Conformatorium. You will recognize it immediately, you will see a lot of people in rich carriages. Once there, go down to the valley and continued for a kilometer, and you will find what appears to be an uncultivated field; that is the Field of Miracles"

Terra seemed annoyed for a moment, but when she met her companion's gaze, her expression immediately changed, as if the two had exchanged some information in their minds. "Yes, you must do just that! Just, don't ask anyone about the Field of Miracles when you arrive: if they find out that you, a foreigner, have discovered their secret, the inhabitants will not hesitate to lock you in a cell, and no matter how many times you promise don't reveal it, you'll never get out of there again. Is everything clear to you?"

"Absolutely clear! Thank you very much!" Luz replied with a satisfied smile.

"Good. In that case, we'll say goodbye here" Adrian said, and the two headed towards the woods. "If fate wills it, we will meet again one day, and by then I hope to see you rich"

"Oh, it absolutely will!" Luz exclaimed as she waved at them. "And I promise you: when that happens, I will give you a share of the money I have grown!"

"Don't talk nonsense, wooden girl" Terra said with a smile that actually made her look like a fox for a moment. "We didn't tell you this secret because we wanted your money. Think about making your mother rich instead! She deserves it after she sold her jacket for you!" and after a final goodbye, she and Adrian finally disappeared into the woods.

"What good people" Luz murmured, then she looked at Gus with satisfaction: "See? They weren't bad at all and they didn't have any ulterior motive! If we ever meet them again you should apologize to them for your suspicions!"

Gus blushed. He wasn't completely convinced that those two were as good people as Luz thought, because his animal instincts said otherwise; but after all they hadn't really done anything to lead him to believe they had bad intentions. In fact, they had gone and shared information without asking for anything in return. Maybe he really was wrong. "Okay. I admit that maybe I was wrong" he said. "We'll talk about this tomorrow. Now let's go home now and… hey, what are you doing!?"

Luz started running towards the street Terra and Adrian had shown her. "What questions! I'm going to the Field of Miracles! We've established that those two weren't bad, so I'd be a fool not to take advantage of the secret they entrusted to me!"

"But you can go there tomorrow!" Gus yelled in her ear. "You have to go home to Camila now! And besides, night is falling! You can't go into the woods at night, it's dangerous...!"

But Luz wasn't listening to him at all; in her head there was only the magical Field of Miracles that would soon make her rich, so she ventured into the woods without looking back, ignoring Gus's desperate protests and completely forgetting about her worried mother who was waiting for her at home.

In case you think that Luz was too naive and that Gus also let his guard down a little too quickly, keep in mind that this is a world where people are used to dealing with magical things, so much so that seeing a puppet that talks and walks the typical reaction after the initial surprise is "oh, it must be something magical. Who cares". In such a world it is obvious that a naive person like Luz immediately believes a similar story (I remind you that in The Owl House canon she is deceived by Adeghast when he gives her an even less plausible story) and that Gus, who at this point in the story he is still aware of having witnessed the magic of a fairy, so keep open the possibility that such things really exist. So don't immediately point fingers for the naivety of the protagonists. Also, let's talk about some things:

1) In Collodi's original book the scene is much simpler: the Cat and the Fox don't take long to trick Pinocchio and he doesn't ask for explanations about the Field of Miracles, taking it for granted that it immediately exists. Here, in order not to make Luz (and Gus) look like an idiot, I wanted to make the scene much more complex: the scam operated by Terra and Adrian is based on a very well constructed and "plausible" lie (for the canons of that world), which makes it easy for them to take advantage of Luz.

2) In Collodi's original book, the Cat and the Fox pretend to be blind and crippled respectively, which does not happen here. Furthermore, Pinocchio doesn't have Jiminy Cricket with him or anyone to suggest that he shouldn't trust them immediately, but he is warned by a blackbird who is silenced and mauled by the Cat, and he obviously doesn't ask himself any questions about it. On the contrary, in this version Adrian and Terra try to show themselves to all intents and purposes as two normal people, two vagabonds who actually ended up there by chance, and they don't use violence or fake illness because they know that otherwise they would create suspicion.

3) In the original book Pinocchio leaves with the Cat and the Fox and separates from them after a stop at the Red Shrimp tavern, while in this story Luz, on Gus' advice, decides to test Adrian and Terra and they to not make her suspicious play along and leave on their own, and then she leaves alone. In the wood. At night. In short, absolutely no knowledge of the danger. At worst she will encounter the Slenderman or a chupacabra.