Guy Montag meets Clarisse within the first few pages of Fahrenheit 451. Montag is leaving work very late at night (approximately midnight), and as he walks home, he contemplates the odd feeling that he has had that someone had been on the same sidewalk as him a mere "moment before making the turn." It's a feeling that's afflicted him for the past several nights, and yet he can't make sense of it, no matter how hard he tries.
On this fateful night, however, Montag turns the corner to see a girl who seems to be propelled forward by the wind and leaves rather than moving of her own accord. She is described as having a slender and "milk-white" face with a "gentle hunger" and an expression of "pale surprise."
When Montag asks this girl if she is the new neighbor, she very oddly replies that Montag must be "the fireman," commenting that she'd "have known it with [her] eyes shut." They chit-chat about the smell of kerosene until finally she introduces herself as Clarisse McClellan.
In Fahrenheit 451, Montag and Clarisse first meet late at night. In fact, it is around midnight ("midnight street") when Montag is coming home from his job at the fire station. For the past few nights, Montag has an uneasy feeling whenever he reaches this particular corner, as though somebody was there and waiting for him. This is significant because it foreshadows Montag's first meeting with Clarisse, and he does indeed meet her on this corner.
Montag thinks it is unusual for such a young girl to be out so late and asks her what she is doing. Clarisse responds that this time of night is perfect for walking because she likes to "smell things" and "look at things." This peculiarity is part of Clarisse's appeal, and the two meet and walk again over many nights.
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