He's looking at the fire like a newborn baby looks at the world; very curious of what it is and how it happened.
Meager means scarce, in that there was not much available for them to eat. Therefore, they were starving and desperate for the next town to stock up.
Answer:
A. reserved for another time
Explanation:
The phrase "left in midair" as used in the passage means that something was left undone and pending, waiting for when next it would be used.
According to the passage, a deal was uncompleted, and because of that, and because a compromise could not be reached, it was "left in midair" which means that it was reserved for another time.