Magnus shrugged.

“And a few legitimately talented people who just couldn’t find their big break did too. They got impatient. The Goetia offered them a way to make the playing field fair again.”

I took a deep, shuddering breath to try and ease the tightness in my ribs.

“Jesus…fuck, why did you have to drop this on me ten minutes before my train arrives?” I complained, tapping the home button on my phone and checking the time. “Leave me with a lifetime of unanswered questions, why don’t you?”

Magnus’ mouth curled even further into a grin. He clicked his pen again, scribbled something else down in the bottom right corner of the napkin, then folded it and popped it in the chest pocket of his leather jacket.

“Saying that like this is ‘goodbye’ instead of ‘see you later’,” he said, a whimsical tone giving a playful hum to his words. Once more, the mantle of worry that settled over him whenever the conversation turned to Faenyx had lifted like a veil from his eyes and revealed glimmering glacial hues. I had not yet met Faenyx beyond my brief encounter with the mirror, but for his obvious effect on Magnus, I already did not like the creature.

My bitterness couldn’t take hold though. Not with Magnus dangling a tempting hope before me.

“Isn’t it?” I asked, hoping it wasn’t. Magnus only replied with a smile and a brief raising of his eyebrows before getting to his feet.

“C’mon. You’re gonna miss your train.” He yanked the handle up on my suitcase and began to pull it behind him, heading for the café doors.

***

Never in my life had I been so duly miffed at a train arriving on time. As the vehicle screeched into the station and whipped the air up around us, I found myself struggling to look at Magnus. My heart thundered in my chest, not wanting to be disappointed if I had taken his words literally when they had only been meant in kindness. Maybe this was goodbye after all.

“Well…it’s been…er, well, it’s been a bloody shitshow, but a weirdly…cool one,” I stammered, tucking a loose lock of hair that had escaped my ponytail back behind my ear and grabbing the handle of my suitcase. “I mean, it was awesome to…to hang out with you and—”

“You know, if you always act like you think someone’s gonna reject you…people are gonna start thinking you’re doing the rejecting.” Magnus cut me off mid-ramble. He pulled the napkin from his pocket again. “Here. I’ll leave it up to you whether this gonna be ‘that one time you met Magnus Claymore’ or ‘the first time you met your friend Magnus’.”

He held out the folded square with his index and middle finger. Had I not been pressed by the presence of the train, I might have hesitated before taking it and asked him what he meant. But I didn’t have time. The folded napkin was quickly accepted, stuffed in my hoodie pocket, and the questions remained in my head.

“Uh-okay. I…gotta run.”

I hated saying goodbye. In any capacity. People always seemed to expect more.

Magnus nodded towards the train, smiling.

“That you do. Go on, before it leaves without you!”

As if on cue, a whistle pierced the air, leaving me to perform a last-minute sprint towards the open doors of the carriage. I hauled my luggage into the overstuffed rack, then clumsily made my way down the carriage aisle looking for my seat. As the train began to pull away, I couldn’t help but duck my head and search out of the window.

Magnus was still standing on the platform. He caught my eye and gave me a little wave goodbye.

I wondered if he could see my smile from here.