﻿THERE WAS NO TRAIN TO LEESIDE.
Tess stared up at the boards, watching them flip back and forth to announce platforms and times. She watched for two cycles, almost unblinking, but the information did not change.
She looked down at the printed schedule in her hand. She'd underlined it three days ago, as they were preparing to leave the academy. Tuesday, Leeside, 4:00 sharp.
And yet there was no train on the board.
There had to be a mistake.
Davina, who was flopped on an uncomfortable-looking bench eating a scone, looked up at her. "What's the trouble?"
"Nothing!" Tess replied with false cheer. The last thing she wanted was to let on to Davina Winters, of all people, that there was a problem.
She looked around for a conductor. Not seeing one, she parked her trolley next to Davina's and announced that she would return shortly. Davina's reply was muffled by the scone, rendering it unintelligible.
Tess pretended she hadn't heard anything, which was for the best, because if Davina had said anything particularly Davina-y, Tess would've had to scream. She took a deep breath, straightened her coat, and marched over to the ticket master's window.
"Hello," she said brightly.
The woman behind the glass looked even older than Tess's grandmother, who was ninety-seven. "Yes?" Her voice was as creaky as an uneven staircase.
"I don't wish to trouble you, but I need to know when the next train to Leeside departs."
The woman blinked very slowly. "Leeside?"
"Yes," said Tess, feeling impatience creep up her neck. "Leeside. I have transfer tickets and my schedule says 4:00, but there is no train listed on the board."
"Leeside," the woman repeated, almost incredulously.
"Yes," said Tess. She put her schedule on the counter and turned it around to face the ticket master. "Just here, see? There should be a train at 4:00 today."
The ticket master adjusted her glasses and peered down at the schedule. Tess resisted the urge to tap her foot. "Your schedule is out of date," the ticket master said eventually.
"Out of date?" Now it was Tess's turn to be incredulous. "I bought it five days ago. How could it be out of date?"
"Because," the ticket master said, as though explaining something to a very small child, "there are no trains to Leeside."
Tess opened her mouth to say something—she had no idea what—when an arm fell over her shoulder.
"Thank you very much," Davina said, smiling brightly at the ticket master. "Now, come along, my darling—"
"Don't call me that," Tess hissed, throwing off Davina's arm as she led her away. "What did you do that for?"
"Because I know you would have gone through three or four more rounds. I know you, Tess Griffin. You're extremely persistent. But we're burning time. There are no trains to Leeside. We're going to have to figure out another way to get there."
"But it says right here—"
"I'm aware of what the schedule says," Davina said in that infuriating tone of hers. "Are you aware that this is an exam?"
"Of course I know that, what does that have to do with—" Tess stopped speaking. Her cheeks flushed as she realized what Davina meant. Of course. Of course. She cleared her throat. "Very well, then," she said. "We'd better see about alternate arrangements."
The envelope had been slipped under Tess's door six days ago, just after midnight. Tess had grabbed it immediately—she'd been staying up so she could do just that. This academy exam was the last thing standing between her and graduation, followed by a position as a full-fledged junior investigator of magical malfeasance. As such, it was extremely important, and she would take any advantage she could get. Her fingers vibrated with excitement as she slit open the envelope and pulled out the piece of paper. Then she felt her stomach drop through the floor—because she had studied for every eventuality. Every eventuality, that is, except the one where Davina Winters was assigned as her examination partner.
She'd barely skimmed the rest of the letter—magical activity in Leeside unaccounted for in last week's projections… identify cause of activity (neutralize if applicable). That part was of little consequence—it was standard exam fare: create a small magical anomaly in an out-of-the-way town (which was generously compensated for their troubles, of course), then send in students to deal with it. Evaluate.
Of course, what she'd failed to realize at that time was that the exam didn't start when she and Davina reached Leeside. It had started the moment they had gotten their assignment. Which meant that someone had been observing her as she chose and packed her instruments. And someone had stopped the trains to Leeside on purpose just to see what she and Davina would do.
Tess pressed her lips together. Well. She'd been caught off her guard once. It wasn't going to happen again."
The other problem was that there were no coaches to Leeside, either. Nor were there wagons for hire, nor convenient riverboats, nor even bicycles with cargo compartments large enough for her instruments.
By this time it was after 5:30 and Tess was beginning to get just a little bit desperate. It didn't help that the weather was much warmer here than back at the academy. Tess pinned up her braid, which had little effect. What she really needed was to change out of these long skirts, but there was no time. She had to find some way to get to Leeside, some way to carry all of her things, some way to ensure a reasonable night's sleep once they arrived—
"Tess."
"What?" She whirled around to see Davina snacking on a pear. How had she managed to pick one of those up?
"Let's go," Davina said, seemingly unconcerned by the mountainous obstacle that had just been set in their path.
"Go… go where?" Tess replied.
Davina finished chewing. "We're not going to get to Leeside tonight. So let's go. I've booked two rooms for us. We'll figure out what to do next."
"You booked rooms?" Tess said. "Without asking?"
Davina raised an eyebrow at her. "You booked train tickets without asking, didn't you?"
"Well—yes," Tess admitted. "But I know what I'm doing! We can't afford to lose the time!"
Davina made a noncommittal hmm sound and Tess wanted to strangle her. "Well," Davina said, "you're welcome to stand around with your bags all night if you like. I'm getting some sleep."
She turned and walked away, and for a moment Tess was certain, absolutely certain, that she would have to stand on the street until the morning just to avoid admitting that Davina was right. Then her better judgment got hold of her. This was an exam. She had to succeed no matter what. And after this was over, she never had to see Davina again. If only she could survive the next few days…
Gritting her teeth, Tess turned her trolley around and followed Davina away from the train station.
To her credit, Davina refrained from commenting when Tess pulled up next to her outside the inn. She just handed Tess a key, and stood aside as she manhandled her bags inside. The inn itself was surprisingly adequate, considering that Davina had found it. After twenty minutes of dragging bags upstairs, Tess had no complaints, although her stomach was beginning to growl. She checked her watch: 6:23.
She'd been too nervous to eat this morning, and the first train had given her motion sickness. Then there had been the transfer debacle, and… well, she was hungry now. She changed her blouse, took a moment to wash her face and tuck any flyaways behind her ears. Then she went downstairs in search of supper.
It was easy to spot Davina—her purple hair caught the warm lamplight as she joked with some travelers at a booth in the corner of the dining room. She looked quite at home. But then again, Davina always looked at home, no matter the situation. She had the uncanny ability to appear as though whatever she was doing, she was doing it on purpose and with great confidence. Tess straightened her blouse and walked over.
"So," she said, sliding into the booth. "We should talk."
Davina slung one arm over the back of the booth, lounging across the seat. "Oh?"
"Yes," Tess continued. "We need to regroup. Restrategize."
"I see. So now that you've run out of ideas, you're willing to listen to mine."
Tess recoiled. "That's not what I meant."
"Isn't it?"
A waiter bustled up to the table and set down an assortment of small plates before them, then melted away into the crowd. Davina reached for a winter plum and picked up a knife. She began to cut the plum into methodical slices, all in uncharacteristic silence. She was clearly waiting for something from Tess.
Tess looked away. It wasn't that Davina was incompetent. It was just that—that—well, it was just that the very first time they'd met, Davina had barreled into her in the dormitory hallway and instead of apologizing, had just grinned and winked at her and kept barreling on. Winked! And she carried that same lackadaisical attitude throughout all her classes, leading to a number of memorable mishaps including setting a rare spindlebush specimen on fire, botching a growth potion that enlarged a cat to the size of a horse, and (most infamously) filling the breakfast hall from floor to ceiling with unpoppable soap bubbles—and yet somehow she managed to come in as a close second at the end of the term, all with that infuriating grin on her face. It simply wasn't fair. Tess had studied harder than she'd ever studied in her life for her marks, but Davina got everything she had without even trying.
Tess dipped a piece of bread into the tureen in front of her and ate it slowly. She took a deep breath. "Perhaps I was a bit hasty earlier," she mumbled.
"What was that?" Davina asked.
Tess's lips thinned. "You heard me," she said.
Davina arched an eyebrow. "What I thought I heard was the sorriest excuse for an apology I've ever had the pleasure of receiving. But then I thought, that can't be right, because Tess Griffin never apologizes."
"That is untrue!" Tess said, scandalized.
"Which part—that it was an apology, or that you never make them?" Davina softened her retort with a wink, and bit into another slice of plum.
Tess opened her mouth, then closed it once more. Davina was right. Much as she hated to admit it, she had done everything without asking. Under the guise of efficiency, certainly—but this was Davina's exam too. She deserved to be involved in the process.
"I apologize," she said stiffly. "You're right. I shouldn't have booked tickets without consulting you."
Davina's eyebrows shot nearly into her purple hair. "I accept your apology," she said. "Now—I think we need to talk about the walk to Leeside."
Tess stared at her. "But that would take over a day! And what about our equipment?"
"Well," said Davina, "it's mostly your equipment. And I suspect you'll have to leave most of it behind."
For a moment Tess's mind went completely blank. "Leave it behind? But—I need it."
"And I imagine that's why there are no trains, and no coaches, and no carts," Davina said. "To force us to go on without it."
"That doesn't make any sense," Tess said, trying to ward off her growing panic. "Detecting the general parameters of destabilization, identifying schools of enchantment—how can they ask us to do any of it without the proper instruments?"
"'A student of magic must learn the art of the ineffable, for the greatest mysteries may not unravel without a touch of impossibility.'"