Kusa crossed into the next car, her eyes scanning her newest surroundings. She passed through three cars before the train began to move again. This one, the sixth, was fuller than the last few, with maybe three-quarters of the seats occupied.

Through the windows lining either side of the car, she saw nearby residential areas zipping past against a distant background of skyscrapers. Few houses faced the tracks; instead, they presented their backs to the line, fenced in yards separating people’s homes from the outside world. For an instant, she wished she was in one of those houses, that she could switch fates with any one of their unknown, unseen residents. No matter what was going on in those people’s lives, it had to be better than where Kusa was, she thought. It wouldn’t be fair to them, but was her situation any fairer? It didn’t matter. Even in a world of magic, the idea was impossible. There was no point in thinking about it.

Refocusing, she turned her gaze towards the door at the opposite end of the car and saw… nothing but train tracks, receding into the distance.

Kusa groaned internally and swore out loud. “Damn it, the last car? Now what?”

It couldn’t be that far to the next stop, but she picked the train at random simply because it was about to leave and now had no idea where she was. Even if it stopped, where would she go? Maybe there was a way to trick Slick and his boss into following her off the train then re-board before they noticed.

Einosuke looked up at the girl who stood in the doorway, talking to herself. He’d seen her before, but for a moment he wasn’t sure where. Then it hit him: she pushed him out of her way when he was trying to board earlier. The train wasn’t even close to full, so what was the rush? Not that it mattered; a little rudeness from a stranger was the least of his worries. He lowered his gaze.

Kusa moved away from the door, stalking down the aisle. Her brain felt scrambled, filled to bursting with fear and anger and frustration. Thoughts of how dark the immediate future looked crashed against her rational mind, but she forced them aside; she wasn’t about to give up yet. She couldn’t. It just wasn’t in her. If she did, everything so far would be meaningless.

Somehow, though, she couldn’t stay focused. It was like something in the back of her brain was trying to distract her from reality, maybe to blunt the impact of the situation. That was the last thing she could afford right now. She needed to stay razor-sharp. Even so, she was in danger of losing herself in thought again when the train lurched – just as she stepped forward. Off balance, she cried out—“Agh!?”—in surprise and fell.

“Huh?” Einosuke’s body shifted to one side with the momentum of the train’s unexpected heaving. His eyes rose at the same instant Kusa fell. He grimaced at the boney-sounding crack as the girl landed on her knee. “Ow!” she cried. One hand went flat against the floor to steady herself against the movement of the train while the other went to her injured knee.

“Miss…“ Einosuke got to his feet then crouched down, offering his hand to help the girl stand. “Are you okay?”

Kusa pushed the boy away, harder than she intended. “I’m fine. Get off me!”

Einosuke stumbled back, chagrined. Maybe he was useless as a potential Mage-Agent, but he tried to be helpful when he could. This seemed like the least he could do. Besides, wouldn’t anyone try to help a person who fell? Einosuke thought so, at least. So what was her problem?

“Sorry,” he muttered, giving the girl a surreptitious look. He hadn’t gotten a good look at her earlier, but he realized, even grimacing in pain and annoyance, that she was pretty cute, with reddish-brown hair, large, clear eyes and a heart-shaped face. A slight flush grew in his cheeks. “I just wanted to help you up. That looked like it hurt and—“

“Shit!” The girl’s eyes went wide and a look of panic spread across her face.

For a second, Einosuke thought the girl was looking at him and his confusion grew deeper, tinged with a little fear of his own. Maybe she thought he was some sort of groper. This was the kind of day for that sort of misunderstanding. “What… what’s wrong?”

Suddenly, the girl’s hands clutched Einosuke’s arm tightly. He winced at the strength of her grip as she repeated, “Shiiit,” in a tone so low and sharp that it was almost a hiss. The door she came through opened and, framed within it, stood the Boss.

Einosuke’s head turned to follow the girl’s gaze, but she snapped, “Don’t look, stupid!” into his ear and curled her body up close to his, putting him between her and the doorway. He paused and turned back to her. Something was clearly wrong with this girl.