The Book of Magic

On the train, Gillian thinks about how she performed left-handed magic, the “Crooked Path” (235), when she got involved with an abusive man. Ian and Sally bicker about sitting next to one another. However, Sally is charmed by Ian’s love for his mother, whom she’ll meet soon, and relents. Ian again assures her that they’ll find Kylie. Gillian sees a shade (or spirit) in the fens: An 11-year-old girl walks through the water, carrying a black book, while a crow flies above her. Sally notices Gillian’s expression, and Gillian tells her about the shade. Sally is skeptical but wants the crow to be a sign of good fortune, as it usually is in their family.

Ian says that the past happens repeatedly in the fens. He demonstrates by holding her hand and saying it would repeatedly happen in the fens. His hand is hot to Sally, and she pulls hers away, trying to deny her attraction for him. She disapproves of magic in the fens, and he asserts that magic doesn’t ruin people, that “people ruin themselves” (240).

When they arrive in Thornfield, they find a taxi driven by Matt Poole, who went to school with Ian.