Galahad nods. He doesn't actually think he knows how to say anything comforting, so he chooses silence and hopes Magnus will understand it's well-meant. He expects Magnus will keep talking without him saying anything.

It's one of those fall days when the leaves are starting to drop and the air is cool but the sun is still capable of creating heat when there aren't any clouds to block it. The goldenrods and asters along the path are losing their color as their white fluffy seeds supersede the flowers, and there are rustles in the bushes from small birds and mammals. Galahad catches Magnus' sleeve to stop him -- there's a jay in the bush honeysuckle plucking bright red berries and gulping them down like there's a contest to win. It's the single Stellar's Jay, and it's blue-black. It cocks its tail and flies over their heads.