He very quickly discovered her
attitude and it amused him. They became the most excellent friends
over it. She on her side very quickly discovered the true reason of
his coming so often to their house; he loved Aunt Anne. At its first
appearance this discovery was so strange and odd that Maggie refused
to indulge it. Love seemed so far from Aunt Anne. She greeted Mr.
Magnus from the chill distance whence she greeted the rest of the
world--she gave him no more than she gave any one else--But Mr.
Magnus did not seem to desire more. He waited patiently, a slightly
ironical and self-contemptuous worshipper at a shrine that very
seldom opened its doors, and never admitted him to its altar. It was
this irony that Maggie liked in him; she regarded herself in the
same way. Their friendship was founded on a mutual detachment. It
prospered exceedingly.
Maggie soon discovered that Mr. Magnus was very happy to sit in
their house even though Aunt Anne was not present. His attitude
seemed to be that the atmosphere that she left behind her was enough
for him and that he could not, in justice, expect any more.
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