Page 7 of The Witches Catalogue of Wanderlust Essentials (Natural Magic #2)

The Lugubrious Luggage Tag

Hand-tooled from recycled leather that somehow feels both luxurious and vaguely melancholic, the tag appears perfectly Ordinary until attached to one’'s belongings.

I picked up the Lugubrious Luggage Tag in a curious little shop down a narrow Venetian alley, where the proprietor, a woman with eyes that looked older than her face, insisted it would “solve my recurring luggage theft issues.”

Since then, I’ve witnessed petty thieves at train stations across Europe approach my unattended bags, only to pause mid-reach, frown deeply, and scurry away in a sudden fit of misgivings.

The enchantment works with remarkable psychological precision. One baggage handler in Istanbul later confessed that, upon rifling through my suitcase’s contents, he was suddenly overwhelmed by memories of every disappointed glance his grandmother had ever cast his way. A pickpocket in Barcelona reported experiencing “the emotional equivalent of watching a movie about sad puppies while simultaneously remembering every unkept promise from childhood.”

The manufacturers include one stern warning: For occasional use only. Remove the tag from your bags between journeys as prolonged use can lead to an inexplicable urge to call estranged relatives and apologize for childhood transgressions that may or may not have occurred.