The Deceiver | The Magicians

Chapter 16

Sixteen | Moisturizer

Lilly knew she wasn't where she was supposed to be before she even fully awoke. The light breeze of fresh air and incessant chirp of birds forced her to open her eyes. Her body protested the movement with various aches and a mountain of fatigue pressing her back down. Her eyes took a moment to adjust to the light, but as soon as she saw her surroundings she was scrambling to her feet. She looked around at the sea of trees encircling her, using her hands to cast a revealing spell. Nothing appeared to be an illusion. How had she gotten here? What happened last night? She had gone to the Physical Cottage for a post-exam party and the last thing she remembered was Eliot mixing her a Bloody Mary.

"Oh, how I love to watch them struggle." Lilly whipped her head around to find the source of the voice. Elliot sat at a round table, dressed head to toe in finery. The table held lit candles and fancy finger food, a crystal chandelier floated above him. "Yes Blondie, I did indeed roofie you. I'll save you the trouble of figuring out that you can't do magic here." Lilly stared at him, confused as to what was going on. He picked up a mirror, inspecting his face. "My skin is looking rather parched don't you think?"

"Get to the point El." At this point she had figured out that this was the second trial and just wanted to get it over with.

"Oh, you're no fun." He pouted, reaching into his pocket to retrieve a fancy looking list. "I require a certain set of ingredients in order to make my favorite moisturizer. All of which can be found in this forest." He waved his hand and a burlap bag appeared at her feet. "This is to help you gather them."

"Why can't you just get it yourself."

"Why do yourself what you can make others do for you? Have you learned nothing from Margo and I?" Lilly rolled her eyes, taking the list from his hands and scanning the ingredients.

"Tiger Salamander saliva, Dorming leaf, Eris Crystal? This is ridiculous! I don't even know what any of this is! How am I supposed to get salamander saliva?" She whipped her head back to face Eliot but he had disappeared. "Eliot!" She knew in that moment that she was completely screwed. She groaned, reaching down to examine the contents of the bag. It was almost completely empty, save for an empty vial and a pair of thick work gloves. The blonde threw the strap over her shoulder and set off in pursuit of Eliot's stupid moisturizer.

She turned over every rock, hoping to find the crystal and ran after every lizard that crossed her path. Nothing. She did manage to locate one of the plants the recipe called for, remembering it from one of her alchemy classes. She wondered how long they actually had to finish the task. There was no hourglass to tell her and she had no idea how long she had been at this for. She saw Kady run past her earlier, chasing frantically after something with a net clutched in her hand. Lilly saw the mad look in her eye and knew that she wasn't having it any easier.

Lilly's eyes detected a bit of movement by the bushes to her right and turned to see what it was. A triumphant smile graced her lips as she assessed the little salamander scurrying around on the pine needles. Its markings were different from the ones she chased previously. This one was striped, like a tiger. This was what she was looking for. She crept slowly over to the little creature, careful not to startle it with any sudden movements. It didn't seem to notice, blissfully ignorant of the girl hunting it. Lilly crouched down about two feet from where it stood, gradually reaching over until she could grab quickly. She lunged for it, trying to capture it between her hands. The little creature zipped out from under her, running back towards the cover of the bushes. Lilly threw herself after it, trying again and again to grab it before it disappeared. The little devil expertly dodged her, getting away with minimal effort.

"Arggg!" Lilly screeched in frustration, pulling herself up from the ground. Her clothes were now completely covered in mud and she was no closer to finding the ingredients. "f**k you Eliot! And f**k your damn moisturizer!" She cursed the sky, knowing that somewhere, he was watching her fail miserably. Probably with a cocktail in hand and huge smile.

Behind her, someone chuckled deeply. Lilly turned, expecting to find Eliot there to taunt her some more. To her surprise, it was Penny who laughed. Kady and Alice one either side of him. He clutched an axe in his right hand, Alice, a rope.

"Who knew you had such a potty mouth Barbie?" He laughed, the other two looking slightly amused as well. Lilly was sure she looked like a complete wreck.

"I am not in the mood right now."

"Come on." Penny tilted his head in an invitation. "We're getting everyone together. I think we might be able to help each other. Unless, you'd rather crawl around in the dirt by yourself some more." Lilly sighed, grabbing her bag and trudging up the hill to join the group.

"Dani's over by the lake." Kady informed them, "I passed her a little while ago." They all headed off to find the rest of their companions, stopping once they reached the glittering lake. Dani trudged out of the water, fully clothed and completely soaked, a head lamp strapped to her forehead. Her expression could only be described as homicidal. 

"What the hell is your task?" Lilly inquired, helping her friend out of the water.

"Margo threw her bracelet in the water." She grumbled, "then decided she wanted it back. I've been diving in trying to find it but, I can't get down far enough." She was obviously out of breath, probably from the amount of times she dove underwater. Penny convinced her to come along too and then they were off to find Quentin. He was standing, ankle deep, in a small stream. He held a bow and arrow awkwardly towards the water.

"Yo!" Penny shouted at him, just as Quentin loosed the arrow. It splashed harmlessly into the water and started to drift lazily down the stream.

"Seriously dude, I almost had him." Quentin complained, though he obviously was nowhere near catching the fish.

"We'll get him, Son" Penny teased, gesturing for him to get out of the water and join them. They each threw their items on the ground in front of them as Penny explained his theory. "It's not about magic. It's about talking to each other." Everyone watched intently as spoke, Quentin looking a little confused. "Alright, you got that." He gestured towards Kady's net. "But I grew up in Florida, so I actually know how to use it to get your fish. But I'm after a horse." Lilly was secretly impressed that Penny was the one to figure it out. The thought hadn't once crossed her mind. To everyone's surprise, Quentin reached down to grab the rope, slinging it over his shoulder. "Seriously?"

"What? junior cowboy camp." Lilly hid her smile from Quentin. Of course, he went to junior cowboy camp.

"Pheasant" Kady listed and Alice picked up the bow.

"Tree." Alice fired back and Kady claimed the axe. Lilly and Danny exchanged looks, they were the only ones left.

"Okay, what have you got for me?" Dani asked her friend, eyeing the bag and the list clutched in her hand.

"Eliot gave me a list of ingredients for some moisturizer. But I haven't seen any crystals and you need to get salamander saliva." Dani took Lilly's items, scanning the list of ingredients and laughing.

"An Eris Crystal isn't actually a crystal. It's a type of flower and all you have to do to get a Tiger Salamander's saliva is press a spot on their stomach."

"And that is why you are doing it and not me." Lilly reached down to pick up the headlamp, the only remaining task and one she knew she could complete. The others looked at her doubtfully. "I was captain of the swim team in high school. Don't look so surprised."

"Okay, complete your task and meet back here when you're done." Penny ordered, earning nods from each of them. Dani went to the edge of the lake with Lilly, pointing to the general area where the bracelet landed before heading off to complete her own task. Lilly stripped off her jeans and tank top, leaving her in only her sports bra and underwear. A shiver ran up her spine from the chilled water as she waded into the lake. With the headlamp strapped securely around her forehead, Lilly dove into the water, paddling to the area Dani had pointed to. Lilly ducked underneath the water, surveying the depth. It couldn't've been more than fifteen feet down. The problem wouldn't be the depth, it would be finding the bracelet itself.

Lilly took a deep breath before diving down into the depths of the lake. She resisted the urge not to scream at the tickle of seaweed on her bare legs. Her eyes searched for any sort of glimmer in the sand as she skimmed the bottom. A school of odd looking fish swam away from the bright light of her lamp. Though Lilly could hold her breath longer than most, she still had to return to the surface empty handed for more air.

Two dives later and she still hadn't found it. There were a few false alarms though. She had seen a glint of something metal in the sand, only to realize it was an empty beer can. Lilly pawed through the sand, her blonde hair floating around her in a golden halo. Her body skimmed the floor of the lake as she searched. Her eyes darted towards the only area around her that she hadn't yet searched. The seaweed patch. She really didn't want to go in there.

The dark green plants climbed towards the sunlight streaming down into the water. The patch was dense and she had no idea what could be hiding in there. She tried not to think about it when she returned to the surface for hopefully one last break before returning to the dark depths. Lilly tried not to panic as the slimy plants covered her. She pushed through the thick overgrowth, searching in between for any sign of the bracelet. A sudden movement caught her eye and a dark, black scaly creature passed by to her right. She only caught the tail in between the seaweed, but it was much larger than any normal fish should be and she could have sworn she saw hair. She searched frantically now, the burn in her lungs warning her that time was running out. Lilly was just about to push off the sand to return to the surface, when a slight sparkle glimmered up ahead of her. Her lungs were burning, but she knew if she left now, she might not find this again. She kicked her legs quickly, shooting towards the object.

It was wedged between two rocks and covered mostly by sand, but it was unmistakably the bracelet she was searching for. She snatched it up as fast as she could and swam towards the surface. Her lungs screamed for air, and Lilly felt sick. She felt the urge to inhale, despite the water encasing her. Lilly pushed harder towards the sunlight above her, breaking through the surface with a desperate gasp. The bracelet was clutched in her hand like a life raft as she paddled back towards the shore, eager to leave behind whatever was living in that lake.

Her legs were wobbly when she finally stepped on dry land again. She squeezed the excess water from her blonde locks before pulling her jeans and shoes back on. She hesitated to put her shirt on over her soaked sports bra, but the thought of what Penny might comment on made her pull it back on quickly.

When she returned to the clearing where they were set to meet, Penny and Dani had already finished and were now lounging on a large, moss covered rock, watching Kady chop away at the giant tree. Lilly held up the bracelet triumphantly for them to see.

"There's the little fucker." Dani growled at the golden band in Lilly's hand. The blonde climbed up to join them, enjoying the moment of respite after diving so many times. Lilly and Dani chatted together, much to Penny's dismay. They both wondered what the fate of their third musketeer would be. Lilly had seen Alex briefly the night before, but he had obviously been placed in a different group for this trial. They could only hope that he made it through with the rest of them. Alice returned about ten minutes later, dead pheasant in hand. Quentin walked into the clearing with the horse, just as Kady yelled,

"Timber!" The tree slammed down to the ground with a loud groan and with that all the tasks were completed.

"Bravo!" Margo praised, sitting comfortably with Elliot at their tea table. Everyone turned to face the two, who had appeared out of this air.

"Brava! Brava." Elliot echoed. "Lilly, Darling. So glad to see the Merpeople didn't eat you alive." Lilly's eyes went wide. Was he being serious? "It's happened before."

"Wait, what?" She sputtered, but Penny was already cutting her off.

"That's it, we passed."

"After you chop the tree into firewood, whip us up a little grilles salmon."

"Some honeyed pheasant, grab me the matching necklace I threw in the lake." Margo added with a smirk.

"Brew me up a batch of moisturizer and... Take turns blowing the horse." Lilly's jaw dropped in disgust and a few of her companions looked at the horse in horror. The two upper-classmen burst into cackling laughter and they all knew the extra requests were just jokes. Not very funny ones though. Margo and Eliot rubbed their hands together before performing a spell, changing their surroundings from a forest, to the backyard of the Physical Cottage.

Lilly glared at the two, heading off to take a shower and clean all the gunk from the lake off her. Thankfully, Margo was good for one thing that day and she let Lilly use her bathroom to shower, rather than trekking across campus. When she stepped out of the steam filled shower, a towel wrapped tightly around her body, she spotted a tarot card with the Brakebills insignia on the front, sitting on the edge of the sink. She picked it up, flipping it over to the back, reading off the instructions for the next trial. All it said was that her presence was required in the Alchemy classroom at six o'clock sharp. No more information was given. She spent her time with Quentin that afternoon, tucked into one of the large armchairs in the common room, a book clutched in her hands. When the clock struck six forty-five, both students crossed the campus to where the next trial awaited them.