The Deceiver | The Magicians

Chapter 7

Seven | Actions And Consequences 

Lilly hadn't glanced at her phone since before the incident that morning and upon pulling it out, saw forty-five unread messages. Thirty of which came from Dani and the remaining fifteen from Alex, both worried sick about her. Lilly was thankful that they hadn't shared that class with her and were absent for the attack. They had been placed in the second Alchemy class which Lilly had been disappointed about but now couldn't be happier. She sent them both a quick text telling them that she was ok and would meet them back at the dorms. She took her time on the way back, not quite ready to face her friends. She knew they would be all over her with concern and all she really wanted at the moment was to be alone. 

She had almost been expelled for the summoning and Quentin no doubt would be. She wished she could have stayed to wait for him to get out of his meeting but Sunderland had basically banished her from the building. She really thought that the professor would have bought her lie and let them all go, but Penny had to ruin the whole thing and pinned it on Q. Though she was angry with Penny, she couldn't help but be thankful he didn't turn her in as well. When she arrived at the dorm she could hear irritated voices coming from her room. 

"Get out! I have to finish my essay and I can't do that with you people fidgeting over there!" someone said, definitely Ava. 

"I'm sorry," Dani's voice drifted into the hall, filled with sass. "I didn't realize that your essay was more important than our friend's safety!" Lilly decided that now would be a good time to make an appearance, seeing as things were getting heated. She pushed the door open to find Ava sitting at her desk and Dani halfway across the room looking as if she was going to kill her. Alex sat on the bed looking extremely uncomfortable, but lightening up once he saw Lilly. They all turned to face her, looking relieved that she was ok.

"Where were you?" Dani asked rushing up to hug her, looking her over for any visible wounds. Lilly silently thanked the heavens that Margo had covered up those bruises, otherwise she would have to deal with Dani fussing over her all night. "We've been worried sick all day!" 

"Sorry, Margo scooped me up right after it happened and I've been with her all afternoon." Alex came up to her after Dani, pulling her into yet another tight hug. She hugged him back, thankful for the comfort it offered. 

"What happened?" Lilly honestly couldn't handle reliving the whole thing again, but she knew she had to tell her friends the truth. So, she did just that, recounting her horror filled morning to her two friends and roommate, who did her best to act like she wasn't listening, but Lilly took notice that she had paused in her work. Alex rubbed a soothing hand down her back and Dani stroked her hair as she spoke. She was on the verge of tears by the time she was done, but managed to make it through.

"Who in their right minds would summon something that terrible?" Dani mused making Lilly's guilt rise. She had conveniently left out the details of her involvement, not wanting to go through the whole process of explaining the complicated circumstances. 

"I'm just glad you're ok." Alex sighed in relief. "That was way too close for comfort." Dani nodded in agreement. They moved to Alex's room in order to leave Ava alone. They talked for about an hour, while Lilly laid down on Alex's bed, filled with exhaustion. It wasn't so much Physical but mental. The stress from the day had worn her out and all she wanted to do was go to bed. She finally got what she wanted, but was plagued by the same dreams that kept her up as a child. The Beast had disappeared through the mirror that morning, but it hadn't truly left.

When she woke, she had been looking forward to having an uneventful day to herself. Fate however, wouldn't allow it and her phone buzzed with a text from Elliot. 

Q got expelled. They're sending in a specialist to wipe him. - E

"s**t. They can't be serious!" She exclaimed out loud as soon as she read the message. She ran out the door almost as soon as she read it, quickly texting Elliot for more information.

Where is he? - L

Infirmary. He tried to hit Penny with a spell. - E

➻➻➻➻

"Would somebody please sign him out of here?" Lilly heard Quentin's voice call from the end of the row of hospital beds and Penny's deep laugh. As soon as she saw him she was quick to call out,

"Quentin Coldwater! What the hell were you thinking?" Lilly scolded as she entered the infirmary to find both him and Penny in hospital beds with matching scowls, though Penny had a slight smirk from getting on Q's nerves. 

"Hey" he sighed in defeat and stared up at the ceiling, not even turning to glance at her. Penny watched her as she stood in front of Quentin's bed, smirking slightly at the fact that she was mad at Quentin for attacking him. Lilly did not take kindly to Quentin's tone and she was quick to continue her lecture.

"You do realize that if there were any chance of them changing their minds it's sure as hell gone now." Quentin didn't respond only giving her a look that said 'whatever you have to say, I've already said it to myself'. Lilly was still Irritated with him but she gave up her scolding and sighed, understanding that he just needed a friend. She sat beside him and pulled him into a comforting hug. He simply laid limp on her shoulder, obviously completely worn out from the emotions of the day. "I'm sorry Q." She really was. It wasn't fair that he had gone down for something all of them had done. If anyone should have gotten expelled it was Alice. After all, it was her brother they were trying to summon. "I know he's a giant d**k but you shouldn't have tried to attack him." Penny rolled his eyes at her and scoffed loudly. 

"I know." Quentin said, looking up at her, "Can you please just get me out of here before I do it again?" 

"I'd like to see you try." Penny laughed out loud before holding up a huge crystal on a chain, dangling it in front of Quentin tauntingly. Lilly thought that it looked somewhat familiar but she couldn't figure out why. It must have been something she came across during her research sessions in the library. 

"What is that?" Penny placed it back in his pocket before responding.

"None of your business." Lilly shook her head, not in the mood to listen to his sass. Instead she stood up, grabbed Quentin's hand, and helped him up. 

"Come on, I signed you out already." Quentin gave her a thankful look and she led him out of the building and over to a secluded spot on the student quad where they could talk without being disturbed. 

"I have an appointment with the specialist at three so we might as well say our goodbyes now." Quentin mumbled, trying not to make eye contact. 

"Oh Q. I wish I could help." She placed a delicate had on his back and bean to rub soothing circles. "I'll find you." She declared with newfound determination. "I'll tell you magic is real and I can teach you!" Her eyes were hopeful as she gazed at her friend. He was broken. Lilly was extremely worried about him and wondered if he would even make it out there on his own.

"I can't go back Lil. I just can't." She knew what he meant. She had seen a change in him since they first met. He had opened up and seemed happier, that's what magic did to him. It gave him a purpose. "I don't know how to live without magic."

"I know exactly what you mean. For the first time in my life I feel like I have somewhere to belong, somewhere I can be myself. I can't even imagine going back to my old life now that I have seen all this." He nodded and she could see tears well up in his eyes.

"Do you think I will remember you?" He asked in a whisper, "We met the day we came here." Lilly didn't know if he would remember her, but somehow, she doubted he would. Her heart ached for him and she couldn't imagine what it would be like for her to be at Brakebills without him.

"I don't know Q, but I promise I will find you and meet you again if you don't." 

"Now I know how Julia felt. I was so horrible to her when I found out she remembered. I told her that she must not have been good enough and she begged me to tell them that they made a mistake. I just ignored her. What kind of shitty friend does that? She needed help and I just ignored her. Now I'm gonna be just like her!" Lilly didn't know what to say. She didn't know if she could say anything, so the two friends spent their last hour together in a comfortable silence. They lay in the shade watching the people go about their days, not even realizing how lucky they were. They had all taken their magic for granted, and now that Quentin was about to lose all his memories of magic, Lilly felt guilty. 

"I have to go." He announced after a while, bursting the quiet bubble they had encapsulated themselves in. He stood slowly and she followed, brushing off the grass from her pants. Quentin hesitated, staring off into the distance as if he could see his fate laid out in front of him. He turned to her and pulled her into a tight hug. "Goodbye Lilly." She couldn't bring herself to say goodbye to the young man who had become one of her best friends in the short period they had known each other. Instead she watched quietly as he walked down the path towards the life he had before magic. 

She waited until he was out of sight before grabbing her bag and heading in the other direction. It had started to drizzle as she walked, perfectly matching her mood. A few minutes later she found herself in front of the Physical Cottage with slightly damp hair and clothes. She knocked twice and hoped someone could hear her over the pounding music. 

"Oh, hey blondie!" Elliot greeted pulling her into the house and slamming the door behind them. She had been expecting a full-blown party when she got inside but was surprised to see it was almost empty except for a few people passed out in various places. Elliot wasn't fazed as he crossed through the sitting room, not bothering to step over the few passed out bodies on the floor, instead walking right on top of them, and placing his foot on their stomachs. Lilly carefully picked her way around them before following Elliot out the door and into the backyard. Margo waited for them by a lit grill, sipping a martini and holding a clear umbrella to keep the light rain off her. She waved when she saw Lilly joining them, holding out a beer for her to take.

"Thanks. I really need it." Lilly sighed and took a large sip from the drink. She felt a lump form in her throat now that Quentin wasn't with them and never would be again.

"So," Margo began in a soft voice, "Did you say goodbye to our little Q?" Lilly nodded solemnly, sitting beside Margo on the brick wall of the patio. Elliot began flipping burgers on the grill as they waited for her to respond. 

"Yeah I did. Poor guy, he's so... broken. I wish I could have done something to keep him here."

"Me too." Elliot told them, "Now I won't get to look at that piece of arm candy every day." He pouted and Lilly managed to crack a smile even though she was still devastated. "But let's not wallow in sadness when there is a whole bar full of Alcohol at our disposal!" 

"Yeah!" Margo shouted and Lilly laughed at her reaction. The rain had let up until it was barely noticeable and after her fourth drink she couldn't care less about the weather. Elliot had begun casting spells to make the fire on the grill turn colors and blaze up until it was the size of a bonfire. Margo unsurprisingly found this to be the most entertaining thing ever and could hardly contain her laughter. Lilly herself was giggling uncontrollably, nursing the Bloody Mary that Margo had given her.

"Let's keep this BBQ poppin' my loves." Elliot said as he flipped yet another burger. Margo had eaten two already and Lilly assumed she must be a hungry drunk because she asked Elliot for another. He waved his hand and another blast of fire shaped itself into a miniature elephant and began to stampede across the lawn and caught one of the passed-out visitor's pants on fire. He was too far gone to wake up and Margo ran over to extinguish it, throwing her martini onto the flames. She realized her mistake a bit too late when the flames shot up and continued to burn through the guy's clothing. 

"Oops!" Margo giggled, too drunk to fully comprehend what was going on. Lilly quickly stood up from her spot, moving her hands together and casting a spell to extinguish the flames. They settled down before completely disappearing, leaving a charred patch on the guy's shorts. Margo quickly looked around to make sure no one saw before giggling and stumbling her way back to her friends. "I did him a favor. Those shorts were horrible!" Lilly laughed at her friend and they continued to make tricks with the fire, most of them resulting in Lilly extinguishing them after they caught something else on fire. Elliot was in the middle of conjuring up a dragon that would supposedly fly around their heads when he caught sight of something across the lawn.

"Quentin!" Lilly was suddenly at attention and turned to find her friend standing there, memories still intact with a small smile on his face as he watched them, "Get over here!"

"Quentin!" Lilly moved towards him quickly. She swayed a bit but managed to reach him without any accidents. "What are you doing here?" She pulled him into a hug really not caring why he was there but just that he was. 

"They let me off the hook." She could tell that there was a huge weight off his shoulders as he made his way over to their other friends. She felt her sadness disappear to be replaced by relief and excitement that her friend would be staying with her.

"Come join us!" She invited, running back over to where Margo and Elliot stood, Q trailed after her at a leisurely pace.

"Come on!" Margo and Elliot yelled in unison, irritated that he was taking so long. "Join the party you sad sack. Hurry up!" Elliot continued as Margo sipped her drink, "Oh my god! It's not like we have all day!"

"We're so drunk!" Margo called to him as she giggled.

"Okay, we have all day." This made everyone laugh and Quentin finally joined them, earning his own drink. Lilly called Dani and Alex who gladly joined and they stayed out on the patio sipping their drinks and celebrating Quentin's return well after the sun went down. It was something they all needed after the events of the day and Lilly finally let herself kick back and let loose with friends. She prayed that nothing would come of The Beast's attack but she knew it was wishful thinking. For now, she enjoyed the moment of calm before the storm.