Eliza never did return to check on her. It wasn't until Professor Lipson entered Lilly's recovery room to deliver the fateful news that she knew the reason for her disappearance. There was no funeral, nor was there a memorial service. The rest of the world went on without pause, oblivious to the fact that they'd lost someone so precious. All except for Lilly.

She and Quentin were the only ones who seemed to notice she was gone. Lilly had a sneaking suspicion Penny did as well, but he would never show it. Lilly didn't know how to feel, a thousand emotions were vying for her complete attention, and choosing just one was utterly impossible. Her mind was no better than her heart, a jumble of what if's and what now's. Eliza was her mentor, her guardian angel in a world of inscrutability. She'd only just begun to chip the surface of what it meant to be a Shifter, and without Eliza, she had no hope of mastering her abilities.

Even with all those fears and doubts, her chest still ached with the loss of someone she held dear. Loss had never been a stranger in her life. However, she'd never experienced what it was like to have someone that important to her die such a horrific death.

She tried not to picture the scene of Eliza's murder as Professor Lipson had described, but the images still leaked through, haunting her dreams every night since. There was no question that it had been The Beast controlling Mike that night. Eliot had been in the wrong place at the wrong time, or maybe, it was the right place?

He'd been in the bunker when the incident occurred, seen his boyfriend's blood-spattered face, the unnatural blue glow in Mike's eyes, and watched as life faded from his body the moment Eliot snapped his neck. If he hadn't been there, Dean Fogg would be dead. Had he not, Eliot wouldn't have had to kill the man he loved in favor of saving the world.

"What do I do now?" Lilly's eyes were glazed and unfocused as she stared blankly out of Dean Fogg's office window. Her arms wrapped around her waist in an attempt to subdue the emotions ravenously clawing in her chest. At the moment, it seemed this gesture was the only thing keeping her together.

"I don't know," glass clinked behind her, and soon she clutched a glass of scotch in her hand. She watched Fogg in her periphery as he too gazed out into the darkened campus. Lilly downed the liquid in one gulp, savoring the burning warmth that would soon numb the pain. "There's no one else who knows enough about Shifters to help you. As I'm sure Eliza told you, Shifters aren't native to this dimension."

"Then, where are they native to?" She asked, not expecting a response.

"Fillory," Dean Fogg admitted, without even a glance at the young woman beside him. Lilly's head whipped to the side at complete attention.

"What?" Her voice, but a whisper. He didn't reply for so long that she'd begun to think he mightn't have heard her.

"Shifters are indigenous to Fillory. It's the only dimension that I know of where they exist. Though, from what I hear, The Beast seems to have put an end to that."

"If my people are from Fillory, then how did I get here?"

"That's the question," they lapsed into a comfortable silence, both dealing with the uncertainty of their lives going forward. The only sounds were the ticking of the antique clock counting the seconds since Eliza's life was extinguished, and the moments until The Beast who killed her came after Lilly and her friends once again. "She was very fond of you."

"And I, her," she didn't bother tracking his movements as he went to his desk and rustled around. She'd finished her drink already, and hastily poured herself another.

"She left you something," Lilly looked up in surprise to find The Dean presenting her with a small, ornate, wood-carved box. Lilly watched, perplexed, as he approached her with the mystery object. He held it out to her, and she hesitated, drinking her scotch in one gulp. She sensed she would be needing it. "She instructed me to give it to you if anything ever happened and, well, something happened," Lilly cautiously reached out, unclasped the small lock, and lifted the lid. She sucked in a breath. The necklace was meticulously placed in the velvet-lined interior, whoever did it took great care in making sure it was secure.

"Is this what I think it is?" Astonished, she reached out to touch the cool metal. The brass necklace was worn, and in need of a good polish, but to Lilly, it was breathtaking. The metal was molded in the shape of a key, the handle inlaid with a miniature, old-fashioned clock. From the looks of it, the little hands hadn't moved in ages, but Lilly knew exactly what this was. Jane Chatwin had been gifted a necklace by Ember and Umber in The Girl Who Told Time, along with a matching pocket watch and the ability to manipulate time. "Why would Eliza leave me this? How did she even have it?"

"I've learned not to question Eliza's madness," he held out a small envelope to her, "she also gave you this. She said you will know when to open it, and not to read it a moment sooner."

"Why does everything have to be so fucking cryptic around here?"

➺➺➺➺

The next morning, Lilly threw herself into her studies, trying to distract her mind from the ongoing turmoil. This led her to the classroom she now sat in, surrounded by textbooks and random magical ingredients. It was empty save for herself and Penny, who lounged in the professor's chair, smoking a cigarette and watching her desperately pour herself over the work in front of her.

"Why don't you take a break, kick back for a while?" She dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "Seriously, you're gonna drive yourself crazy over this stuff."

"Without Eliza, I need to figure out how to handle my Shifter abilities on my own. Unless you know something about it or know someone who does, this is my best option," Penny sighed, taking a drag from his cigarette. He'd been trying for the past hour to get her to take a break, but every time she refused. Penny was worried about her, though he would never admit it. She was working herself to the bone, and every time he tried to pull her back, she just fell further into her desperation for knowledge. Her well of information had run dry along with Eliza, and that carried with it another set of hindrances. She'd developed the habit of playing with the necklace Eliza had left her as if it would reveal the answers if she held it long enough. Lilly jumped as the book she was reading was abruptly slammed shut. She furrowed her brows, looking up at Penny, who cast a shadow over her work station.

"What are you--"

"Come on, we're going outside," Penny ordered, receiving a half-hearted glare as she reached for her book again. The object jumped from her grasp, sliding across the table and out of her reach, "let's go." Penny grabbed her hands, attempting to pull her from her seat. Lilly leaned back in resistance, managing to hold her ground despite the man trying to heave her up. She whined, a pathetic, childish whine with a matching pout. Penny sighed in irritation at the stubborn blonde. "Alright, you asked for it." Lilly's eyes widened as Penny suddenly leaned down, lifting her from the chair and tossing her over his shoulder. Lilly shrieked indignantly, pounding her fists on Penny's back.

"Put me down!" Her hair fell into her eyes, "Penny!" He laughed at her protests, carrying her around as she clutched the back of his shirt in an attempt to keep herself stable. She couldn't help the startled laughter that escaped her at the absurdity of the situation. Penny brought her to the doorway before gently returning her to the ground. Her hair was wild, and she shook her head at him with a huff, giving him a half-hearted slap on the arm.

"There's a smile," Penny pointed out, and Lilly tried her best to turn it back into a frown, but it was too late. A small giggle escaped her lips, and Penny found himself grinning as well. A sense of accomplishment surged through him at the fact he was able to make her smile, at least for a moment. It seemed to be a rarity nowadays, with the threat of The Beast looming over them. "Come on, let's go for a walk," he held out a hand for her. Lilly hesitated, glancing back at her work. "It'll still be there when we get back, I promise." Lilly sighed in resignation, taking his outstretched hand and allowing him to lead her towards the door. They stopped short at the sight of Quentin and Alice, holding a flaming bowl in front of them.

"So, you had it the whole time?" Quentin accused, glaring at Penny. Lilly looked between the two warily, waiting for an explanation.

"I don't know what you're yapping about, as usual."

"Book Six!" Quentin spat, advancing on the Traveler, "the day we met, you said you had nothing to do with it."

"As I said, it wasn't me," Quentin stopped before him, holding the flame between them, "wanna get that thing out of my face?" Quentin shoved it closer, "ugh, fine! I took the damn thing, I was bored, it was there, now it's gone," Penny admitted.

"What?" Lilly stepped away from him, her eyes filled with abject disappointment.

"Gone? What do you mean it's gone?"

"I mean, I read it, I spilled my beer on it, I tossed it in the trash, and then I went and got another beer."

"Are you kidding me? Do you realize how important that manuscript was? God, Penny, I can't believe you!" Lilly yelled, the anger inside her boiling over. Her hands buried themselves in her hair as she clutched her skull with the realization that such a beautiful piece of literature was thrown in the trash with the likes of empty beer bottles and dirty tissues.

"Wait," Quentin interrupted before Lilly could murder Penny, "you said you read it. Do you- do you remember it?"

"Ish."

"Penny, you fucked up, and now you need to fix it. Tell us everything," Lilly demanded, glaring at the person she had just moments ago been laughing with as friends. There was no room for negotiation. Penny shook his head in exasperation.

"What did Plover say in the book? Come on," Penny walked past Quentin, shoving his shoulder in the process. He hopped up on one of the tables, and Lilly took this as a sign of compliance.

"First of all, what's-his-name didn't write it."

"Plover. Christopher Plover," Quentin corrected through gritted teeth. Lilly didn't blame him, her own fists were clenched with fury.

"The girl did, Jane Chatwin."

"Jane Chatwin wrote book six?" Lilly muttered, "holy shit."

"Yeah, she started by saying that the other books were wrong, and she wanted to go back and clarify some shit."

"Wrong in what way?"

"Um, this... this was the summer that the mom died, and they were hanging out in Plover's mansion eating crumpets?" He ended it as a question and Quentin nodded encouragingly, "right, well, Jane and Martin opened a closet, and they went to Fillory. No- Martin didn't go. Fillory kept forgetting him or something."

"Forgetting him?"

"Yeah, Martin was crying like a little bitch about Fillory not wanting him anymore, and Jane said, hang tight, and she'd find some way that Martin could go back to Fillory any time he wanted." The others listened intently, though Lilly still glowered, "yeah, there were like, creatures or something."

"Questing creature," Quentin explained. "If you catch one, they're forced to grant you a wish. There are seven of them. There's a dog, a rabbit--"

"Stop!" Penny groaned, "I'm literally becoming less cool with every word you say." Lilly gave him a pointed look, pursing her lips and raising one eyebrow. Penny sent her an apologetic look, to which she simply scoffed.

"So, I assume she had her enchanted bow so she could actually catch one."

"Uh, yes, right. Yes, so she caught one of these things and asked for a key to unlock the door to Fillory."

"Did it work?"

"Yeah, it gave her like a button? Yeah, a button."

"Wait, so the button is the key?" This time it was Alice who spoke.

"Well this all makes sense," Quentin murmured.

"It does?" Alice asked in bewilderment.

"Of course," Lilly nodded.

"In the last book, Martin is obsessed with finding the lost button. He's tearing Plover's house apart," Quentin's words came out fast and blurred. "The message boards are insane, um, with different theories, because the books-- they just say that the button's magic. They don't- they don't- there's -- uh- nothing specific about it," he stumbled over his words as he always did when he was excited or nervous. Lilly took the opportunity to continue for him.

"It could still be there, at Plovers house. Martin never found it!"

"Wait, you're talking about a direct ticket to the fucking Beast," Penny interrupted.

"Better than him having one to us," she countered.

"Look, this is a manuscript that you're probably the only person who's ever read. There's a chance the button's still there." Quentin regained his composure after a moment of erratic breathing and mumbling incoherencies. "I'm going and like it or not, Penny, you should come too."

"Well, I'm going," Lilly declared, to which Alice nodded in agreement. They all turned to Penny, who stared at them like they were insane. Maybe they were. He shook his head, turning pleading eyes on Lilly as if she would sympathize with him. She just stared, not in the mood to be lenient. She was taking none of his shit.

"Fine," he complied with a grumble.

"Alright, so, what's the quickest way to England?"

Thank you all so much for the love and support you've given this book! I can't believe we've gotten this far. I mostly started this for myself because there were zero Magicians fics on Wattpad. I figured maybe a few people would read it, but holy shit this is way more than that! Thank you guys for all the votes and amazing comments you've left. they make me want to keep writing this. I'm happy and sad to say that this book is almost over!

- Vi