I've been obsessed with the magicians for a while now and was tempted to write a oneshot about it. Also, listen to Ricky Montgomery his music is amazing
The paper slips from Tyler's hand, fluttering in the wind before getting stuck in the branches in a nearby tree.
"What the..." Tyler looks behind him, seeing Jenna had already left, and takes off after the paper. He nearly grabs it before the wind carries it further into the thick cluster of trees between the two buildings.
It evades his grasps a couple of more times, but Tyler doesn't give up. This paper is a part of Fillory, Book Six. He can't give up on it.
The farther he ventures into the trees he goes, he darker and colder the wind gets. Tyler's fingers graze the paper, but the breeze seems to wrench it out of his hands, and it disappears between a pair of bushes. He sighs and squeezes himself between the trees, finally grabbing a hold of the paper, and suddenly the air changes.
Light breaks through the branches, and the chilled breeze turns into a summer wind. Tyler stumbles out of the bushes and into a grassy opening, with a cobblestone path. He trips and hits the ground, the papers of the sixth Fillory book spilling everywhere.
"Oh, shit," he mumbles, scooping them all together and stuffing them back in the binder the woman had given her.
A hand reaches and takes the rest of the papers, handing them to Tyler. When he looks up, he meets wicked eyes, dark and mischievous.
"Tyler Joseph?" The man kneeling in front of him asks. He can't be much older than Tyler, with a five o'clock shadow and a bush of blonde curls slicked back. His suit is cream colored and looks something that a mafia boss from the 60's would wear, but he somehow pulls it off. A lit cigarette dangles between his lips.
Tyler forgets how to talk, so he just nods and makes a "uh-huh," noise.
The man smiles and stands, taking a long inhale from the cigarette. "I'm Josh. You're late."
Josh gestures for Tyler to follow him, and he scrambles to his feet, clutching the binder to his chest. "Where am I?" He asks.
"New York," Josh says.
"Right." Tyler looks around. The bushes to his right don't look as thick as they did when he'd come through them. A large building stands near his right, with stairs and a pearly white fountain near the center of the square. "But like- what is this place?"
"Brakebills University for the magically adept," Josh drops the cigarette and snaps his fingers.
The small curl of smoke coming from the bud rises and takes the form of a bird, flapping its wings and flying right into Tyler's face. He coughs, waving his hand in his face, but follows Josh.
"Magically adept?"
"Yup. You've been granted access to an exclusive three year program where you'll hone your magical abilities, then you'll graduate and be thrust into the world like a baby fresh out of the womb." Josh looks over his shoulder and sends Tyler a grin that reminds him of a tiger on the prowl. "That is, if you pass the entrance exam. You're late, after all."
Tyler rushes to walk beside him while they make their way up the stairs to the large wooden doors if the building. He sees an insignia of a moth and key on a flag draped above the entrance. "So, is this... am I finally going crazy? Is this a hallucination?"
Josh sends him an exasperated look. "How would asking me help?"
"Okay, yeah, fair enough."
Inside, there's about two dozen other people walking around. A plastic sign points to one of the many rooms reading ENTRANCE EXAM HERE.
Josh directs him into the room and shoves him forward. "Good luck, sweetheart." He winks and slams the door behind him.
Tyler turns around and sees rows of fold up tables with four people seated at each. A man stands at a podium in the front of the room.
"Excuse-" before he can ask what the hell he's doing there, the man raises his hand, and Tyler stops talking.
He sits in the only empty seat in the closest table and notices the blank packet and pen in front of him. The man takes out a pocket watch.
"Begin."
The people around him open their packets, so Tyler does the same. Inside, the words seem to float above the page, swirling and twisting into different words ever couple of seconds. He stares for a minute, not understanding what he's reading, until a math question he knows appears.
"Oh, this is easy," he says under his breath, picking up the pen and scribbling his answer. The question doesn't change until he stops writing, and he continues with this pattern of waiting for a question he knows to appear.
Hours later, a small beeping breaks Tyler out of his concentration, and he closes his packet. The man puts the pocket watch away.
"File down to the front of the room to submit your tests, then proceed to your respective rooms on the tickets you receive."
Tyler gets to the front of the line and hands the packet to a woman, who in exchange gives him a golden ticket. He starts to walk out but catches a glimpse of strawberry blonde hair and bolts.
"Jenna!"
His best friend spins around in her line, ticket in hand, just as Tyler tackles her into a hug.
"Oh, my god, Ty, thank god you're here." She quickly squeezes him and pulls back, looking just as confused as he feels. "What the hell is happening? How did you get here?"
"I don't know, I was just chasing a piece paper I lost and then I went through some bushes- wait, how did you get here?"
She pushes a strand of hair behind her ear. "I was in an elevator and it just dropped me off here. I have no fucking clue what's happening and it's kind of scaring me."
Tyler sighs in relief, laughing a little. "Thank god, you're just as confused as I am."
"No shit, why wouldn't I be?"
"Nothing, it's just-" he taps his temple. "I started to meds on Tuesday and I didn't know if-"
"Continue on to your respective testing rooms," the man at the podium said, his voice booming through the room.
The two walk out together, and Josh is there waiting with another cigarette in hand. He shoots him a wolffish smile and holds his hand out to Tyler.
"I'm your escort to your testing room. They want second years with every potential first year student in case something goes to shit."
Jenna glances between the two of them. "And what about me?"
"Hmm." Josh looks her up and down. "I think you'll be a good fit with the local bitch. Ashley, darling, will you escort this lovely blondie to her testing room?"
A blue haired girl appears, wrapping her arms around Jenna's waist. "Hello, gorgeous," she purrs.
Jenna puts her arms up above her head, looking at Tyler in distress. Tyler can't help her, because Josh is already dragging him in the opposite direction, further into the building.
"So, I'm not crazy," he says.
"No, this is just an elaborate hallucination your mind created in order to deal with the crushing reality that you'll never be anything worthwhile in the real world." Tyler pales and Josh looks back. "I'm fucking with you, Tyler, or course you're not crazy. And now, you're not alone in your feeling of mediocracy."
Tyler can't help but smile. All he ever wanted in life was to feel like he belonged. "Good to know."
"Come on, magic man. Your tester won't wait forever," Josh flicks his wrist and the cigarette lights itself. "You coming?"
Tyler shakes his head with a smile and sets off, following this crazy, curly haired man into the mysterious unknown of Brakebills University.
