Episode Recap: We Have Brought You Little Cakes

So, Alice is still having a hard time readjusting to being a human again, and Quentin decides that the best course of action is to give her a potion that will stop her from hurting herself. She has a penchant for burning herself, because, in her words, “I miss the fire.” Over at Brakebills, Penny finds out why they call it the Poison Room. It gave him a magical kind of cancer. If Professor Lipson and Dean Fogg can’t find a cure, it could kill him in a matter of weeks. Not wanting to waste any time, Penny and Kady decide to go off to spend whatever good time they have left together, but first Penny needs to make a few stops.

Julia, having been reunited with her shade, is having some pretty extreme growing pains. She’s being hit with flashes of everything she did when she was shadeless and is now feeling all that guilt/shame/etc. Eliot finds her like this, and having some experience in this realm because he is generally mopey, implores her to put on some pants and help him save all of magic.

At the Library of the Neitherlands, Penny saw that Eliot’s book ends the same way everyone else’s does, in 20 blank pages, so he warns Eliot not to do what he’s planning to do. That’s when the head librarian of The Neitherlands swoops in to tell Penny that he is desperately needed at work, and just like that Penny and Kady are separated.

Back in Fillory, Margo and Josh are searching the Fairy realm (which is actually just another dimension that exists on top of Fillory) for Fen. When they find her, Fen wants to stay to be close to her baby, which gets Margo and Josh caught and brought to the Fairy Queen. The Fairy Queen wants to help Margo and Josh save all magic, and gives Margo and Josh a plant that’s basically catnip for gods to bake into little cakes in order to attract Ember. With that, she sends Margo and Josh on their way, but not before taking payment for the travel between realms – yep. Margo’s eye. Eliot and Margo decide to throw a decadent party, and serve the little catnip cakes, which will hopefully get Ember there. Fingers crossed!

The next part of the plan involves getting Ember and Umber back together so Umber can hopefully convince his brother to stop being so insane. Quentin heads back to Umber’s place and begs him to go back to Fillory. Umber is having none of it though, as he is obsessed with the new world he is creating inside a snow globe and whisks Quentin to this new land. It soon becomes apparent that Ember and Umber need each other. Umber is too organized and Ember is too chaotic, but together they work. Umber does NOT like hearing this, though, and soon gets all kinds of ragey.

The Fallorian bacchanal is in full swing, when who should arrive but Ember. The plan is working! Also, Quentin being stuck in that snow globe was apparently part of the plan too, because who should arrive at the party but Julia, WITH THE SNOW GLOBE! She shakes it up, releasing Quentin and Umber...and now the two gods/brothers are face-to-face. That goes horribly.

Lest we forget, Umber faked his own death and made a deal with The Beast to save himself while Ember was banished from Fillory. Ember wields some mighty magic, killing his brother, while Julia does that spell that turns any metal object into a god-killing weapon and allows Quentin to kill Ember. The gods of Fillory are dead, so, like, is magic safe now? Maybe?

Margo and Eliot try to salvage their kingdom by coming up with a constitution, ripped off from those of other countries. Kady offers her services as a spy to help Marlee Matlin (okay, the Hedgewitch Marlee Matlin played back a few episodes ago) bring down the Library of the Neitherlands in exchange for saving Penny’s life. Marlee Matlin agrees. Quentin heads back to Alice to try and make her feel human again. It works. In a post-coital moment, Quentin tells her that he killed Ember and Alice freaks out. She tells him that gods have parents and they will definitely be seeking revenge.

The revenge comes in the shape of a magical plumber who, get this, turns off all the magic in both worlds. Two months later and still without magic, the students at Brakebills can only study magic theoretically, hoping for it to return one day. But will that day ever come? Alice gets a visit from that old priest niffin mentor, who warns her that an enemy she made during her niffin days, something called The Lamprey, is coming for her.

Also, Fillory is about to be attacked by a giant army of Fairies.  And weirdly enough, Julia breaks into Brakebills to meet with Quentin. She has something to show him. She doesn’t know how or why, but she is able to magic up some sparks. Twist.