This was a request that was given to me by a friend of mine. She wanted a story in which Elphaba restores Fiyero to humanity. Now, I realize this has been done many times, so i've tried to put somewhat of an original spin on it. Please forgive any errors or clichesness. they are mine alone. I hope you enjoy and please review! Thanks!

It seemed like a never-ending cycle. A glimmer of hope would appear, followed by serious doubts. Doubts soon gave way to hesitance on hers, which would lead to urging on his. From his urging would come a reluctant compliance, admittedly to simply shut him up sometimes, even if both of the intentions were good. Compliance would lead to hours of study and research, searching for a way-any way- that might bring them what they both desired. .

When a preferred method had been logically thought out and thoroughly tested as much as it could be, breath was held in silent anticipation, only to be released somewhere between moments and day later as each time, things remained just as they had been before.

He was frustrated. She was discouraged. Failure was nothing new, but he was still surprised when, after what was perhaps the ninth or tenth, attempt, she looked at him with defeat written all over her face and spoke with a sigh, "It's over, Fiyero. I give up."

For as long as he'd known her, he'd never heard those words come out of mouth. "What do you mean 'it's over'? How can you say that?"

She gave a humorless laugh. "Is it that hard to understand? I'm done. Nothing is working. Each attempt is only weakening me and endangering you. It's best we stop now before one or both of us ends up permanently injured."

He stood in shocked silence as she turned from him and walked out of the room. Is she serious? Ever since they had left Oz, restoring him to humanity had been her focus and mission in life. She had gone after the solution-any solution- with a vengeance and passion that had always been in her blood and he had let her. If she was happy, so was he.

Are you?

The thought caused him to stop short. Was he happy? At first instinct, his answer was a resounding yes! He was alive, albeit in a different way, but breathing none the less. He was with the person he loved most in the world. He had a home and a purpose in life. What shouldn't he be happy?

But then he would look at his life from a different angle and realize what he was missing. He knew that he shouldn't complain and doubt, but there were things that he missed about his old life. He missed the warmth of the sun on his face, the taste of food (or food in general for that matter…), and the smell of the earth after a rainstorm.

Most of all, he missed human contact. Fiyero had always been a person of touch, never thinking twice of placing a friendly hand on someone's shoulder when speaking to them or sneaking up behind the woman he loved to steal the occasional kiss. Still, he loved Elphaba enough to accept his life as it was now

He knew very well it wasn't the way she had planned things. Hell, if she hadn't done this too him, they place he would be right now was dead. Still, he saw the sorrowful glances she cast him from time to time and the wishful smiles when they talked of their life at Shiz. As much as he wished he could be himself again, he would never let her see. She already had plenty of guilt for both of them. The least he could do was put on a smile and force the care-free façade he had perfected over the years. He had everything he needed, he decided. And he was happy.

Are you really?

The answer came with aching certainty.

Sometimes happiness is a choice.

Fiyero breathed then. And smiled.

Nearly an hour had passed before Elphaba chose to return home. When she came through the door, Fiyero placed aside his reading and came to meet her. Taking in his over-zealous smile, her brow furrowed and she asked, "What are you so happy about?"

Placing a kiss to her brow, he simply answered, "My life."

The brow rose this time. "Are you?"

For the first time, he answered honestly, "Yes, Fae. I am. Come here…" Leading her into the living room, he sat her in the armchair before moving to take a seat across from her. "I've been thinking while you were gone."

"Yes, I've heard," she quipped, a small smile tugging at her lips.

"I'm serious." Taking her hands, he met her eyes. "We've been trying so hard for something that may not even be possible."

"Yero, I'll keep trying, I promise! We'll find someway to turn you back!"

"But what if you can't?"

She shrunk away. "What?"

He shrugged. "It's something we have to face, Fae. This might be too much for both of us. Maybe I'm supposed to be a Scarecrow forever. But you know something? I'm okay with that."

She didn't seemed convinced. "You are," she stated flatly.

Fiyero nodded. "I really am. I am because I've realized that happiness if a choice. Would I love to be human again? Absolutely. There's so much that I miss, especially when it comes to you, love. I want to be able to hold you tightly in my arms and I want to be able to feel what it would be like to make love to you someday. But even if I never do, it's all right." Reaching over to brush a strand of hair out of her face, he smiled. "As long as I have you in my life, I'm happy."

She shook her head. "How can you be so calm? Isn't there something I can do to help? Anything?"

Fiyero forced her gaze back to his own. "The best thing you can do for me is to accept what we've been given. Fae, you're a horrible liar. I know you still blame yourself for my condition."

"Well, it wasn't exactly your own choice," she snapped.

"No," he conceded, "But it's the only way we could have made it out of Oz alive. We've alive and we're together. Can't you see that that's all that matters?"

She shrugged, stubbornly refusing to give in. "I feel as though I've ruined you."

"Ruined me?" His voice was incredulous as he wrapped her in his arms. "Sweetheart, you saved me," He spoke into her hair. "My life was nothing before you stormed into it and I wouldn't change a thing about you."

She smiled against his cheek. "Even though we argue more than is considered healthy."

"Oh, Elphaba. Can't you see? He pressed his burlap lips briefly to her human ones. "I would rather fight with you than make love with anyone else."

Slowly, Fiyero began to see a difference in her. As the weeks passed, Elphaba was happier than he had sever seen her. She smiled more, laughed often, even returned some of his good-natured teasing with jabs of her own. She was healing, he realized, just as he was. By learning to love their life as it was, much of the old doubts and fears began to fade away and life became much more pleasant.

One day, about three months after Elphaba's last attempt, Fiyero woke to the sensation of something warm on his mouth. Blinking his eyes open, he smiled when he saw his lover standing over him with an impish grin on her face. "I'm back, love."

'So I see," Standing, he followed her into the kitchen. "How was the market?"

She shrugged. "Nothing new. Rufax gave me a hard time with the price s as always, I threatened to turn him into a toad like usual, and we reached an understanding like we always do." She turned. "What do you think of adding…." Her words trailed off as she got a good look at him. "Sweet Oz… Yero…."

"What?" She was scaring him. "Fae, why re you staring at me?"

"I don't understand," she murmured. "How?.."

She said nothing, only brought him to stand in front of the sole mirror in the house, causing the Prince to nearly faint at what he saw. It was…him! Fiyero. Plain and simple.

"How?" It was his turn to ask as he touched his face. "Fae, what did you do?"

"That's just it," she marveled. "I didn't do a thing. Well, I kissed you, but I've done that many times before and it's never worked."

Fiyero was silent for a moment, then asked, 'Does it really matter how? I'm human again."

Reaching out, Elphaba touched his handsome face, raising herself up to kiss him. "It doesn't matter in the slightest."

Relishing in the feel of her, the Prince wrapped his arms around her, pulling away from the kitchen and down the hall. "Good. Because nothing's changed."

"You're right," she murmured later. A wonderfully good-time later. "Nothing's changed. not at all."

"Mmm." He pressed a kiss to her bare shoulder. "Maybe we should fight more often."

Shaking her head, she shoved him off, only to snuggle right down into him again. "Still, I wonder what happened…"

His fingers danced along her spine. "Beats me. Was there some sort of escape clause in that spell of yours or something?"

She shrugged. "Not that I know of. It went "let his flesh not be torn, let his blood leave not stain. Though they beat him let him fell not pain. Let his-"

Fiyero sat up. "Fae, that's it!"

"What is?"

"The pain part!" Pushing a handful of hair out of his face, he went on. "Think about it. 'Let him feel no pain.' Maybe that was the key.'

"You were a scarecrow, my sweet. You couldn't feel anything anyway."

"Maybe not physically." Fiyero answered, "but my heart was broken. If not for my own situation, then for you."

It was Elphaba's turn to sit up, pulling the blanket with her. "Could it really be that simple?"

The Prince shrugged. "Sometimes, they are. Over these past months, we've both worked at letting go of the past and all of our blame. Maybe getting rid of the type of pain was the key to restoring humanity. Love is a powerful tool, sweetheart. It can work wonders."

She smiled. "It certainly reconciled me." She touched his face. "I don't what I would do without you, Fiyero. You make my life worth living."

"I love you, Elphaba," he replied simply. "And that's all I need to know." He leaned to kiss her again, not even believing that this was real. But it was. It was real, it was powerful, and it was home.

Two broken souls, both healed by love, knit together with a promise of forever.

Love heals
When you feel like you can't go on
Love heals
Hold on to love, it'll keep you strong
Love heals
When you feel like you can't go on
Love heals
Hold on to love, and it will bring you home

~ RENT