So, this is really how I wanted to end 'After Winter Comes Spring', but I was a wimp that couldn't kill Elphaba and keep her dead, and a sucker for happy Fiyeraba fluff. There will be Fiyeraba, but… well… I think you all know what's going to happen. There are bits from the story in here before the alternate ending. *Hands out tissues and hides from Nia Hunters*
"According to these test," the doctor said, glancing down at the papers in his hands through his glasses, "her lung scarring has gotten much worse. It's causing her to have a harder time breathing."
"I've noticed," Nessa said. "Is there nothing else we can do?"
The doctor licked his lips. "I could prescribe another medicine that can slow future scarring. And I can give her a potion that will make her more comfortable so she's not in any more pain."
The brunette clenched her fist. "I meant to save her."
"I'm sorry, Miss Nessarose, but there's really nothing else we can do now. All we can do is make your sister comfortable."
"There has to be something!" Nessa argued. "Something we can do!"
"Miss Nessarose…"
"You can't just let her die! You're not supposed to let her die!"
"Miss Nessarose, I have done everything I can for your sister, but I am not a miracle worker."
Nessa bit back a response and looked down at her lap.
"May I go up and see her?"
Nessa made an empty gesture, still looking down at her lap as the doctor rose and went up to Elphaba's room. He heard a faint "Come in" when he knocked and slowly opened the door.
"Doctor…?" Elphaba blinked, looking up.
"Hello, Miss Elphaba," the doctor said as he pulled up a chair next to her bed and sat down. "How are you feeling?"
"Okay," the green girl whispered as she struggled to push herself up.
The doctor helped her sit up and lean against the headboard.
"Did Nessa call you here?"
"No, I was actually here to speak with your father, but I didn't know he was out."
"Talk to my father about what?" Elphaba questioned, looking at the folder in the doctor's hand. "What's that?" she asked before he could answer her first question.
"The test results from your last visit."
A cold feeling came over the green girl. "How long do I have?"
"Wh-What?" the doctor blinked.
"How long do I have?"
"What are you…"
"I'm not a doctor, but I'm pretty sure that the fact that I'm getting weaker couldn't mean anything good."
The doctor could only blink at the green girl. "Miss Elphaba, I…"'
"Please," the green girl interrupted him softly. "Just tell me."
"I would say… around six weeks. If you continue to take your medication, maybe longer. I can give you a special potion to make you comfortable, but it will do nothing to prolong your life."
Elphaba looked down at her hands. "There's nothing else we can do?"
"I'm so, so sorry, Elphaba." He reached for her hand, but the green girl pulled away. "Would you like me to get your sister?"
Elphaba shook her head and laid back down. The doctor whispered another apology before turning and leaving, softly closing the door behind him. The green girl stared up at her ceiling, which soon became blurred with tears. She didn't even try to stop her tears, knowing that it would be pointless.
Elphaba didn't know how long she had been asleep, but when she woke up again, Nessa was sitting by her bedside.
"Hey," the brunette said gently.
"Hi," Elphaba whispered.
"How are you feeling?"
"Weak," Elphaba admitted after a while. "And tired."
The brunette smiled sadly. She knew how much her sister hated feeling weak, but she hated admitting it even more. "Do you want your medicine?"
"I don't need it right now."
Nessa nodded again. "Do you want anything?"
Elphaba shook her head.
"Do you… want me to stay?"
The green girl looked at her sister and smiled softly. "Sure."
The brunette smiled as she slipped her hand into her sister's, her smile widening when she felt Elphaba give her hand a gentle squeeze. She searched for topics to talk about with her sister, knowing that she wouldn't want to talk about her illness. They ended up talking about Boq and recalling childhood memories.
"Do you remember when, on my ninth birthday, I thought I could eat the entire chocolate cake by myself?" Nessa giggled.
Elphaba smiled and nodded. "You got about less than a quarter of the way through before over-stuffing yourself and getting a stomach ache."
Nessa smiled at the memory. "Or when I was seven and we had a funeral for my pet goldfish in the gardens."
"You made everyone, including the staff, dress in all black and attend the funeral," Elphaba smiled, then sobered.
"Fabala, what's wrong?" Nessa asked.
"I was just… thinking…"
"About what?"
Elphaba bit her lip, wondering if she should be discussing this at the moment with her sister. "It's nothing."
"It's something, or else you wouldn't have been thinking about it."
"It's just… what happens after… after you… die?"
Nessa inhaled sharply. "Why… why are you thinking about that?"
"Because I…" Elphaba couldn't finish that sentence, and she didn't need to.
"Fabala, you still have a lot of living left to do."
"Do I?"
"Yes, you do. You have to keep living for Father, Galinda, Fiyero, and me."
"Do you think there's an afterlife?"
"Fabala, stop!"
"Someplace where there's nothing wrong and no pain and Mama's waiting and…"
"Elphaba!"
The green girl looked over to see her sister staring at her with wide, tear-filled eyes.
"Why are you talking like this?"
Elphaba quickly pushed herself up and pulled her sister into a hug. "I'm so sorry, Nessa. I didn't mean to make you cry like this. I'm sorry, my dear, sweet Nessie."
Nessa clung to her sister for dear life. "You're not going to die, Fabala," she cried onto her shoulder. "You're going to stay right here with me and that's final."
"I'm sorry, Nessie."
"I don't want to hear any more talk about death or an afterlife! You're not going to die!"
"Okay, Nessa. I promise. No more."
Nessa calmed after a bit and wiped her eyes. "Good."
Elphaba sighed and regarded her sister before she started coughing. She didn't cough up blood this time, but her dry coughs were enough to scare the younger girl. Once she was finished, Nessa was ready with the glass of water. She held it up to her sister's lips and helped her take a few gulps of water.
"Just rest, Fabala," Nessa said as Elphaba took as deep of a breath as she could to recover. "Just rest for a few hours. I'll have food sent up to you later. Just rest."
Elphaba frowned slightly, but found her eyelids growing heavier as she laid back against the pillows.
As the weeks wore on, Elphaba's condition slowly worsened. She was now nearing the end of the fourth week. She was barely awake, and when she was, she would stare off into space, not seeing anything or anyone. Nessa was convinced that her sister could still hear her, since she would give her hand a light squeeze when she talked to her.
Currently, the brunette was watching over her sister as she slept. She kept a vigil over her since the doctor had returned. He was currently with their father in his study, talking about what they should do to make Elphaba comfortable. She tore her gaze away from her sister when she heard birds chirping outside. She wheeled over to the window and smiled at the sight of a mother bird feeding her babies.
"N-Nessa…"
The younger girl turned around and saw her sister slowly beginning to wake up. She quickly wheeled back over to her and took her hand.
"W-Wa… Water…"
Nessa helped her sister sit up and reached over to grab the glass of water from the nightstand. She held the glass up to her sister's lips and helped her take a few sips of the cold water.
"There," Nessa said when Elphaba pulled away, signaling that she had enough. "Better?"
Elphaba nodded faintly as her sister helped her lay back down. She felt Nessa slip her hand into hers and smiled faintly. The last thing she remembered was her sister whispering, "I love you, Fabala," before falling asleep.
Nessa smiled when her sister gave her hand a very faint squeeze, a signal that she had heard her. The brunette continued to sit with her sister for the next few hours, alternating between reading a book and glancing up at the green girl. She heard her mutter things in her sleep and waited for her father and the doctor to return. She soon heard their voices outside the room and looked at her sister once more.
"Nessa, were you up here the entire time?" Frex asked as he entered with the doctor behind him.
The brunette nodded. "Yes."
"How long has Elphaba been asleep?" the doctor asked, slowly approaching the green girl.
"She only woke up once, and she wanted water," Nessa reported. "She's also been muttering things in her sleep."
"What things?" Frex asked.
"Want… go… Vinkus," Elphaba slurred sleepily, only a quarter-conscious of what was going on around her.
"Like that," Nessa answered. "She wants to see Fiyero again… for his birthday."
"Fiyero… Yero…" Elphaba muttered.
"A trip to the Vinkus would be a lot," the doctor said.
"And she's been before," Frex added.
"But she wants to see Fiyero again, Father," Nessa pleaded.
"Nessa, it would be too much for her."
"But this is what she wants. She'll never get a chance like this again. Please," Nessa begged. The way she was pleading her sister's case, no one would have ever guessed that she had tried to break the two of them up. "I'll make sure she takes her medicine and rests and…"
"Nessa," the doctor said sadly. "She can't go. It would be too much for her. Her time is running out. We have to make sure she's comfortable here."
Tears welled in Nessa's eyes, but they didn't fall. Frex and the doctor left the room, leaving the brunette alone with her sister. She reached out and took Elphaba's green hand in hers, giving it a light squeeze.
"I'm sorry," Nessa said. "I tried… You shouldn't have to go through this. You're still so young." She leaned over and kissed her forehead. "I love you."
Fiyero was in a field. It was weird, because in one direction, he could see the Governor's Mansion in Munchkinland. In another direction, he could see Shiz, and behind him was his home. He looked around in the poppy-filled field, wondering why he was here in this dream world.
"Yero."
He turned and saw Elphaba approaching him. He smiled gleefully and ran towards her. "Fae!" He made to hug her, but his arms went right through her. Blinking in confusion, he looked at her, realizing that she was almost transparent. "What's going on?"
"I'm so sorry, Yero," the green girl said, a sad expression on her face.
"Fae, what –"
"I'm dead."
Fiyero looked as though he had been slapped in the face, which he might as well have been. "Wh-What did you just say?"
"I'm dead, Yero. I died a few hours ago. I'm so sorry."
"Then how…"
"You're dreaming. I wanted to come visit you to… to say goodbye."
"What? No, Elphaba! You're not dead! You can't be!"
"I'm sorry," Elphaba said, looking as though she was about to cry, even though she couldn't. "I was in so much pain and I was so weak and tired. I was so scared. I could barely breathe; my lungs were scarred so badly. I tried to hold on, but I couldn't."
"Were you…" the prince croaked. "Was Nessa… your father…"
"She was there with me. So was my father. I didn't die alone, Yero." She got a faraway look in her eyes. "Nessa was holding my hand, trying not to sob. She kept saying over and over again how much she loved me and how I was going to be with Mama. My father was sitting on the bed next to me, tears streaming down his face. After I… died… I stayed for a bit longer with Nessa and Father, but I… I had to leave. I couldn't bear Nessa's sobs."
Fiyero was crying. Elphaba wanted more than anything to pull him into her arms and hold him, but she couldn't. All she could do was watch as he mourned her in his dream world.
"I… d-didn't get a-a ch-ance t-to say… good-bye," the prince sobbed.
"That's why I'm here now," Elphaba said. She wanted to touch him so much. "I love you, Yero. And I always will. But Yero, you must listen to me. You must move on."
"What? Are you crazy!? How can I –"
"You can't hold onto my death forever. You need to move on with the rest of your life."
"I'll never be able to forget you, Fae!"
"And I'm not asking you to. I'm just saying that… I don't want you to mourn me forever. I don't want you to stop living just because I had to. I want you to go on and be the best king the Vinkus has ever seen."
"I wanted you to be my queen," Fiyero said, calming down slowly.
"I wanted to be your queen, Yero. But you will find another."
"She won't be as good as you."
"You mustn't hold that against her, Fiyero. She doesn't deserve that. I need you to love whoever you marry with all your heart, and not compare her to me."
"So what happens now?" Fiyero asked, taking a step towards her.
"I have to move on now. Well… right after I say goodbye to Galinda, and visit Nessa and my father one more time."
"I love you so much, Fae," Fiyero said, looking one last time into chocolate eyes he would never see again.
"I love you, too, Yero my hero, with all my heart. And I'll always be with you… in here," the ghost of the green girl said, pointing to his heart.
Fiyero stepped closer to her and reached out to touch her. His hand went right through her cheek and he almost started crying again.
"Yero, I –"
Elphaba didn't get to finish, because Fiyero's lips had crashed against hers. Startled, she quickly melted into the kiss and wrapped her arms around his waist, surprised that she could now touch him. They soon pulled away, Fiyero out of breath, but Elphaba no longer had that problem.
"How did…" she whispered.
"It's still my dream," the prince said, smiling slightly. "And… if you see my grandmother… wherever you're going…"
"I'll tell her that you said 'hi' and that you love and miss her," Elphaba finished with a slight nod.
Fiyero gave his girlfriend a grateful smile. He began to feel himself wake up and tried his best to fight against it.
"I love you, Yero," he heard Elphaba say as she began to fade, a sad smile on her face. "I love you so much and I'll wait for you. I'll be with you. Always."
Fiyero woke up with a start, wondering if his dream was true. No. His Fae couldn't be dead. But a feeling deep in his stomach told him that it was true. His girlfriend was gone. Tears formed in his eyes as he laid back down against his pillows.
I'll be with you. Always.
He could still hear Elphaba's voice in his head, repeating the same phrase over and over again.
"I'll always love you, Fae," the prince whispered. "Now and forever."
A strange feeling of calmness came over him and he sighed, allowing sleep to cover him, his last thoughts being of the green girl who had changed his life for the better.
Yes, I know. This was a very uplifting oneshot to post during the holiday season. But I have 2 more oneshots and a drabble pre-written to post before I begin posting my next multichapter at the end of January. And they're much happier. And I'm sure I'll get more ideas in between that time. Reviews make great presents!
Oh! And don't forget about voting for the Greg Awards! Voting closes on Dec 30th! Go to TrebledWriter's profile!