TITLE: Between The Moon And You
AUTHOR: brightblue
RATING: Teen (ish?)
CATEGORY: Romance, Elphaba/Fiyero
SPOILERS: Musical fic, takes place sometime between Acts I and II. Vague references to the book-verse.
SUMMARY: Between Acts I and II, Elphaba struggles and Fiyero sleeps. A vignette of sorts. MUSICAL FIC. Elphaba/Fiyero.
AUTHOR'S NOTES:
So, I read Wicked the novel several years ago. Several years ago I saw the original Chicago cast of the musical production. This fic was written at some point between then and now and has been languishing on my hard drive. I'm not entirely happy with it, but after seeing the musical for at least the dozen-th time, I felt compelled to post it. It's a mere drabble/vignette that takes place between the first and second acts of the musical, with some book references. I'm not totally happy with it….not by any stretch…but this is as good as it will get and so… ENJOY! (Also- lyrics stolen from Counting Crows because I needed a title!)
The sky was painted a brilliant gold. Streaks of midnight, rose, and purple were shot through the canvas creating, all in all, one of the most beautiful sunsets Elphaba had yet to witness. Or maybe it was just that she rarely stopped to notice.
Pulling her cloak tighter around her shoulders, she leaned back against the quoxwood tree. It was harvest time. The air was tinged with the scent of cut grain and burnt leaves. The evening had a bite to it that she hadn't felt for many months. It was what made her cut her flight short and rest up for the night. On the ground she was safe from the chilly atmosphere.
The days were growing shorter, she knew. Soon she would have to find lodging for the cold season. Her ability to travel would be limited by the harsh weather. But there was still so much work to be done! So many Animals she had yet to warn! The Rebel Animals were relying on her to carry their message throughout Oz, to try to convince those in danger to go into hiding.
But, honestly, what was she really doing?
She'd started her mission, so many months ago, determined to save as many Animals as she could from the Wizard. She wanted to spread the truth. She wanted to bring the Wizard down. And yet, so far all she'd succeeded in doing was warning a handful Animals of impending raids, moving them underground and away from suspicion. Those who would listen to her truth about the Wizard seemed to already know it and already be prepared to run. The ones who most needed to hear her message were convinced she was evil. All she seemed to be able to do lately was successfully keep one step ahead of the Gale Force and most days even that seemed like an insurmountable task. She'd done no real good.
With a sigh, Elphaba pulled her knees up to her chest and buried her head there. Her hat tipped forward, acting as a shield against the frosty air. Things weren't getting any easier. She didn't know how much longer she could do this. It seemed for every Animal who was able to enter into hiding (for all the good that was), five more were captured by the Gale Force. She didn't dare think what came next for them. With each day that passed, the sense of foreboding that curled low in her stomach pulled tighter. Every Animal who refused help from the Wicked Witch killed a piece of the passion that kept her going. The possibility of being found and captured hovered over her like a thick, suffocating fog. Elphaba was growing tired. It was just too much. How could she ever win? She was barely surviving.
And it wasn't that she wanted to give up. She couldn't possibly. Yet sometimes she wondered…
In moments like these, these beautiful, quiet moments when it wasn't Elphaba-against-all-of-Oz just Elphaba-the-only-one-in-Oz, she wondered. What was she missing out on? She'd never dreamed of anything more for herself, really, than meeting the Wizard. She'd thought that would solve all her problems.
It hadn't.
Instead, it had been one problem after another since her dream came true. She'd lost everything because of the Wizard. It was, in actuality, a nightmare.
Her thoughts drifted to Nessarose-- oh dear, sweet Nessa! Elphaba had not left her sister in a happy state of mind. She worried about her. Who was looking after her now? Certainly not Morrible-- she was off fabricating lies for the Wizard. Glinda? No, she, too, had left Shiz and was working for the Wizard, much to Elphaba's disappointment. She'd picked up that much on the run. Was Nessa back with their father? Elphaba could only hope. At least there with him Nessa would receive proper care. Though who would listen to her heartaches?
A hot tear rolled down Elphaba's face. She took a deep breath and sucked the ones that threatened to follow back inside. No, she made her choice. She was doing good, even if it didn't seem like it at times. Without her, few would know of the Wizard's awful deceptions. More Animals would be caged or dead.
Still, spending her nights traversing Oz on her broomstick got awfully lonely. It shocked her how much she longed to see Nessa's kind smile or Glinda's signature hair toss. She wanted to spend one more afternoon lounging on the grounds of Shiz, her nose buried in a book that was not the Grimmerie. She yearned to curl up in her warm bed and pretend to ignore the gossip Glinda would inevitably share. She even missed her father's curt letters. He never did write her to congratulate her on getting to meet the Wizard. He probably knew it would be a disaster.
But most of all, she missed Fiyero.
It was dreadfully silly. Something she would expect of Glinda or one of her foolish friends, not herself. But she simply could not get him out of her head. It wasn't that she wanted to miss him, but his memory pestered her. Thoughts of his voice, his face, and his ridiculous smirk poked at her brain, begging for attention.
Nights like these, when the stars seemed so unfriendly, were the worst. He haunted her. When she closed her eyes, she could only see the smooth planes of his face and the stubborn spikes of his hair. Sometimes, she swore she could smell that dreadful cologne he wore as the breeze stole past her nose. It was so like him to cover up his true self (something earthy, special, and dangerous) with something so lavish and conventional.
Elphaba shivered when she remembered the tension in the air that day at the train station. It was so long ago and yet so fresh in her mind. The change in him was obvious to her then. When their eyes met, it was like the rest of the world fell away. Nothing else seemed to matter. Beyond every hope, the longing that seemed to radiate from him mirrored her own. In his every movement, she could see that he had changed. He was becoming the man she had once glimpsed lurking bellow that shallow, playboy prince. It thrilled her. Oh, to go back to that day! She had felt on top of the world, like anything was possible. It was only a few short moments, but it was everything.
The wind howled. Elphaba trembled and pulled her arms tighter around her body. Her mind wandered past Nessa's sharp laugh and jeweled shoes, through the dorm room she had shared with Glinda, and over that strange night at the Ozdust Ballroom. It lingered on that wonderful day in the Emerald City she'd shared with her best friend. Finally, her thoughts circled back around to the man she could never have. Conjuring him up in her mind feature by feature, memory by memory, she found herself lost in what was and what could never be.
His hand was warm on the small of her back as he twirled her around the Oz Dust Ballroom. Her first dance. As they stepped and swayed, Elphaba forgot herself. She saw only his eyes, deep and true. How was it that she never noticed how revealing the eyes could be? Everything Fiyero said and did reflected a silly, carefree prince, but his eyes seemed to tell a different story. And how was it that no one else saw this? She was dizzy. Was it the dancing? The heat of his body so close to hers? Her eyes mapped his face: discovering, plotting, and claiming. She was thrown by the feelings he stirred in her. New physical sensations, alarming bursts of intuition, and overwhelming emotions knotted her mind until she was unsure what responses were natural and which were more concerning. She was lost. Now, she could only be aware of his tentative touch and the awkwardness that kept them several inches apart. She had underestimated Galinda, misjudged her completely. Now, Fiyero had thrown her for a loop as well. This man holding her in his arms seemed to instinctively know that though he led the dance, she needed to know she was still in control. This was not the Fiyero that Glinda had twittered over all day. Because of that, she doesn't feel guilty about the dance. This was someone else. This man she couldn't read and it scared her. It seemed this trend was catching. For the first time, she had lost all sense of what it meant to be Elphaba Thropp, The Green Girl.
Again, they circled the dance floor and then…
Fiyero's breath is hot on her face as they move closer. She is drawn to him by some mysterious force she does not understand.
Inevitability pulls him to her; certainly, it's nothing he can control.
His hands tangle in her black hair. Silk, he thinks, from some foreign land. Moonlight dances on her skin, creating as many shades of green as are in the forest they seek refuge in. It shocks him to realize he would willingly spend forever identifying and cataloguing those colors. She is magical; he knows this without a doubt. Her touch burns his skin; her kisses boil his blood. He wants to be so close to her that her emerald skin becomes his own.
"Elphaba," he murmurs into her neck, inhaling her scent. She gasps, her breath hot against his ear. He clutches her tighter to his body, seeking something tangible in this storm of currents. Her hands flit over his chest, hesitant and indecisive. He catches her hands, eases their bodies to the forest floor. She kisses him fiercely.
"Fae," he whispers, overwhelmed. "Fae, I love you."
She smiles. Her spellbinding eyes, her skin the color of a precious jewel, the sharp angles of her face that somehow only make her more beautiful—none of these compare to the brilliance of her rare smile. She places a hand over his heart. He leans into her warmth…
… and awakes with a start. Sweat has soaked his nightshirt and his heart pounds out of control, as if without the heaviness of her hand it can't possibly be contained in his chest. He closes his eyes and breathes.
"Fiyero?" Glinda's voice is heavy with sleep from beside him. "Wha's it?"
He exhales. He tries to push the images of Elphaba in the moonlight from his mind, though he is sure they are indelibly tattooed there. He reminds himself that he is sharing a bed with Elphaba's best friend.
"It was just a dream, Glin. Go back to sleep." He runs a hand over Glinda's arm. She rolls over and sighs back into sleep.
Fiyero lies still for a few moments. He tries to clear his head, but a task that used to come so easily to him is now nearly impossible. He can only remember those few stolen moments, if they could be called that, that he shared with Elphaba. He wonders where she is, if she is even alive.
He closes his eyes against that thought. No, she is alive. He can feel it. Things still seem unfinished between them, as if their journey is not over yet. So, he searches. He has remained in Emerald City with Glinda. Though he hates the Wizard and Morrible and all their lies, he stays. He tags along with the search teams. He ventures off on his own always hoping he will be the one to find her.
How wicked is he? Sharing a bed with a woman he loves but is not in love with while he pines away for her best friend? Is it so wrong to want to keep the one tie he still has, and truly has only ever had, to Elphaba?
He knows Glinda is not completely oblivious to his feelings. She may choose to ignore them, but she knows. They have both changed so much over the past few years that he is sure their shared love for the green witch is the foundation of their love today. Still, Glinda is a good woman. Perfect, really, deserving of so much more than he can give her. He wants to see her happy and loved. He is a coward for not letting her go, letting her find the one for her. But, most of all, he is selfish. He realizes that if he can't have Elphaba, Glinda is second best. Loving Glinda is easy. Not loving Elphaba is the hard part.
With a sigh, Fiyero rolls over. Tomorrow he will search again for Elphaba. She is out there, somewhere, of this he is sure. He closes his eyes and hopes for a dreamless slumber…
Elphaba wakes with a start. She throws her cape off, her body overheated from her dreams. She closes her eyes, trying to escape the images playing over and over in her mind. She takes a deep breath. No luck.
The sun will be up soon. Life will continue. She has to keep moving.
As she prepares for another day on the run, Elphaba can't help but recall her dreams. One, a vivid memory, the other—dare she even say?—almost like a vision. It felt so real, like if she were to just reach out, he would be right there…
No, those are foolish thoughts. Why would Fiyero ever want her like that? It was a ridiculous dream, nothing more. Gathering up her things, Elphaba pushes all thoughts of romance out of her head and concentrates on her next move.
It's time to go home.
END NOTES:
Well, I'm not entirely pleased, but this was written a long time ago and relatively finished so I thought I'd give others the chance to read it. I hope you enjoyed. Truly, this was inspired by the Original Chicago Cast of Wicked. I read the novel, enjoyed it, but didn't love it. Then, I saw the OCC. I was blown away. I saw that cast every chance I could get. After several key members left, I continued to see Wicked every chance I could get (Chicago, tour, Broadway). Suffice to say, though I loved the show each time, I never quite "clicked" again with another cast. To me, Ana Gasteyer is the best Elphaba I've seen and, by this point in time I've seen about 6 different Elphabas live and pretty much all the others via the interweb. Others won't agree, I know. But, to me, Ana is the best: no other actress (and I've searched and hoped!) has personified the Elphie in my head. She had the clear, strong, no frills vocals. She had the COMEDY (and no one can compete with her there—I'm sorry, you've either got those chops or you don't!) And, best of all, there was no Disney-princess-ification of Elphaba. Ana played the book Elphie—bad ass, smart, sarcastic, etc. It's all a matter of personal choice, of course. But, I dedicate this to Ana and, my second fave Elphie, Kristy Cates. It's such a sad day for us Chicagoans who love Wicked. The Chicago casts of Wicked have truly been spectacular and I, for one, will miss having the show here. Best of luck to everyone in their future endeavors—you deserve nothing but the best!!