Galinda Upland was a happy child. She had a lot of friends, loving parents, and a closet full of dresses. She and her friends would engage in make-believe, and while Galinda wouldn't admit it, sometimes she tired of the same scenarios they played all the time: shopping, house, a fashion show. Still, she couldn't complain.
This particular summer afternoon, the air was hot and sticky, and all her friends had gone to the swimming pool for the day. Being somewhat tiny for her age, the blonde's parents would not allow her near a pool, for fear of drowning, so Galinda was stuck at home, too hot to play with any of her dolls, or try on her dresses.
"Mommy, it's hot!" she complained to her mother after making her way downstairs.
Her mother, being rather busy, gave her daughter a glass of pink lemonade and urged her daughter outside.
The blonde sighed as she walked through the gardens, brushing a loose curl from her face. "It's soooo hot…" she moaned to no one in particular before drinking half the glass.
A sudden apple core hit the ground a few inches from her and Galinda jumped slightly. She looked down at the core, and as she did so, another hit her head.
"Hey!" she said, rubbing her head and looking up. Her eyes fell on someone clinging to the trunk of a tree, catching the fruit in their mouth. "What are you doing in our tree?"
The person looked down at them before hopping down and Galinda's eyes widened when she saw it was a girl with green skin. The girl looked at the blonde with dark eyes as she wiped her mouth with the back of her hand.
"You dropped that on my head you know," Galinda said with all the arrogance of a five-year-old.
"Sorry," the girl said.
There was a pause. "What's your name anyway? Why is your skin green? Did you eat grass? I don't like vegetables. Will I turn green if I eat a lot of vegetables? Cause I don't like them—"
The girl covered the blonde's mouth with one hand. "You talk too much."
Galinda scowled at her, and crossed her arms as the green girl withdrew her hand.
"My name is Elphaba, and I don't know why I'm green. I just am."
Galinda was not satisfied with that answer. "Well… that's dumb."
Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "Well, what's your name then?"
"I'm Galinda Upland, of the Upper Uplands," the blonde replied, tossing her hair with one hand and striking a pose.
Elphaba blinked; she wasn't entirely impressed.
The blonde sighed and dropped the pose. "Why are you in our garden anyway?"
"I saw the tree and wanted some fruit. I didn't realize it was yours."
"Well it is ours."
"I can't give you the fruit back."
The blonde paused before she set her glass down. "If you play with me, I won't tell anyone."
"I don't play."
Galinda made a face. "What do you mean, you don't play? Everyone plays."
"I don't."
"Come on. You know, like when you play make-believe and you pretend that you're shopping or at a fashion show."
It was Elphaba's turn to make a face. "Those sound boring."
"Well, we don't have to play those games. We could play… tag."
"I don't know what that is."
"It's easy. If I touch you, you're it and you have to chase me. When you catch me, I have to chase you."
The green girl mulled this over. "All right."
Galinda grinned before she tagged the green girl. "You're it!" she squealed before she ran away. Elphaba raised an eyebrow before she smiled slightly and chased after her.
The two spent a good part of the afternoon playing, and when the heat finally got to them, they collapsed under the shade of a large tree, laughing.
"That was fun," Elphaba said, brushing strands of raven hair from her face.
Galinda smiled over at her newfound friend, admiring the green girl's hair. "Yeah, but now I'm even hotter."
Elphaba sat up, wiping sweat from her forehead. "I should probably go."
The blonde frowned slightly. "But we're having so much fun."
"I'm sorry."
Galinda sighed, sitting up as well. "Come back tomorrow, okay?"
Elphaba gave the blonde a small smile. "I will."
"You promise?" The blonde held a delicate pinky out.
"I promise," Elphaba replied, linking her pinky with the blonde's.
Galinda smiled and watched as the green girl got up and left, leaving the blonde to lay back down, looking up through the sunlit branches.
But Elphaba didn't come back. The blonde waited day after day, hoping to see her green friend in a tree, but Elphaba never came back. So finally, Galinda stopped looking, and soon enough, the memory of Elphaba faded from her mind.
Well, until they met again at Shiz.
It was a hot, sticky afternoon, and Galinda lay in her bed, sweltering in the heat.
"You never did come back," she mused to the naked green body lying in bed with her.
Elphaba chuckled softly, looking down at the blonde lying on her chest. "I apologize, my sweet. My family moved yet again, and the Uplands is so far from Munchkinland."
Galinda smiled slightly before she moved up slightly to kiss the green woman. "Tag. You're it."
