The cock crowed and the sun glared angrily down, beckoning two very different girls to awaken.
One was the eighteen-year-old Glinda Upland, soon-to-be mistress of the Upland Manor. The girl slowly arose from bed with a yawn, not accustomed to waking up at such an hour. She carelessly dropped herself onto her ottoman, plunging a silver comb through her tangled blonde curls and grouping it to the nape of her delicate neck. Glinda let the comb fall through her fingers lazily and it ended up lost in the fluffy chasm that was her bedroom carpet. She instinctively turned her attention to the gilded mirror and cocked her head to the side with an approving smile tugging at her lips. Quite pleased with what met her eyes in the reflective surface, Glinda hopped up and pranced merrily to her extensive walk-in closet. One by one, she tossed dresses out of her closet until she came across a sky blue gown made from the finest silk in the Gillikin. Oblivious to the mess in her room, the girl carefully sat down at her vanity and began applying eyeliner to her waterline. About halfway through a knock sounded throughout the room.
"Miss Upland, will you be receiving breakfast this morning?" called an all too familiar voice from the hallway.
"Oh Elphie, get in here!" Glinda let out a giggle and folded her hands in her lap.
The girl, whom Glinda called Elphie, carefully opened the door with one hand while balancing a breakfast tray with the other.
"You called, madam?" Elphaba Thropp, the young servant girl, had been late in waking up this morning. When she awoke, everyone else had left their chambers and Elphaba had no choice but to rush to her mistress's quarters in total disarray. Her silken raven hair was tied in a knot on the back of her head and her apron was tied in a clumsy attempt at a bow.
"Fifteen minutes late, Elphaba. What if I had starved? I could have you fired for this." Glinda was teasing, for they both knew that they would never fire her. The servant was, after all, her best friend. They had been close since they were six.
"You survived the night without nourishment. Another fifteen minutes would certainly not kill you." Elphaba's voice was calm and her face was emotionless.
"Such a rude tone! Perhaps your unfortunate skin condition is because of your snappy attitude. You should try being nicer, you mean green thing." Glinda pointed out, swallowing a forkful of eggs.
"The entire theory is plausible, but I do not believe that my skin will change if my attitude changes." Elphaba retorted, crossing her arms.
The two sat in tense silence for a moment before they couldn't keep it in any longer. Both burst into spontaneous bouts of laughter. Elphaba collapsed onto Glinda's bed and that was when the laughter stopped.
"Elphie….What are…. What are those?" Glinda ran a delicate pale finger over the red marks on her friend's neck in horror. She peered down the back of her patched dress to see that the mysterious marks continued.
"Your father was none too pleased with me after the incident in the library." She answered obediently.
"He whipped you over something as stupid as that?"
"It wasn't my place to be there."
"How was it not 'your place'?"
"Glinda, no matter what you think, I am just a servant. Nothing more, nothing less. It wasn't my place to be wandering about the library when there were chores needed to be done."
Glinda sat back and thought for a moment, twirling a blonde curl around her finger absentmindedly. There was no reason for her father to punish Elphaba for something that was Glinda's own idea. But she decided not to push the matter further.
"Are you prepared to meet the prince?" Elphaba inquired, wanting to change the topic. She bit the inside of her cheek as Glinda sighed at the mention of her fiancée. Prince Fiyero Tigelaar was a Vinkun royal, next in line for the throne. Glinda had been promised to him since birth.
"Elphaba, as my closest friend, you must know that I do not wish to marry him." Elphaba nodded in understanding.
"I know, my sweet. Your affection for Master Boq does not pass me by."
Glinda's cheeks flushed. "He's everything my parents don't want, to be honest. He's dirt poor and has no connection to royalty or the higher life."
"And that's why you love him?"
"That's exactly why I love him."
A tangible silence grew between them as they sat.
Elphaba broke the silence by continuing on. "I don't think I'd ever marry. That is, even if I were allowed to. I'd hate to have to bow down to someone in such humble acquiescence. The thought is mortifying."
Glinda burst out into a bubbly laugh. "Just like you, Elphaba. Always on the downside of things. You know-" She was cut off as the door slammed open. Elphaba leapt up in surprise and bowed as Carole Upland strode into the room, holding a large box in her hands.
"Another engagement gift, my dear!" Glinda put on an enthusiastic (but fake) smile as her mother placed the gift on her desk. "Elphaba, might I question as to why you are still here?" Carole asked, one eyebrow raised in suspicion.
"I was just leaving, ma'am." Elphaba responded with a child's politeness.
Glinda perked up, back to her normal and giddy self. "Momsie please let her stay. She was helping me figure out what I'm going to say to Prince Fiyero." She lied.
Carole pursed her lips. "Very well. Elphaba, at least wash up and do something with that hair of yours. Dinner is to be ready precisely at seven thirty."
"Yes, ma'am." Elphaba told her with a bow of her head. She stayed locked in this position until Carole addressed the blonde.
"And Glinda, sweetie, do not use contractions. They are not very ladylike."
"Yes, Mother." Glinda responded, rolling her eyes once the woman shut the door and left.
"'And Glinda, sweetie, do not use contractions. They are not very ladylike.'" Glinda mocked in her mother's sweet high-pitched voice. "I'll use all the damn contractions that I want!"
Elphaba threw her head back and laughed. When she brought her head back, Glinda was staring at her.
"What?" She snapped.
"You just… You're such an independent woman. To see you take orders is so unnerving." Glinda whispered.
Elphaba let her hair loose and it cascaded down her shoulders like a waterfall of night rain. "I've taken orders all my life. It stopped bothering me a long time ago." She retrieved a comb from the pocket of her apron and began to brush the tangles out of her hair.
The comb was missing almost a quarter of the teeth and Glinda grimaced. "Stop, Elphie. Just stop. Come here." She grasped the girl by her bony arm and led her to her vanity. She took out one of her other combs (for she had lost the silver one) and brushed out the girl's smooth black mane.
"This is going to be a long day." Glinda sighed.
Elphaba merely nodded.