An owl hooted in the distance, fireflys flickering among the trees, stars twinkling above. Spring had come late and while it was warm during the days, the nights held a chill. The Emerald City was in a panic due to the apparent betrayal commited by the highest ranking leader in their armed forces. But the forest didn't respond to political unrest.
She closed her eyes, feeling the soft material of her cloak separating her from the cool ground. His heavy millitary uniform lay discarded a few feet away, forgotten. Most of her clothing laid near it in an untidy heap. He held himself over her, his hands running lightly over her body as if to memorize her normally hidden curves with his hand. He pressed a kiss against her hair, whispering, "I love you, my Elphaba." Something shifted and she nudged him off of her and sat up, modestly letting her loose hair fall so it covered her. "Elphie?" he asked, not having expected that reaction from her. Did she not feel the same way? "Did I do something wrong?"
She didn't look up from some spot on the ground a few feet away, feeling chilled. Spring may have come, but it was less cozy outside of his arms. He grabbed his jacket and slid it around her shoulders. It was too big for her, but she pulled it around her, holding it closed. After a long, uncomfortable silence she said, "Yes."
He looked down at a tree root under the oak they had rested under. "Would you please tell me what it is?"
Her gaze shifted upward, still not meeting his eye. "You said you loved me. That has to be a lie- and it's OK. I don't mind if you aren't in love with me. I expected that. I'm asking for too much to have you actually love me. I just don't want you to lie to me because you believe you have to."
That was it? "Sweetheart, please. I don't know how you can think that." He cautiously leaned forward, sliding one arm around her shoulders. She didn't relax into the embrace and didn't seem to appreciate the petname. "If anything I don't know how I got lucky enough to have you love me."
"But-"
"Remember what I said about letting other people talk?" He tried to say, playful. He felt a strong need to lighten her mood. "Do you really think I would run off with someone, leaving every comfort the Palace and my inheritance can offer, if I didn't love her? I don't think I can articulate why I love you, but I promise you I do."
She hesitated before she leaned slightly back into his waiting arms. "Just because I can't come up with a good reason for why you would do something so brainless doesn't mean you wouldn't do something that brainless."
"If all it was, was lust I was after, you do realize I wouldn't have to leave the palace to have that desire satisfied? I wanted you, you crazy woman. I still do. I love you, I want to be with you, I want to hide in creepy forests with you, save Animals with you, and above all I want to finally be able to show you I love you. I don't want to hide the way I feel about you away anymore. I can't. It's been too long a time."
"How long?" She wasn't sure she really wanted to know.
"I didn't realize till you brushed my hand the day with the Lion Cub. Though I'm sure I loved you since I saw you walk into that silly Ballroom, that hat on your head, chin held high." He traced a fingertip along that chin, letting it drift to her delicate neck, collarbones.
"I really want to believe you," she said, finally really calming down, letting her cheek rest against his chest. "It's just no one has ever... when I was little Mother only held me because she had to. Father didn't acknowledge me unless he had to. Nessie claims to love me, but she never treated me like a sister-"
"Other people's flawed logic has nothing to do with mine," he insisted.
"What did you just say about letting other people talk? I... I'm not saying I believe you would lie to me. I'm just saying it's difficult to understand how one person can finally love me. Especially the one person I love."
"Believe it." He tilted her chin up and saw how badly she wanted to trust him. "You're mine, Thropp. I love you. I want you, badly." He kissed her and she reciprocated. She nudged him backward, the two of them curling together.
A bullfrog croaked an anwser to the owl, the fireflys putting on a light display for their mates. Above them the sky was clear and the moon hung in the air, giving them a gentle light to see by. Neither of them noticed anything but their lover, and the sleeping forest allowed them their privacy.