"You're the only friend I've ever had."

"And I've had so many friends... but only one that mattered."

The dream faded as quickly as it came. It was the dream she had the most often, flashing back to that cold night, about a year or two ago. No, no about. It was one year, eight months, three weeks, and four days ago. Exactly. She hadn't realized she had been counting.

She resisted opening her eyes. If she waited, she could still see her best friend alive. She could still see her best friend, before the splash of water and all the screaming. She rested against the pillow, listening to her own breathing. She knew that when she opened her eyes, the illusion would fade, and her friend would die again.

But she still had to open her eyes. She slowly sat up. The sky was still dark. She hadn't been sleeping well. Actually, she hadn't slept well since the day she and her Elphie had left Shiz.

She gazed around her room. Something in the air was off. With a mix of horror and joy, she recognized the figure sitting on the edge of her bed. She jumped up and climbed out of the bed. "What-what are you? Some trick, some ghost, some... What the hell are you?"

Elphaba Thropp sat on the edge of the bed, as green as ever. "I'm... I'm nothing, Glinda. You're still asleep."

"This is an awfully vivid dream, if I'm still asleep."

"You have a vivid imagination."

Glinda didn't say anything. Dream, or trick, or ghost, or what, she didn't want the illusion to end. She wanted to think her best friend was still with her, talking to her, sitting on her bed with her. "Are you sure you aren't a ghost?"

"I-I'm dead, so maybe I am." Elphaba, or the vision of Elphaba, stuttered.

"Are you haunting me?"

"Why would I haunt you? What have you done to deserve haunting?"

"I'm still alive, and you're not." Glinda said, feeling guilty.

"I hardly thought survival was a vice."

"Maybe." She glanced out the window, and looked back, expecting the image to have disapeared. It didn't. "Maybe it's how I survived."

"You didn't do anything wrong." The vision said kindly.

"Are you sure?"

"I'm a ghost. Of course I'm sure."

"I miss you."

Now the ghost looked guilty. "I know you do. I'm sorry."

"I guess ghosts don't miss people."

"No. Ghosts miss people. They miss people alot." Glinda didn't know if that made her feel better or worse. "I need to go, Glinda."

"Please don't."

"I can't stay... Lay back down and close your eyes."

"What if I don't?"

"Glinda, please... it's easier that way."

"I love you."

"I love you too. Now sleep."

"You said I was already asleep." Glinda refused. "How's Fiyero? Are the two of you together, up there? Or knowing you, down there?"

The ghost smiled. "Fiyero is fine. He misses you too. He never meant to hurt you at all. He just-"

"He just loved you."

"He did. He does. And I love him."

"That's good then."

"Go to sleep now, or I'll make you." When Glinda protested, she mumbled something underneath her breath, which made the blonde's eyelids unbelieably heavy. The last thing she heard was, "Good-bye."

Elphaba hid in the shadow of the tree outside Glinda's bedroom, waiting for the coast to be clear. Fiyero would kill her if he realized she was missing. The guards would kill her if she was caught. She focused on not crying at having to leave her best frined, again.