Fiyero had never really given much thought to Elphaba before. Sure, he'd noticed her, in all her green glory, how she always held some sort of dusty book in her hands, how her arm was always in the air when a teacher asked a question, how she never sat silent when her eyes began to blaze with a passion that he had begun to see more and more. Beyond stolen glances or a fleeting word here and there, Fiyero's contact with the green girl had been nothing more than the minimal amount it took to achieve politeness.
Until, that is, the first time he touched her.
You couldn't call his reaction to the situation thoughtful, per se, seeing as his thoughts were buzzing around his head like worker bees, manic and uncontrollable. In the moment, with her slender fingers wrapped around his, there wasn't much in the way of intelligent thinking on his part. It was almost as if the sparks radiating up his arm and through his body were affecting his brain, shutting off all logic from reaching him.
The urge to do more, to take her hand in both of his, to bring it to his chest, to kiss it, even, was so overwhelming that Fiyero could barely see straight. The sight of Elphaba in front of him, the dark emerald flush on her cheeks, the wild intensity in her eyes, was almost enough to drive him to do those things.
However, the consequences of those actions floating around in his head were enough to stop him in his tracks.
As the frenzy Fiyero had worked himself into began to calm, as he began to collect himself, the realization of going through with what he so desperately wanted to go through with came crashing down on top of him.
If he pushed too hard or went too far so soon, Fiyero knew for a fact that Elphaba would close herself off, push him away, and he would be stuck further from her than he had ever been.
And that was the last thing he wanted.
If anything, Fiyero wanted to stay as close to this remarkable woman as he could.
vvvvvvvv
It started so small, so seemingly meaningless.
Little touches, here and there. A brush of hands, a bump of legs, a gentle squeeze of the shoulder. Each one left Fiyero reeling, head spinning, utterly confused and dumbfounded.
The sheer electricity and heat that passed between the green girl and the prince each time they came in contact drove Fiyero absolutely mad—heart slamming against his ribcage, the urge, the desire, the need to act on impulse boiling up inside him until it was almost impossible to ignore.
The little things he had never paid much attention to before were now the cause of his spiraling downfall into a sea of attraction and love for this sarcastic, bitter, yet so enchanting woman.
Fiyero was so captivated by her that he found himself willing to do anything to get her to look at him.
Even accompany her to the library.
Elphaba walked at a brisk pace, her long legs able to carry her ahead of him, while he trailed behind like a lost puppy. She was particularly determined today, as something Dr. Dillamond said had sparked a fire in her eyes that Fiyero had never seen before.
Just watching her was enough for him.
Watching her lips press together into a thin line as she searched the dingy shelves for what she wanted, watching her fold her slim legs underneath her where she sat, watching the contrast of her green skin to her dark hair when she lifted a hand to tuck a strand behind her ear.
Everything about her face, he admired. Her strong jaw, her pointed chin, her high cheekbones, her thick lashes, her full, emerald lips, her long nose, and of course, the lovely green hue of her skin.
"Aren't you going to look for something?"
Elphaba's voice cut through the silent air between them, startling Fiyero out of his trance.
He'd been so fixated on gazing at her that he hadn't realized how ridiculous he looked—just sitting across from her, studying her, unmoving, unblinking.
"I-I," he stuttered aloud, his voice cracking from surprise, "right. Yes. Something. A book. To...read. Yes."
Elphaba didn't seem phased by his awkward stammering, simply raised an eyebrow, before her eyes fell back to the pages of the book in her lap.
Attempting to compose himself enough to make good on his statement, Fiyero finally ripped his stare away from the green woman to look around the room and scan the stacks for something to occupy himself with.
But he didn't want to read.
He wanted to look at her, take her in, talk to her, touch her.
Fiyero longed to sit down behind her, wrap his arms around her waist, bury his face into her neck, run his fingers through her hair, anything, anything that allowed him to be closer to her, to hold her, to feel her.
So he did the only thing he could think to do.
With a soft thump, Fiyero positioned himself beside the green woman, his knee just barely bumping against hers when he leaned towards her to glance at the book she was so engrossed in.
"Can I help you?"
The annoyance in her tone caused him to wince.
"What...what are you, ah...reading?"
Elphaba opened her mouth to answer, lifting her head to look him in the eye, but not a single word made it past her lips.
Fiyero's breath lodged in his throat when he focused in on how close the green girl was.
How wide her eyes were.
How dark her cheeks were.
How close her lips were.
All he had to do was lean forward just an inch or two, and he would be living in the fantasy he had been unable to stop thinking about for weeks on end.
But he didn't.
He couldn't bring himself to.
And oh Oz, did he regret it.
vvvvvvvv
Since Elphaba had disappeared—or been killed, for all he knew—Fiyero hadn't been able to turn his thoughts off. There was no switch that could stop his love for her, no button he could press to mend the fractures in his heart.
He missed everything about her.
Her smile, however rare it was, the way it stretched across her whole face, and made him smile too.
Her rich, low voice, and how it went high-pitched and squeaky when she was embarrassed, and raw and raspy when she was angry, or talking about something she was passionate about.
The way she twirled her hair around her fingers when she was concentrating on a book or a paper.
The way she bit her lip, shifted her weight, and averted her gaze whenever he would touch her or get too close, overwhelmed with a shyness that he found adorable.
He missed her laugh, her eyes, her captivating green skin that he couldn't seem to shake.
He missed her so much it manifested as an unbearable ache, an agonizing, burning pain in his chest that kept him up nights on end, woke him with fits of tears, woke him from tantalizing dreams of her that tormented him endlessly, every time he closed his eyes. He saw her, standing before him, radiant, stunning, every night, and every night, he awoke, thrown back into the harsh reality, wrenched away from the fleeting dream he so desperately tried to hold onto.
The fleeting dream he wanted nothing more than to drown himself in until he'd forgotten what reality felt like.
Oh Oz, if only.
vvvvvvvv
Fiyero had dreamed of, hoped for, prayed for the moment when he could see Elphaba again—but being prepared for it was an entirely different battle that he was already losing.
Seeing her face, her elegant, emerald face, brown eyes lit up like stars with shock and affection—seeing this Elphaba, this Elphaba with the torn up dress and the wild hair and the scars on her neck and hands—sent him spinning back into the frenzied whirl that he'd been trapped in all those years ago when he was young, so young, and so in love—that feeling that had been overpowered by grief and pain in the recent months, that feeling that he'd missed so much.
"Fiyero," Elphaba breathed out his name in a raspy tone. "Fiyero…."
Overcome with a range of emotions, love, adoration, attraction, joy, Fiyero found himself unable to respond, unable to move.
Unable to rush towards her and gather her in his arms like he so hopelessly wanted to.
As if reading his mind, the green witch approached him, tentatively, cautiously, watching him in an attempt to gauge his response.
"Fiyero?"
"Elphaba," he whimpered finally, tears filling up his blue eyes, spilling out, overflowing onto his face. "Elphaba...Oz, Elphaba, I…."
Whatever Fiyero was planning on saying was cut short by the sobs falling past his lips.
Elphaba's gaze softened with sympathy at the sight of him, her hand resting gently on his shaking shoulder, squeezing.
"Fiyero, please—"
Now it was her turn to be interrupted, by the prince collapsing into her arms, pulling her against his chest, hands clutching at her dress, in an attempt to get as close to her as he could manage.
"Elphaba," he cried, his voice muffled by the fabric of her collar. "Oz, Elphaba, I'm so...I'm so sorry, I…."
"What are you apologizing for?" she replied with a snort, practically melting into his touch, with no trace of the shyness she held when she was younger.
"I missed you."
His voice was small, quiet, sad.
"I missed you too, Fiyero," she murmured, eyes closed, arms locked around his neck.
All of a sudden, he couldn't take it anymore.
He had to kiss her.
And so, he did.
Barely stopping to breathe, Fiyero pulled himself out of the embrace, his eyes locking with Elphaba's for a split second before he brought his lips to hers.
A blast of passionate electricity scorched through his veins, throwing him into a euphoric bliss, a wave of ecstasy washing over him. Passion was already burning in his gut, his chest, but the second Elphaba returned his gesture, reciprocated his actions, it exploded into a fiery yearning that he completely surrendered to.
He gave himself wholly and completely to her, arms wrapped around her back, losing himself in her, her hands, her lips.
He could feel her smile into the kiss, feel her relax, feel all the weight on his shoulders disintegrating into the charged air around them.
"Fiyero," she rasped, her voice raw with exhilaration, pressing her palms to his cheeks, "where did...that come from?"
"I love you," he blurted. "I love you, I love you so much, I have since...since Shiz, for so long, and I...I never told you, I didn't want to push you, I didn't want to scare you away—"
Elphaba stopped his ramblings with a single finger to his lips.
"I love you too."
There was something so different about her that was keeping Fiyero guessing every second of their reunion. The awkward, clumsy anger and snark of Elphaba all those years ago, the Elphaba at Shiz, had been replaced with a maturity, an allure, a confidence, a bravery. This Elphaba had him under a spell, had bewitched him in a way he wasn't sure he could shake—not that he wanted to.
"You've...you've changed." he observed.
"Have I?"
"Not...not in a bad way, you're just...different."
"Leading a revolution as a fugitive of the law will do that to you, Yero."
Fugitive….Shit."I...we have to get you out of here," Fiyero started, reluctantly pulling himself away from her. "Before they find you, the Gale Force."
Elphaba's eyes flashed with understanding, and she turned to seize the broomstick she'd left propped against one of the emerald walls.
"Let's go, then."
Taking her by the hand, Fiyero led the witch through the corridors, in and out of secret passageways, and out the hidden doors at the back of the castle that faced straight towards the woods beyond.
"Get on."
Fiyero turned to see Elphaba positioning herself on her broom, and gesturing for him to do this same.
He swallowed, giving the old thing a weary glance, before doing as he was told and situating himself behind her.
Flying through the air, above the trees, on a thin piece of wood and straw, was both exhilarating and absolutely petrifying to Fiyero.
Elphaba, on the other hand, seemed impossibly used to it, to be enjoying it, even.
Until, of course, her awareness of his arms around her stomach, his breath on her neck, skyrocketed to a high that drove her up the wall. She could feel a jolt of pleasure rush through her when he decided to plant kiss after kiss against her skin, again, again, and again, brushing his teeth over a spot that made her jerk her entire body in shock and bliss, causing the entire broom to spasm, almost throwing the two of them off.
Her face and neck flushed a deep green when she heard Fiyero chuckle behind her.
"May I suggest we land this thing before you kill us both?" he teased, tapping his fingers against her hips, making her squirm.
"So we can…." he leaned closer, murmuring in her ear, "...continue?"
These words made Elphaba squeak, her knuckles turning a pale green from gripping the handle of the broom so tightly.
"Fiyero," she whispered, her voice high, gritting her teeth before steering the broom down, through the trees, coming to a stop on the soft carpet of grass below them.
She couldn't throw the object to the side fast enough.
His lips were on hers in a matter of seconds, kissing with a desperation, a passion that she fervently returned. Fiyero's hands were everywhere at once, exploring her entire body, increasing her heart rate, sending a heat through her that settled in her stomach, driving her insane, a heat that only flared hotter when he shifted his kisses to her neck.
Elphaba whined in ecstasy, her hips giving an involuntary thrust when Fiyero nipped at that spot on her neck. She could feel him grin against her, her reaction only fueling him further, this time no impending danger hindering him.
His hands were all over her, caressing her face, fingers drumming against her hips, playing with strands of her hair, running down her thigh, tracing her figure, feeling every inch of her, as if memorizing her form.
And then, Fiyero shifted, lowering himself onto his knees, bringing Elphaba down with him, going further and further until her back had hit the ground, his knees trapping her on either side.
Feeling her hips twitch at every manipulation of her skin, his teeth grazing across her neck, his lips sucking, pulling, drove him so crazy he wasn't sure how he took it.
"Oz, Elphaba," the prince growled, lifting himself up to look at her face, "you have no idea the power you hold over me right now."
This statement pulled a breathy cackle from the witch's lips. "Is that so?"
The pure seduction in her voice made Fiyero's breath catch in his throat. He watched as she pulled herself up, resting back on her knees, slowly but deliberately snaking her arms around his neck, her fingers fiddling with his collar.
Elphaba sitting so close, yet so still, so silent, was almost more maddening than her writhing in pleasure beneath him had been. Fiyero watched as she drew her hands down his chest, undoing the buttons of his shirt with a tantalizing smirk on her lips, sucking in a breath each time her skin touched his.
A low moan rumbled up from his throat when Elphaba pressed a kiss to his chest. She kissed him everywhere, everywhere he had kissed her, with the same fervor and fierceness, the same loving passion.
Fiyero was like putty in her hands, against her lips, the skin-on-skin contact rendering him completely helpless to her, to her touch. Every nerve in his body was ignited with electricity, every touch from the green girl sent him reeling, overwhelming him with arousal and lust.
He moaned her name, over and over, as she made use of the absolute control she had over him.
Elphaba leaned away ever so slightly, her fingers ghosting over the bare skin of Fiyero's chest, making him shiver, her emerald lips twisting into an enticing smile.
"Oh, you wicked woman," he panted, breathless, "I seem to have fallen completely under your spell."
This comment prompted Elphaba to laugh, more of a giggle, really, appearing, if just for a moment, as that wide-eyed schoolgirl with such hope for the future that she'd long since let go of.
But she fell back into herself just a moment later, with a line that made Fiyero practically quiver with desire.
"Well then I'd better...make sure it doesn't wear off," she hummed, drawing her tongue across her lips.
She was teasing him, purposefully staying still, challenging how long he could wait, he could tell by the way her eyes sparkled as she looked at him, tempting him.
Fiyero let out a low growl when Elphaba finally initiated, pushing him to the ground beneath her, her hands roaming over his skin, their lips connecting like lock and key, his hands sliding down her waist and underneath her skirt to run along the skin of her thighs, her hips, her stomach, eliciting a moan from deep in her throat.
Fiyero managed to flip himself up, reversing their positions, now looking down on Elphaba beneath him, her hair wild around her head, her skirt hiked up to just below her stomach, her collar undone, exposing her chest, eyes wide and blazing with passion, lips parted as she tried to catch her breath.
Everything about her, the way her skin contrasted with the forest floor, the way her hips would give a little twitch every few moments, willing him to resume, all of it made Fiyero so crazy with love and excitement that he never wanted to be without her again.
So he let his actions do the talking.
He kissed again, fiercer this time, but gentler, her neck, her shoulders, smirking to himself when his kisses to her chest caused her hips to grind against him, a quiet mewl escaping her lips.
That night they spent in blissful heaven, together at last, giving no thought to the events that could take place afterwards.
Elphaba lay still, her head resting against Fiyero's still-bare chest, listening to his heart thudding at a steady pace, secured in his arms, feeling safer than she had in a long time.
Fiyero heard her sigh of contentment, smiling to himself, his heart almost bursting with affection when she snuggled just a bit closer, looking up at him through those long lashes.
"Yero, my hero," she spoke softly, lazily, as he peppered her face with loving kisses.
"Yes, my darling Fae?"
The nickname caused Elphaba's smile to widen all the way across her face.
"When did you...fall in love with me?" she asked, giggling ever so slightly when his lips tickled over her neck with feather-light kisses.
"The day we rescued the Lion cub," he answered, pulling his face away so he could look at her. "When you...grabbed my hand, you...you turned my whole life upside-down."
Elphaba giggled again when Fiyero resumed his gentle kissing and nuzzling of her neck.
"Yero, that tickles," she squealed, ducking her head away.
Just the sound of her laugh made Fiyero's heart swell with love.
"I love everything about you," he admitted, his arms tightening ever so slightly around her. "Your eyes, your lips, your smile, your laugh...I could go on forever, Fae."
"And you're so beautiful, inside and out," he continued, "and I promise, as long as I live, I will never let you go."
"I love you too, Yero, my hero…."
"We're going to be together always, Fae, and no Wizard, no Gale Force, no one is going to ever change that."
Elphaba's eyes fluttered closed, the corners of her mouth twitching up when Fiyero took her hand in his, brought it to his lips, and kissed her knuckles, kissed the back, kissed her fingers and all the way up her arm until he'd made his way back to her neck.
"I'm going to keep you safe," he swore against her skin. "I'd sooner die than let anything happen to you."
vvvvvvvv
There Elphaba sat, alone and broken, the Grimmerie lying useless in her hands, ripped out pages torn and strewn across the floor.
"Yero, my hero, I... I'm so sorry…." she rasped, her throat raw and aching from hours and hours of tears.
Oz, did she miss him.She missed him so much."You'd sooner die…!" the witch wailed, hissing as a scorching tear slid down her cheek. "Brainless fool, you've gone and done it!
"Are you happy now?"Elphaba's scream reverberated through the tower, cut short by another bout of painful sobs.
He'd protected her, he'd kept her safe, he'd made good on his promise, and now he was rotting away in a cornfield, alone in horrible agony.
And it was all because of her.
vvvvvvvv
"We're reuniting too much, my darling Fae, we need to stop separating."
It was a bad joke, Fiyero knew, and neither of them were laughing.
He just couldn't stand seeing her cry the way she was.
He'd fought tooth and nail to get to her, after so miraculously escaping from the Gale Force's unbearable torture, tracked her down, and now there she was, insisting that he wasn't real, that she was dreaming, she must be going crazy, stumbling over her words, sobbing harder than he'd ever seen her cry, pleading with him not to make it worse.
Fiyero had no idea what to do.
"I must be hallucinating," she whimpered, pressing her palms against her face. "You can't...you're not...you were dead, Fiyero…!"
"Please, Fae," he begged, "listen to me. Believe me, trust me, I swear to you that it's me, it's really me, I'm right here, Fae. When have...when have I ever lied to you?"
"When you swore we'd be together always," the witch spat, anger quickly giving way to anguish, as she continued in a tired moan. "Haven't I...haven't I been through enough? What did I do to deserve this horrible subjection, this sick spell, this cruel joke?"
Her words made Fiyero sick with grief and guilt.
"Fae, oh Fae, I...I'm so, so sorry," he gasped out, his chest aching. "I know I left you, and I'll never forgive myself for that, but please, please understand, I had to...I had to keep you safe, don't you remember I promised you that, too?"
He took a few steps closer, biting down on his lip so hard he tasted blood to keep from melting into a puddle of tears himself, hating every second of seeing Elphaba in so much pain, kneeling beside her on the floor, reaching for her, gently grasping her wrists to move her hands away from her face.
The first contact between them in a long time sent that familiar spark rushing through him.
"Look at me, Fae."
Fiyero took in everything he'd missed so much about her beautiful face.
Though her eyes were swollen from tears, and her cheeks raw from the burn of it all, this was still Elphaba.
Elphaba, who he loved so dearly.
"I promise you, I swear on the life I have left, my love, my Fae, that I will never leave you alone like that ever again."
Fiyero let go of her wrists to bring his hands up to cup her face, his thumbs ever so softly brushing away her tears, before they fell to rest on her shoulders so he could leave tender, loving kisses against the raw tracks of burns on her cheeks.
"Yero, my hero," Elphaba breathed, the anguish in her eyes giving way to something like relief, something like love.
Her use of the nickname practically melted Fiyero's heart, his face lighting up with adoration.
"Yes, my darling Fae," he rasped, his tone thick with emotion, "it's me, my love, it's me."
Her arms were around his neck before he could say another word, the force of it almost knocking him backwards before he stood to balance, her face burying into the crook of his neck.
"Oz, Yero, I was so scared, I was…."
"I know, Fae, I know, and I'm so damn sorry for putting you through that."
"It wasn't your fault," she assured him, smiling when she felt him kiss the top of her head, his arms around her back, cradling her like he never wanted to let go. "If anything, it was mine, I should've saved myself, I should've saved you—"
"Let's just please agree it was neither of our faults and call it even, Fae," he interrupted with a short laugh.
"...Fair enough."
After a moment of silence, Fiyero spoke up again, quietly. "You scared me, you know—seeing you there, crying like that, I...I didn't know what to do, Fae, I didn't know how to help, and I panicked, I…."
"I was scared too," Elphaba murmured in a small voice, nestling closer to him. "You have no idea how many times I dreamt you were here, here with me, and then woke up without you, and I...it hurt so much, Fiyero, and I didn't...I didn't want to feel like that if I didn't have to."
"I had dreams like that about you, too," he confessed. "When you left, when we were still at Shiz."
"You...you did?"
"All I wanted to do was sleep, anything to bring me back to you, whether it was real or not, and I didn't realize...I didn't realize what it was doing to me," he spoke, so softly Elphaba almost couldn't hear.
"Fiyero, I—"
"Hey," he interrupted, cutting her off before she could finish. "Don't apologize, Fae, because that wasn't your fault either. None of this was."
The way she relaxed into him, completely surrendering to his embrace, losing herself in his arms, only made him cling to her tighter, afraid if he loosened his grip she would disappear.
She needed to be held right then, and he wasn't about to deprive her of that.
"My Fae, my beautiful Fae," he whispered to her, tilting his head down to reach her neck, trailing kisses along her skin, smiling when he felt her press against him.
She lifted her face, the twinkling in her eyes betraying her sentiments, a smirk playing at her lips. "Yero, my hero, why don't we...make up for...lost time?"
"My gorgeous Fae, I thought you'd never ask."