Author's Note: Hey guys! This is my first Wicked fanfiction! I've only seen the show once, and I haven't read the book, but I've absolutely fallen in love with it (and with Fiyeraba), so I had to write something for it. I've tried to pick up some things about it from reading other fanfictions, so hopefully any information I've gathered is accurate. If not, I apologize.
In addition, as was mentioned in the summary, this story wasn't originally my idea. Full credit for that goes to NellytheActress. Also, thanks to Wickedly Hope Panacake for setting up the plot bunny center where I "adopted" the idea. I hope I've given it a good home!
Disclaimer: I don't own Wicked. Never have, never will.
Galinda Upland skipped excitedly down the hallway of the dormitory at Shiz University. It was the start of another school year, and she couldn't wait to start her new classes, organize her dorm room, and most of all, reunite with her best friend, Elphaba Thropp. They hadn't seen each other all summer; they'd only communicated through letters.
At last, Galinda reached her dorm room. She eagerly flung open the door to reveal Elphaba lying on her bed, reading a book.
"ELPHIE!" she shrieked. The green-skinned girl barely had enough time to sit up before Galinda flung her arms around her in a bone-crushing hug. "How are you?" Galinda went on.
"I'm having a little trouble breathing, to be honest," Elphaba managed to say.
"Oops!" Galinda giggled, releasing her tight grip on Elphaba. As she pulled back, she frowned and squinted at her friend. "You look different. Not in a bad way, just… different somehow."
Elphaba merely smiled, neither confirming nor denying Galinda's statement. Suddenly, Galinda squealed. "Elphie! You curled your hair, didn't you?" Elphaba blushed and nodded, and Galinda clapped her hands. "I'm finally rubbing off on you! Oh, it looks great!"
Elphaba laughed at her overenthusiastic friend. "Thanks. Don't get used to it though. It took forever," she said before changing the subject. "I was starting to think you weren't going to show up. What took you so long?"
"Sorry," Galinda said. "I was with Fiyero."
"I should've guessed," Elphaba said, shaking her head. Fiyero Tiggular was a Vinkun prince and, as of that summer, Galinda's boyfriend. They'd met when Galinda's family had gone on vacation in the Vinkus, and Fiyero had now transferred to Shiz. Galinda insisted that it had nothing to do with her, but Elphaba suspected otherwise.
"When do I get to meet this dashing young prince?" Elphaba continued. "I have to give him my stamp of approval, you know."
"All in due time," Galinda said with a grin. Just then, she glanced at the clock and gasped. "I completely forgot! I'm supposed to meet with Madame Morrible to discuss a scheduling conflict."
"When?" Elphaba asked.
"Five minutes ago," Galinda said sheepishly. "I'd better run. See you later!"
"This doesn't look good for Fiyero, you know. If he's distracting you from your responsibilities, then –" Elphaba began. But she never got to finish, for Galinda was already out the door.
About twenty minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Elphaba, who had curled up with her book again, simply called, "Door's unlocked, Glin."
To her surprise, a young man opened the door and stepped inside. Elphaba quickly closed her book and jumped to her feet. "You're not Galinda," she said unnecessarily.
"Nope," the man said. "Fiyero Tiggular, at your service."
"Ah. So you're the infamous Fiyero," Elphaba said teasingly.
"That's right. And I take it you're Elphaba," Fiyero said.
"Yes. How did you know that?" Elphaba asked.
"Galinda's told me so much about you," Fiyero answered. "All good things, I can assure you."
There was a silence as Elphaba settled herself on the edge of the bed. She surreptitiously studied Fiyero's features as she did so. Galinda definitely hadn't been exaggerating when she gushed about how handsome her boyfriend was.
"Well, I assume you want to hear the story of my green skin, right?" she said at last, figuring the question was inevitable. "Yes, I was born with it –"
"That's all right, I don't need to hear it," Fiyero interrupted. "You've probably explained it to other people plenty of times."
"Tried to explain it," Elphaba corrected him. "A lot of people don't even want to look at me long enough for me to have the chance."
"I'm sorry," Fiyero said sincerely.
"Don't be. I'm used to it," Elphaba said. "Besides, things have become a lot better since I've gotten to know Galinda. People aren't exactly clamoring to be my friend, but at least most of the name calling has stopped." Not wanting the pity party to go on any longer, Elphaba cleared her throat. "Anyway, is there any specific reason why you stopped by?"
"Galinda and I were going to go out for lunch," Fiyero explained.
"You must love her a lot if you're willing to switch schools to be with her," Elphaba said.
"Actually, I came here because it's practically the only school that I haven't been expelled from yet," Fiyero said. "Glin was just a bonus."
"Wow, the two of you really are perfect for each other. You're both terrible at lying," Elphaba smirked.
Fiyero bit his lip. "To be honest, I've started questioning our relationship lately. Don't get me wrong, Galinda is beautiful and sweet and kind, but sometimes I find myself wondering if she's the right one for me. Do you know what I mean?"
Elphaba was taken aback at the unexpected shift in the conversation. "Whoa, back it up. If you're looking for relationship advice, you've come to the wrong person," she said.
"No!" Fiyero said hastily. "I mean, I just needed to get that off my chest. And, well, you're the closest thing I have to a friend at Shiz right now, so…" He trailed off, lowering his gaze to the floor.
"I understand," Elphaba said quietly.
"Look, I would really appreciate it if you didn't mention this to Galinda. I'm still trying to figure everything out," Fiyero requested. "Besides, I'm probably just being paranoid, what with Galinda being my first serious girlfriend and all."
"Of course," Elphaba promised, and Fiyero gave her a small smile.
Just then, the door swung open and Galinda came bouncing into the room. "Sorry about that! The meeting took much longer than I expected," she said. She looked from Elphaba to Fiyero, beaming. "I see you two have met."
"Yes, and Elphaba's every bit as wonderful as you told me," Fiyero said, wrapping an arm around Galinda's waist and kissing her on the cheek. "Ready to go?"
"Absolutely," Galinda replied. She turned to Elphaba. "Elphie, you'd better be here when I get back so we can do something fun together."
"If 'something fun' involves any kind of make-up, then no," Elphaba said firmly.
"But you promised!" Galinda said.
Elphaba frowned. "I did?"
"In one of your letters over the summer, you said I could give you a makeover when we got back," Galinda said.
"I can't imagine why I'd say that. I must've been hoping you'd forget," Elphaba said.
"Nothing gets past me," Galinda said smugly.
"All right, Fiyero is waiting for you. We can talk about this later," Elphaba said. Fiyero shot her a grateful look.
"So is that a yes?" Galinda said hopefully.
"Just go!" Elphaba said, and Fiyero began to gently tug Galinda out the door. "Have fun!"